The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently decided that the risk of fatal asthma attacks for construction workers associated with the production of polyurethane compounds was too great and launched a program, the National Emphasis Program, with the aim of reducing or, ideally, eliminating the health effects of occupation exposure to polyurethanes by increasing both education and enforcement of current policies. The program is targeted specifically at isocyanates, which are a key component to the production of foam insulation. The going may be tough, however, because isocyanates are everywhere in the building industry since they react with polyol to form the polyurethanes commonly found in high-performance insulation.
Read the full article here: OSHA Puts the Squeeze on Asthma-Causing Polyurethanes