Understanding Occupational Noise Hazards

For decades now we have understood the health impacts of noise and the long-term damage to our hearing. There is a requirement for workplaces to try to reduce noise levels to below 85 decibels if it occurs over an 8-hour period. You are not to expose your employees to a noise level above 140 decibels. However, hearing damage is related to the intensity of the sound, the nature of the sound (whether it’s continuous or intermittent) and the duration of the noise exposure. So long term exposure to low-level noise can also create permanent hearing loss.

In this podcast, we summarise a Chapter on Occupational Noise by the OHS Body of Knowledge to provide the key concepts and advice to help you manage noise hazards in your workplace. We provide a basic understanding of acoustics and the factors that impact hearing loss and health together with the principles of noise measurement and control.