Measuring Sound

Technology makes it possible to measure the actual impact of workplace noise on individual employees

Hearing loss is a serious issue in workplaces where noise is a constant. But apart from using sound-attenuated equipment and obeying OSHA noise standards, how can you tell if your people are exposed to noise that could do lasting harm?

Now technology makes it possible to measure how much sound an individual employee is exposed to. In a way, it’s like the radiation-sensitive badges worn by workers in nuclear power plants that measure cumulative exposure to radiation.

Of course, workplace noise is not as harmful or insidious as radioactivity, but it can and does have cumulative effects. And now you can measure actual exposure with a device called the QuietDose personal dosimeter from Howard Leight/Sperian Hearing Protection, LLC.

The device measures and records a worker’s actual in-ear exposure to noise over an entire work shift. The company says this is a major advance toward stopping the progression of occupational hearing loss and helping employers comply with hearing safety regulations.

More than estimation 

“Hearing conservation programs are only as good as the data they’re based upon,” observes Renee Bessette, COHC, marketing manager with Howard Leight. “Existing noise measurement devices only sample ambient sound. This forces employers to estimate workplace noise levels and base hearing protection on potentially faulty conclusions. That can end up wasting money, risking regulatory violations, and endangering employee hearing.”

The personal dosimeter, on the other hand, measures the actual noise levels reaching a worker’s eardrums, in real-time, over an entire work day. This gives safety managers high-quality, personalized data they can use to create customized and effective hearing conservation programs for each worker. That should mean fewer cases of occupational hearing loss, thus fewer claims and lower compensation costs for employers. Supervisors can also use the personalized data to improve productivity by better managing worker deployment in areas of extreme noise, Bessette notes.

“Workers themselves can personally monitor and control their noise exposure in real time,” Bessette adds. “Flashing alerts indicate when noise exposure reaches or exceeds prescribed limits.”

In-ear measurement 

The system uses a small Exposure Smart Protector dosimeter worn by employees in a shirt pocket or on the back of a hardhat. It also includes protective eartips or an earmuff with integrated microphones that record real-time, in-ear noise levels; and a connecting harness. An infrared reader lets safety managers retrieve data from the dosimeter at the end of each shift or work week and analyze the results on a computer.

Using the system, safety managers and employees can:

• Track, document, and address the potential for occupational hearing loss and Standard Threshold Shift (STS) in real time.

• Select appropriate hearing protectors for each employee’s noise environment.

• Train and monitor employees in the correct use of earplugs or earmuffs.

• Streamline worker deployment by more accurately matching shift hours with proper protection.

• Identify potential opportunities to eliminate dual protection (the use of both earplugs and earmuffs).

• Compare the benefit of monitoring employee noise dose versus investing in engineering controls to reduce specific noise levels.

Technology could apply well to activities like high-pressure waterblasting, industrial vacuuming, and other tasks that involve working around high-powered equipment. In any case, it’s worth remembering the impacts of prolonged workplace noise and to make sure your company’s hearing conservation program is doing the job. You can find out more about the QuietDose technology at www.howardleight.com.



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