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Hearing Damage Protection
Provided by Board Member Greg Thayer
Are your facilities exposed to hazardous noise at work? According to the statistics, approximately 33 million U.S. workers are exposed to hazardous noise at work.
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) recommends that worker not be exposed to noise that averages 85 decibels (dBA) for more than 8 hours a day. Long term exposure can cause permanent hearing loss.
Below is a summary of the strength of different sounds in decibels:
20 dB – Leaves rustling
30 dB – Whisper
40 dB – Library
50 dB – Moderate rainfall
60 dB – Normal conversations, dishwashers
70 dB – Traffic, vacuums
80 dB – Alarm clocks
90 dB – Lawnmowers, tractors, power tools, blenders, Hair dryers
100 dB – Motorcycles, Snowmobiles, headphones at max volume
110 dB – Concerts, car horns, sporting events, chainsaw, factory machinery
120 dB – Jet planes (during take-off), thunderclap
130 dB – Jackhammers, heavy machinery, ambulances
140 dB+ – Fireworks, gunshots, explosions
Hearing Damage Prevention
It is important to understand if your employees are working in high-risk areas. Test your facilities to see if employees are exposed limits above 85 dB. If you have identified areas of high dB, then follow the following six steps:
- Train workers to avoid hearing loss - (a) Provide the proper training so workers understand the risks and know how to protect themselves. (b) Put up signs and reminders and periodic safety refreshers.
- Eliminate the Source - (a) The most effective way to control noise exposures at your workplace is to eliminate the source of noise altogether.
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Replace louder equipment - (a) If you can’t completely remove a machine or tool, you can upgrade it and replace it with a quieter, more efficient alternative. (b) Switching to quieter equipment, even by just a few A-weighted decibels, can create a quieter workplace.
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Engineer ways to control Industrial noise - (a) Redesign equipment and construct barriers like separate control rooms to distance workers from noise. If your plant has concrete walls and steel equipment, acoustic panels can reduce noise by absorbing and diffusing sound waves. Blanket enclosures, door seal kits, and sound-dampening sheets can help decouple and dampen sound from machines.
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Change the ways people work - (a) Designate or create quite areas away from loud work areas to provide a place where your workers can get away from noise hazards. (b) Set up specific times for working in loud environments to limit the amount of time they are working in noisy areas. (c) When sound levels are over 85 dBA over 8 hours, restructure schedules so workers don’t exceed 8 hours in these areas.
- Provide PPE for hearing protection - (a) The last line of defense is to offer hearing protection to employees. (b) This can include ear plugs, earmuffs or other hearing protections.
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