Video Exposure Monitoring as a Tool in Workplace Exposure Assessment

Book excerpt: Video exposure monitoring (VEM) consists of taking video recording of a worker performing a task at the same time while personal monitoring is performed using a direct-reading instrument. The video and the exposure data are then merged and synchronized and analyzed together. The industrial hygienist conducting the VEM is able to identify any high level of exposure and note the time when the excessive level happened. The corresponding task of the worker is then identified based from the video shot taken at the same time as the exposure data. The objective of this thesis was to study the implementation of a low cost means of conducting VEM in workplaces with hazardous chemicals in use, by utilizing commercially-available direct reading instruments, a digital video camera, and either off-the-shelf software or freeware downloadable from the internet. It was intended that VEM done by such means would still have the same ability of conveying workplace exposure results and, at the same time, capable of pinpointing work areas where controls could be initiated to reduce excessive levels of contaminants.