The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2006, clearly places the responsibility on employers to protect the hearing of their workforce by reducing exposure to noise, which reaches the statutory threshold commencing at 80db or 135dB peak and enforceable when rising to 85dB or 137dB peak.

The consequence of either short or long term periods of constant exposure can cause temporary noise induced hearing loss or more permanent hearing damage, leading to full blown industrial deafness. Clearly establishing deafness causes linked directly to the workplace may entitle an employee to claim for substantial compensation from the their employer.

Too often, the employer may simply do nothing beyond placing a standard Health & Safety Regulations poster on the wall or issue staff with notification of the requirements to wear ear defenders, ear plugs, etc. There may be little to no attempt to monitor sound levels or try to reduce excessive noise from production machinery or other tools being used by installing insulation enclosures.

There are still many employers who tend to say they would do something if they could “afford to do it” but are not too sure if any action can sufficiently reduce the noise levels! In reality, there is quite a number of actions an employer can take to safeguard the hearing of employers apart from supplying ear defenders.

If alternative, low-noise emitting equipment cannot be found to replace excessively noisy machinery, then an attempt should be made to move equipment or workstations around to stifle the flow of the noise of the machine away from direct exposure by workers. Additional soundproofing structures can be simply built to isolate the immediate loud noise machinery/equipment area.

Older machinery tend to be the worst offenders ! Metal to metal impacts such as grinding and hammering are also common causes. Regular maintenance to lubricate and/or replace worn parts including replacement of easily lost silencers around blowing nozzles and air exhausts, checking of slack pulley belts, gear and brake housings, should all be frequent routines.

Loud noise areas can be clearly signposted along with strict instructions for ear defenders to be worn at all times. In addition, a clear limit must be imposed on the amount of time workers are allowed to be exposed to areas of high noise each day. Setting a target to which noise levels must be reduced to and not exceeded should be robustly enforced for all future equipment purchasing. This means a prior request for known sound level testing information on specific machinery.

Employers may not be aware that by simply cutting exposure time by half, overall noise exposure will be reduced by a vital 3dB. The chart below clearly shows the time limits for exposure to noise levels and the relatively short periods of time involved.

Decibel Exposure Time Guidelines

Accepted standards for recommended permissible exposure time for continuous noise exposure frequencies.

For every 3 dBs over 85dB, the permissible exposure time before possible damage can occur reduces by one half

Continuous dB       Permissible Exposure Time
85                          8 hours
88                          4 hours
91                          2 hours
94                          1 hour
97                         30 minutes
100                       15 minutes
103                       7.5 minutes
106                       3.75 min
109                       1.875 min
112                       Less than 1 min
115                       Less than 30 secs