In order to prepare the information needed to construct a reduction system for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) exhausted from ship-block paint-booths in a giant shipyard, VOCs in paint-shop airs were analyzed and compared to the components in paint thinners. Aromatic hydrocarbons containing eight and nine carbon atoms are known to be major VOC compounds found in shipyard paint-shops. The total hydrocarbon (THC(C7)) concentrations calibrated using toluene gas, were measured in block paint-shops with two photo-ionization detector (PID) meters, and the resulting THC(C7) data were converted to THC(C1) concentrations according to the Standard Methods for the Measurements of Air Pollution in South Korea. THC(C1) concentrations near the spray site ranged from 10 to 2,000 ppm, but they were less than 400 ppm near the walls of the paint-booth. The measurements of THC concentrations, based on the height of the monitoring sites, were related to the height of the target to which the spray paints were applied. The maximum concentrations occurred at almost the same height as the spray targets. When painted blocks had been dried-by warming with no spraying, the THC concentrations were 80~100 ppm.