Shimadzu Customers Exposed to Hazardous Materials
According to information available from the Maryland Occupational Safety and Health
office within the Department of Labor, Licensing & Regulation (Baltimore, MD, USA),
two customers from the Tidewater Agricultural Research & Extension Center (Suffolk,
VA, USA) inhaled fallout (SP-2300/SP-2310 on Chromasorb) following an unexpected eruption
of column packing material from the injector side of a Shimadzu GC-14 gas chromatograph in
December 1995. Following exposure, one of the customers complained about a burning
sensation on the face and a tightness in the chest. After a brief search, it became
apparent that Shimadzu Scientific Instruments had not shipped any MSDS information to
accompany the GC columns ordered by the customer. Thereupon, the Shimadzu field employee
on-site called the company's headquarters in Columbia, Maryland. Mr. Steve Cubbedge from
Shimadzu apparently commented: "1) the main ingredient in the column packing material
was diatomaceous earth (i.e. dirt), and 2) that he didn't see a problem" even though
the Shimadzu field employee remarked that "symptoms were being voiced." Next,
the Shimadzu field employee (who was also exposed) contacted Supelco, Inc. directly
following an unsuccessful attempt by Shimadzu personnel to locate a copy of the relevant
MSDS sheets in-house. Following the faxing of the pertinent MSDS information from Supelco
to the customer site, the Shimadzu field employee transported the two customers to the
OBICI hospital emergency room in the City of Suffolk where doctors warned that "the
acute effects of exposure could include symptoms characteristic of cyanide
poisoning."
Information from the Material Safety Data Sheet reveals that the GC column packing
material involved contained a mixture of ingredients, one of which is classified by IARC
as a probable human (Class 2A) carcinogen.
Have you ordered GC columns that were packed by Shimadzu?
Was the relevant MSDS information included with the packed columns?
Are you a Shimadzu employee who worked unknowingly with hazardous materials?
Please e-mail us your experiences.... and
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This page was last 
12/31/00