Blue jeans are big business, and in recent years fashion designers have created new demand for denim which comes with a pre-worn look. To meet this demand, the process of sandblasting was introduced as a cheap and easy way of ‘distressing’ jeans.
Sandblasting involves firing abrasive sand onto denim under high pressure, whether in a machine booth or simply via an air gun attached to a hose. Often performed without proper ventilation, safety equipment or training, the practice exposes workers to serious risk of silicosis, the deadly lung disease caused by inhalation of silica dust.
