Dust entry

Shipbuilding manganese welding fume

Metal fume and particulate generated during shipbuilding and ship-repair welding, fitting, grinding, and related work.

Airborne form

fumeaerosolmixed

The form describes what is suspended in air at the point of exposure. A material can produce more than one form, such as dust during handling and fume during heating.

Health effects

manganese overexposurerespiratory disease concernmetal fume exposureneurological health concern

Evidence

A 2025 NIOSH evaluation of shipbuilding and ship-repair operations analyzed 31 metals and found structural and pipe welders, fitters, and helper-tackers overexposed to manganese; NIOSH recommended portable welding exhaust, general ventilation, and respiratory protection to reduce exposure.

Source: html-and-pdf ↗ · saved source
page 7 · Our Key Findings — Employees were overexposed to manganese · 1

We analyzed the air samples for 31 different metals ... employees ... were exposed to manganese above the NIOSH recommended exposure limit.

Controls

portable welding exhaust
general building ventilation
exposure monitoring
respiratory protection
enclose welding where feasible