Development and application of a methodology for heat stress assessment of workers in an Italian glass industry

Heat stress is a typical health problem in glass industries, due to the high temperatures that can be reached in these spaces, especially close to the furnaces. For this reason, the evaluation of the conditions in these environments is particularly important. In this paper, the aim is to assess the workers' exposure in an Italian glass industry to the severe environment present in the furnace area, through the use of the WBGT index. Furthermore, the maximum time that they can spend in the industry warm area was also evaluated for different types of clothing and of metabolic rates, in order to reduce the health risk that may occur.