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The Noise Survey
The noise survey will be carried out at your premises by a
qualified noise control engineer to identify any personnel
who may be exposed to excessive noise levels.
The noise measurements are carried out using professional
grade sound level meters and noise dosemeters (personal sound
exposure meters). |
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The survey consists of the following elements:
- Briefing - introducing the engineer to your plant and operations
- Manual noise measurements using a hand-held sound level meter
- Noise dosemeters mounted on personnel who carry out noise
intensive tasks
- Manual Octave Band analysis for particularly noisy
areas (hearing protection assessment)
After the initial briefing, and assuming your site regulations
allow it, the engineer will be happy to work alone, so you can
get on with your day without being interrupted.
The Briefing
Before starting measurement, our engineer will need to have an
understanding of your work processes, machinery and factory layout.
The briefing will usually take between 10 minutes and half an hour,
depending on the size and complexity of the plant.
After the briefing the engineer will usually be happy to work
alone when carrying out the survey. Of course this depends on your
site regulations and the complexity of the processes involved.
Noise Measurements - Sound Level Meter
Detailed measurements are made at work locations using a Class
1 Integrating Sound Level Meter. Details of the measurements
are stored in the meter for further analysis during the reporting
stage. These are the most important measurements that we make.
They are carried out in controlled conditions and the results
are used to calculate the workers' daily noise exposure (Lep,d). |
Manual Measurements |
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Noise Measurements - Noise Dosimeters
In most surveys a number of workers will be fitted with Noise
Dosemeters, which mount on the shoulder and monitor the exposure
to noise. These dosemeters are left in place on the worker's
shoulder to automatically make measurements while the engineer
is making manual measurements elsewhere. |
Noise Dosemeter |
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Noise Measurements - Octave Band
Where sound levels are high and hearing protection must be
worn, it is not sufficient to just provide whatever protectors
are available without first checking that they offer adequate
protection. The best way to do this is to make an Octave Band
measurement and then calculate the level at the ear for each
type of protector that is available. Wherever the above measurement
methods show high noise levels, an Octave Band Analysis will
be carried out to enable these calculations to be carried out
and the results included in the report. |
Protector Checking |
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