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How Can a Grinding Machine Operator Get Mesothelioma by Occupational Exposure to Asbestos?
Grinding machine operators are responsible for setting up, maintaining and repairing grinding machines that are used to grind metal pieces like dies, tools and parts. They determine whether adjustments to the machine is necessary, stop grinding machines when problems occur. They may also inspect products to ensure they meet quality control standards and operate machinery to grind metal pieces.
Grinding machine operators could have been exposed to asbestos in a variety of ways. Grinding machines often contained asbestos. Grinding machine operators are responsible for making sure the machine worked properly and was safe to use, so they could easily come into contact with these products. Grinding wheels on these machines were often made out of an asbestos compound like Bakelite resin. Additionally, their cores may have been reinforced out of core. When grinding machine operators used these machines to polish product surfaces, small fragments often broke off when the wheel came in contact with other surfaces. This caused the asbestos to become friable, making it easier for it to break off into microscopic airborne fibers. Likewise, when grinding machine workers and operated thrilled through or cut components that contained asbestos, asbestos fibers would become dislodged where they could be breathed in by those nearby.
Asbestos was also contained in many other products found in industrial settings, such as conveyor belts and insulation for machinery. Asbestos was contained in brakes and parts to protect products from heat. Grinding machine operators may have worn protective equipment to protect them from heat or fire, but the aprons, masks, shields and gloves they used may have also contained asbestos.
Asbestos was also contained within the walls of factories or wrapped around boiler units. When it was disturbed during construction or maintenance, fibers can become airborne.
Locations in the United States for the Highest Employment Rates for Grinding Machine Operators
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are currently 74,600 people employed under the BLS’ category of “grinding, lapping, polishing, and buffing machine tool setters, operators and tenders, metal and plastic.” The states with the highest employment rates for grinding machine operators and similar positions include:
- California
- Ohio
- Wisconsin
- Michigan
- Indiana
Similar Occupations as Grinding Machine Operators
Similar occupations as grinding machine operators include:
- Assemblers
- Fabricators
- Hand grinding and polishing workers
- Machine operators
- Metal and plastic machine workers
- Metal and plastic tenders
- Tool and die makers
- Tool setters
Lawsuits and Settlements Involving Grinding Machine Operators and Mesothelioma
Despite a higher potential for asbestos exposure, there have been relatively few lawsuits brought by grinding machine operators regarding asbestos or mesothelioma. A wrongful death case was filed in California that alleged a former worker who operated an arc grinding machine to prepare new asbestos-containing drum brake linings was exposed to asbestos dust from this work. He developed desmoplastic mesothelioma. The jury awarded his family $600,000.
Grinding machine operators who develop mesothelioma may have several legal options to obtain compensation for the damages they have sustained. They may be able to obtain workers’ compensation benefits if they developed an occupational disease due to asbestos exposure at work or file an asbestos trust fund or personal injury claim against the manufacturers of asbestos products to which they were exposed.
Studies Related to Grinding Machine Operators and Asbestos
There are no known studies that relate to grinding machine operators and asbestos exposure. However, there are several scientific studies related to asbestos plant workers and factory workers. For example, in the 1998 study entitled “Asbestos Textile, Friction, and Packing Plant Workers (Asbestos)” conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, researchers evaluated more than 3,200 people who may have been exposed to asbestos and tracked their deaths. They found elevated mortality rates for these workers.
A 1969 study entitled, “A study of the mortality of workers in an asbestos factory“ found a higher incidence rate for cancer of the lung and pleura in situations in which workers were more heavily exposed to asbestos. Other studies have found similar results when assessing asbestos plant workers in London and Tyler, Texas.
Types of Asbestos Products Used by Grinding Machine Operators
Grinding machine operators may have come in contact with a variety of materials that contained asbestos, such as:
- Grinding machines
- Grinding wheels
- Joint compound
- Lathes
- Conveyor belts
- Cement
- Insulation
- Bricks
- Drywall
- Metal
- Adhesives
- Tiles
- Tape
- Gloves
- Helmets
- Aprons
Manufacturers of Asbestos Products Used by Grinding Machine Operators
Manufactures of asbestos products that grinding machine operators may have been exposed to may include:
- O. Smith
- American Standard
- Foster Wheeler
- Raybestos
- BF Goodrich
- Riley Stoker
- Kewanee
- Zurn
- Erie City Boilers
- Cleaver Brooks
- Weil McClain
- US National Radiator
- Goulds
- DeLaval
- Milton Roy
- Nagle
- Ingersoll-Rand
- Buffalo Pumps
- Blackmer
- Armstrong
- Byron Jackson
- Peerless
- Bell & Gossett
- Morris
- Durco
- Dean
- Aurora
- Marlow
