Originally Published as: Shop Hazard Awareness: Chemical Dangers in the Rollforming Shop
Rollforming is primarily a mechanical process, but that does not make a rollforming shop chemical-free. Lubricants, hydraulic fluids, cleaners, paints, adhesives, welding gases, fuels, and battery electrolytes may all be present. Welding, grinding, and equipment operation can also generate hazardous fumes, dust, mist, and exhaust.
Each product may appear manageable on its own. The greatest danger often develops when a chemical is heated, sprayed, transferred, mixed with an incompatible product, or used in an inadequately ventilated area.
A container of solvent left near welding is no longer merely a cleaning product. A leaking propane cylinder is not simply a maintenance problem. A water-based rollforming lubricant may present respiratory and skin hazards if the application or production process generates airborne mist. Contamination of the lubricant could also be hazardous. Even an “empty” drum may retain enough vapor to explode if someone cuts or welds it.
Chemical safety begins with recognizing that familiar products can create unfamiliar hazards when workplace conditions change.
What Chemicals May Be Present?
The chemical inventory will vary according to the work performed. A shop that only roll forms prefinished coil may have a relatively short list. A facility that also welds frames, paints components or machines, or maintains forklifts may have considerably more.
Rollforming Lubricants and Metalworking Fluids
Lubricants may be applied to coil or tooling to reduce friction, improve forming, protect surfaces, and extend tooling life. Hydraulic oil, gear oil, grease, and penetrating oil may also be used in and around machinery.
According to OSHA, workers can be exposed to metalworking fluids through skin contact, contaminated surfaces and clothing, and inhalation of airborne mist. Potential effects include dermatitis, respiratory irritation, and asthma-like symptoms. Used fluid may also contain metal particles, microorganisms, or contaminants that were not present in the original product that could cause worse issues.
OSHA recommends managing metalworking fluids as a system that includes product selection, exposure assessment, fluid maintenance, ventilation, housekeeping, training, and, where appropriate, medical surveillance.
Cleaners and Degreasers
Shops may use acetone, mineral spirits, alcohols, citrus-based cleaners, parts-washing solvents, or aerosol degreasers. Depending upon their formulation, these products may be flammable, toxic, corrosive, or irritating to the skin and eyes.
“Environmentally friendly,” “biodegradable,” and “water-based” do not necessarily mean harmless. Handling decisions should be based on the product label and Safety Data Sheet (SDS), rather than its marketing description or odor.
Paints, Primers, and Coating-Repair Products
Touch-up paint, spray paint, primers, and specialty coatings may contain flammable solvents and substances that can affect the lungs, skin, eyes, or nervous system. Spray application increases exposure by putting fine droplets and vapors into the worker’s breathing zone. OSHA’s spray-finishing requirements address ventilation, ignition control, electrical equipment, storage, bonding and grounding during certain flammable-liquid transfers.
Adhesives and Sealants
Adhesives, sealants, and thread-locking compounds may be used during panel, trim, gutter, or accessory fabrication. Some contain flammable solvents, sensitizers, or reactive components. Certain polyurethane products contain isocyanates, which can cause respiratory sensitization. Once sensitized, a worker may react to very small subsequent exposures.
Welding and Cutting Gases
Acetylene, propane, and shielding gases may be present as well as oxygen when the shop performs fabrication or repairs. Oxygen is not flammable, but it accelerates combustion. Acetylene and propane are highly flammable. Argon and carbon dioxide can displace oxygen, particularly in pits, enclosed rooms, and other poorly ventilated spaces.
Cylinders also present a physical hazard. A damaged valve can turn a compressed-gas cylinder into a projectile. Cylinders must be secured, protected from damage, and handled according to the requirements for the particular gas and operation.
Welding and Cutting Fumes
Welding galvanized, painted, plated, or coated steel can release metal fumes and decomposition products. OSHA notes that the composition of welding or cutting fumes depends upon the base metal, coating, electrode, flux, and process. Knowing that the material is steel is not enough. The coating must also be identified before hot work begins.
OSHA requires potentially hazardous materials in coatings, fluxes, coverings, and filler metals to be included in the employer’s Hazard Communication program.
Battery Electrolyte and Charging Gases
Lead-acid forklift batteries contain corrosive sulfuric acid. Charging can also produce hydrogen, a highly flammable gas. Charging areas need appropriate ventilation, ignition control, spill provisions, and protective equipment. Where employees may be exposed to corrosive electrolyte, OSHA requires suitable facilities within the work area for quickly flushing or drenching the eyes and body immediately. Battery-changing and maintenance areas need appropriate ventilation, ignition control, spill provisions, and protective equipment. Charging-only areas are subject to different requirements when batteries remain in the trucks and no electrolyte is involved.
Fuel and Exhaust
Gasoline, diesel fuel, and propane may be stored for vehicles, generators, heaters, or forklifts. Internal-combustion equipment can also produce carbon monoxide. Because carbon monoxide is colorless and odorless, the absence of smoke or a strong exhaust odor is not proof that the air is safe.
Metal Dust
Routine rollforming of intact coil generally does not produce large quantities of fine dust. Grinding, sanding, polishing, and sawing can change the risk. OSHA identifies aluminum, iron, magnesium, zinc, and certain other metals as materials that may form combustible dust when sufficiently finely divided.
The actual hazard depends on particle size, composition, concentration, dispersion, and confinement. Dust from a particular operation should be evaluated and, when necessary, tested rather than assumed to be noncombustible.
When Ordinary Products Become Dangerous
Many serious chemical incidents begin when substances or operations that are normally kept apart are unexpectedly brought together.
Flammable Liquids and Ignition Sources
Solvent vapors can travel along floors and reach welding areas, electrical equipment, heaters, or other ignition sources. Sparks from welding, grinding, switches, static electricity, or mechanical contact may ignite them.
The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board has repeatedly found that hot work can ignite flammable material in tanks, containers, piping, and nearby process areas. In one CSB-investigated incident at Packaging Corporation of America’s DeRidder mill, three contractors were killed and seven were injured while welding and grinding above a tank containing flammable material.
The lesson for a rollforming shop is that a hot-work check cannot stop at the immediate location of the torch or grinder. It must consider what is inside, beneath, behind, and connected to the work area. Further, before activities that are not part of everyday production, such as repairs, commence, the interaction between what is present in the area and the chemicals or products of the work must be taken into consideration and prevented where necessary.
Flammable Liquids and Static Electricity
Pouring or pumping a flammable liquid can generate static electricity. If that charge produces a spark in a flammable vapor-air mixture, a fire or explosion may result.
In its investigation of explosions at Barton Solvents, the CSB concluded that static sparks ignited flammable vapors during liquid transfer. OSHA requires precautions against ignition and requires bonding and grounding in specified flammable-liquid transfer and spray-finishing operations. A qualified person should determine when bonding, grounding, or approved pumps, safety cans, or electrically classified equipment are necessary.
Hot Work and Chemical Residues
A drum, tank, or container may appear empty but still contain hazardous residue or vapor. Welding, drilling, grinding, or cutting it can release toxic decomposition products or cause an explosion. Containers that have held flammable or unknown substances must not be treated as safe merely because they have been drained.
Chlorinated Cleaners and Heat
Some brake, electrical, and parts cleaners contain chlorinated solvents. When certain chlorinated compounds are exposed to high heat, an arc, or ultraviolet radiation from welding, they can decompose into highly toxic gases, potentially including phosgene and hydrogen chloride.
Cleaners should not be sprayed or stored near hot work. Before welding a cleaned part, the shop must identify the cleaner, consult its Safety Data Sheet (SDS), remove residues as directed, and provide adequate ventilation.
Oxidizers and Fuels
Oxygen and other oxidizing substances can cause combustible materials to burn more rapidly or violently. Oxygen equipment must be kept free of oil and grease. Oxygen cylinders must be stored according to applicable separation and storage requirements.
Acids and Bases
Mixing concentrated or otherwise incompatible acidic and alkaline cleaners can generate considerable heat, cause boiling or splattering, and expose workers to corrosive liquid or vapor. Acids may also react with certain metals and release flammable hydrogen.
Bleach, Acids, and Ammonia
Janitorial chemicals belong in the safety program, too. Mixing chlorine bleach with an acid can release chlorine gas. Mixing bleach with an ammonia-containing product can form hazardous chloramine gases. Employees should never combine cleaners unless the manufacturer specifically directs them to do so.
Water and Reactive Chemicals
Water is not a universal spill treatment. Some chemicals react with water, while water can spread certain flammable liquids. The proper response must be determined from the SDS and the facility’s spill plan before a release occurs.
Communication is the Foundation
OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard applies to hazardous chemicals to which employees may be exposed, regardless of whether the employer originally brought the substance into the workplace. A compliant program is more than an SDS binder placed in the office.
A rollforming employer should:
• Maintain an accurate inventory of hazardous chemicals.
• Keep a current SDS for each hazardous chemical and make it readily accessible during every shift.
• Maintain labels on incoming containers.
• Label workplace and secondary containers unless a specific exception applies.
• Develop and maintain a written Hazard Communication program.
• Train employees at initial assignment and whenever a new chemical hazard is introduced.
• Include hazardous substances generated by shop processes, such as welding fumes, lubricant mist, exhaust, and combustible or toxic dust.
• Coordinate hazard information with contractors, including the hazards present at the facility, the chemicals contractors will bring on-site, SDS availability, labeling systems, and necessary precautions.
J. J. Keller’s Hazard Communication guidance emphasizes the written program, chemical inventory, labels, accessible SDSs, and employee training. Having an SDS is not sufficient if employees cannot locate it, understand it, or connect its information to their work.
OSHA updated its Hazard Communication Standard in 2024 and extended several compliance dates in 2026. As suppliers introduce revised classifications, labels, and SDSs, employers will need to review the information and update workplace labels, written programs, and training as necessary.
Control the Hazard Before Relying on PPE
Gloves and respirators should not be the shop’s first or only defense. OSHA’s preferred approach begins with eliminating or substituting the hazard where feasible, followed by engineering controls, administrative controls, and personal protective equipment.
A shop might replace a high-volatility solvent with a less hazardous cleaner, use a closed dispensing system, capture lubricant mist at its source, isolate welding, improve battery-charging ventilation, or purchase a product that does not require spraying.
Local exhaust ventilation is often more effective than relying solely on general building ventilation because it captures contaminants near their source. A fan placed behind a worker may simply push fumes through the breathing zone or spread them across the shop.
PPE must be selected through a hazard assessment and chemical-resistance information. “Chemical-resistant gloves” are not universal. A glove suitable for a water-based lubricant may provide poor protection against a solvent. Safety glasses may not be sufficient where splashing corrosives require goggles and a face shield.
Respirators should not be issued informally. When respirators are required, OSHA’s Respiratory Protection Standard generally requires the employer to evaluate the respiratory hazard and select appropriate protection. The standard also requires medical evaluation, fit testing for tight-fitting respirators, training, maintenance, and a written program. A dust filter does not protect against solvent vapor, and an organic-vapor cartridge does not protect against every gas.
Prepare for Spills
A spill plan should identify the product’s hazards, the compatible PPE and absorbents, the circumstances requiring evacuation, and the people trained and equipped to clean up the release. It should also explain how ignition sources will be controlled and how contaminated materials will be handled.
A small spill is not defined only by volume. A cup of a highly toxic, reactive, or volatile substance may present a greater emergency than several gallons of a relatively low-hazard lubricant.
Employees trained only to handle incidental releases should not attempt to manage an emergency release. Warning signs include an unknown substance, strong vapor generation, fire or chemical reaction, breathing difficulty, a release entering a drain, a damaged compressed-gas cylinder, or a spill beyond the employee’s training and equipment.
Make Chemical Awareness Part of Production
Effective chemical-safety programs make proper handling part of everyday production rather than a once-a-year training topic. Supervisors should investigate unlabeled containers, unusual odors, visible mist, recurring skin complaints, leaking equipment, and improvised chemical use. Employees should be authorized to stop and ask what a product is before using it.
Requiring safety review before a new product enters the facility can prevent an aerosol, adhesive, or cleaner from bypassing the inventory, SDS system, storage plan, and training program.
Most importantly, employees must understand that changing the task can change the hazard. A cleaner that is usually used at room temperature may become dangerous when heated. A lubricant that is manageable as a liquid may become hazardous when sprayed into a mist. Metal that is safe in sheet form may present a different risk when converted into welding fumes or grinding dust.
Chemical safety in a rollforming shop is not simply about knowing what is on the shelf. It is about anticipating what materials can become when they are mixed, heated, atomized, spilled, transferred, or brought into contact with ignition sources.
Resources
J. J. Keller. Hazard Communication Compliance Checklist. https://www.jjkeller.com/learn/hazard-communication-requirements-checklist
J. J. Keller. Hazard Communication FAQs. https://www.jjkeller.com/faq/hazard-communication-faqs
Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Hazard Communication Standard, 29 CFR 1910.1200. https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910/1910.1200
Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Metalworking Fluids. https://www.osha.gov/metalworking-fluids
Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Flammable Liquids, 29 CFR 1910.106. https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910/1910.106
Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Welding, Cutting, and Brazing. https://www.osha.gov/welding-cutting-brazing/standards
Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Chemical Hazards and Toxic Substances. https://www.osha.gov/chemical-hazards
Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Combustible Dust in Industry. https://www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/publications/SHIB073105.pdf
U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board. Investigations, reports, and safety resources. https://www.csb.gov/
