Hearing Protection
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Hearing Protection Articles
Below is a list of articles that have been published on this topic.
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Noise in the Workplace
Speak Up On Noise
2013-01-21 EHS News: Noise is part of everyday life and is present in just about every human activity. Most types of noises are classified as either occupational noise or involve random exposure to sources in your enviro
Costing Your Hearing Protection
Costing Your Hearing Protection [Sep 2012]. Published in Health and Safety International - Europe's magazine for employee protection and personal protective equipment. HSI Magazine is published in January, April, July and October. It contains legislation updates for the whole of Europe, in-depth articles on Personal Protective Equipment and Company and Product Profiles to help you source the necessary equipment to protect your most valuable asset: your people.
What Have You Heard About Noise?
The European Union’s Green Paper on Future Noise Policy estimated that 80 million people throughout Europe suffer from unacceptable noise levels that cause sleep disturbance, annoyance and adverse health effects. The Green Paper further estimated that around 40% of the European population lives in areas where environmental noise causes serious annoyance during the daytime.
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The Importance of Workwear
Many employers are aware of their basic duty of care to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) at work, but do they really consider the value and the importance of health and safety workwear in their organisation?
Hearing Protection
Hearing Protection [Jan 2012]. Published in Health and Safety International - Europe's magazine for employee protection and personal protective equipment. HSI Magazine is published in January, April, July and October. It contains legislation updates for the whole of Europe, in-depth articles on Personal Protective Equipment and Company and Product Profiles to help you source the necessary equipment to protect your most valuable asset: your people.
Hearing Protection in the Workplace
In 2005, about 278 million people had moderate to profound hearing impairment; 80% of these people live in low and middle income countries.1 Causes of hearing impairment can include diseases such as meningitis, measles, mumps and chronic ear infections. Other causes include exposure to excessive noise, head and ear injury and ageing. Half of all cases of deafness and hearing impairment are avoidable through prevention, early diagnoses and management.
Occupational Noise Measurement
Occupational hearing loss is damage to the inner ear - a form of acoustic trauma - from noise or vibrations due to certain types of jobs or entertainment. Sound is heard as the ear converts vibration from sound waves into impulses in the nerves of the ear.
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Listen Up!
A subjective definition of noise could be ‘unwanted sound’. What is noise to one person is just entertainment to another. Ask two persons of different ages what they think about Rap music, for instance.
The Selection of Hearing Protection
There are many aspects to noise within the workplace, from conducting a risk assessment to noise control measures, but at some point within the process it is likely that it will be necessary to issue Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to at least some employees.
A Safe Place to Work - Noise can be harmful, causing short term or acute damage
When thinking of noise do you think of your workplace? If you’re lucky, then hopefully not. But there are people who come across excessive noise every day at work.
Hearing Protectors - Selection and use of appropriate hearing protectors
With an appropriate selection and use of hearing protectors, employees can do their work in noisy areas without danger of hearing damage. According to the EC Noise at Work Directive (2003/10/EC), hearing protectors have to reduce the noise exposure level at the ear to 87 dB(A) with respect to an eight hour shift.
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Hearing Protectors - Real-world attenuation and new rules for selection and use in Germany
The sound attenuation of hearing protectors in the field is often significantly smaller than determined from laboratory testing.
Above the Neck - Protection of the head, face, vision and hearing
It really goes without saying that the protection of the head, face, vision and hearing in many working environments is of paramount importance. This is due to the importance and sensitivity of these areas and the potential consequences should any of these areas be damaged. Many of the required protective equipment can be fitted into one device - the helmet. However sometimes it is impractical, uncomfortable or just unavailable to the user.
Industrial Noise
The environment we live in is a massive issue and one that’s having a growing impact on all our lives, and everyone’s being encouraged to play their part.
Don’t Turn a Deaf Ear
The requirements of the new European Noise Directive on the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of workers to noise [Directive 2003/10/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 February 2003] change the conditions of design and testing for some types of hearing protectors as well as the conditions for selection and use of all types of hearing protectors. Stakeholders responsible for health and safety in companies need to know details on changes which have to be considered within the selection of hearing protectors and their consideration within the risk assessment.
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Rocking the Leisure Business
A quiet look at the noisiest industry in town. Patrons of loud concerts and bars are there out of choice and exposed to the noise only occasionally but these venues are places of employment for millions of people across Europe who work in the music and entertainment industry, and for whom the question of choice is less clear.
Hearing Protectors
The importance of the proper assessment of PPE characteristics
Noise at Work
The ‘Control of Noise at Work’ Regulations came into force in April 2006. Over one year on from the introduction of the regulations, here is a reminder of what they require and the changes they introduced. Plus, here are some tips on when and how to conduct noise measurements in the light of the laws and how to use noise measurement equipment correctly.
Hearing Protection
Hearing protection is your final stop on the journey to control workplace noise and prevent people losing or damaging their hearing. Only when practical and managerial controls to reduce the intensity and duration of noise exposure have been exhausted should you consider hearing protection as anything more than a temporary measure.
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Hearing Protection
European EN 352 standards define testing methods for hearing protectors which satisfy the basic requirements of European legislation based on the New Approach. The basic requirements for the design, manufacture and use of hearing protectors against the harmful effects of noise are in Directive 89/686/EEC on Personal Protective Equipment of 21 December 1989. Directive 2003/10/EEC of 6 February 2003 defines the minimum health and safety requirements for workers regarding noise exposure.
Hearing Protection
Millions of employees throughout Europe are exposed to levels of noise which put their hearing at risk. Hearing loss caused by exposure to noise at work continues to be a significant occupational disease. Deafness, tinnitus or other ear conditions can be a result of exposure to excessive noise. A single, very loud sound such as an explosion can cause NIHL, but most people get it from regular exposure to sounds of 85 dB and above. Whether noise is encountered on the job or in the community, most people are at risk of NIHL if they don't take precautions.
Above the Neck Protection
To prevent ourselves coming to injury or harm while going about our jobs, we are nowadays accustomed to using appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) in order to minimise exposure to hazardous substances and offer protection in case of an accident. However, personal protective equipment is not the only route that offers protection as good work practices and organisational controls can also be used as valid risk reduction techniques.
They Have Ears But Hear Not
There are over 30 million workers in the United States alone annually exposed to hazardous noise, defined as an average sound level (time weighted average) of 90 dB. The cost of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is huge. The United States workers' compensation systems (we have over 50, one for every state, territory, plus several federal government, military, railroad, and postal worker organisation) have a number of schemes for calculating hearing loss. The most common one, called the AMA Guides, calculates hearing loss by means of decibel levels.
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Cutting Down Noise at Work
Frequent exposure to loud noise can cause permanent, irreversible loss of hearing and tinnitus. Yet in most (if not all) cases this is entirely preventable.
Every day millions of workers all over Europe are exposed to dangerously high levels of noise. Statistics indicate that one in five European workers have to raise their voices to be heard for at least half of the time that they spend at work - suggesting that they are at real risk of noise-induced hearing loss - and that 7% suffer from work-related hearing difficulties.
Sound Advice
Often, in the world of health and safety, we concentrate on the obvious hazards within the workplace and forget those aspects that do not immediately present themselves as a risk.
Selection of Hearing Protection
In the European Union there are about 400 types of hearing protectors on the market. Proper selection of hearing protectors is very important because it is only those protectors that are worn during the entire exposure that are suitable to that particular application i.e. working environment and activity.
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