O. H. Cilley to Sumner Simpson on Industrial Hygiene Foundation Dust Counts at Manheim (1944)

A two-page letter of May 2, 1944, from O. H. Cilley of the United States Asbestos Division of Raybestos-Manhattan in Manheim, Pennsylvania, to Sumner Simpson, the company's president. After a January meeting on a Metropolitan Life Insurance Company report on dust counts, Cilley had the Industrial Hygiene Foundation of America take sixteen dust counts in the textile mill. Its report found conditions in the Picker House "not satisfactory" (up to 9.9 million particles per cubic foot) but dustiness in carding, spinning and twisting below 5 million. John F. McMahon of the Foundation said by phone that dust control in the mill was "far above the average" for an asbestos textile plant and that a count under 5 million "is good."

What it shows

The company was measuring its dust against the 5 million particle level then used as a guide, and planned to fix the Picker House first, then the card room. It was also experimenting with oiling the fiber to hold down dust. Once changes were made, Cilley would have Mr. Fehnel of Metropolitan Life take more counts, showing that the insurer was involved in checking conditions at the plant.

In Johns-Manville's index

Johns-Manville's legal department indexed the Motley 1,000 in 1984. Its index describes this document as follows:

O. H. Cilley (U.S. Asbestos Division, R-M), letter to S. Simpson, 5/2/44, reporting on the dust counts taken by the IHF at the R-M Manheim plant. The IHF stated that the dust control at the Manheim plant was "far above the average" for an asbestos textile plant. Cilley proposes to improve the dust conditions in the Picker House at those points were dust concentration is over five million particles per cubic foot. After R-M has made some changes suggested by the IHF, Cilley states that it shall arrange with Fehnel of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company to take additional dust counts.

About this copy

This is document 222 of the Motley 1,000, from the set the Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust's records facility certified as true copies, pages CRMC-Motley1000-Subj-001312 to CRMC-Motley1000-Subj-001313.