Whether it comes by way of your insurance company, a client’s request for an audit, ISO certification, or the long arm of OSHA and/or MSHA, at some point your company is likely going to need to provide documented evidence of the noise levels to which your employees are exposed to during their working day. Simply taking noise level measurements in the area where workplace activities are in process is not enough. Those readings can easily give you levels that are too high, or worse yet, too low! The only way to properly gauge the exposure to noise and sound that your workers are actually exposed to is through noise dosimetry.
Personal noise dosimeters are simply noise level meters that are designed to be worn by workers during their shifts. Best practices for the collection of this information will require that an employee wear the noise dosimeter for the entire duration of their shift…and it’s crucial (for the sake of accuracy) that the period of testing actually reflects their normal working day! Even if it’s not possible (for what ever reason) to take measurements for the entire duration of their working shift (or in the case that their working shift is longer or shorter than the 8 hours that OSHA and/or MSHA mandates) it’s possible to extrapolate the likely average level to which they are exposed to. This measurement is called the TWA, or time weighted average. Simply put, it’s a calculated number that is based on the noise level that they are exposed to during the measurement period…shortened or lengthened to meet the criteria for an eight hour period.
We use a few different dosimeter models, depending upon the particular application.
We have units that are safe for combustible areas (intrinsically safe) as well as units that are lightweight and non-invasive. It’s all dependent on your application, and requirements. Our most advanced noise dosimeters allow us to provide you with such metrics as: time weighted average, peak levels, minimum levels, and number of peak events. We are able to deliver to you detailed information in spreadsheet and graphic formats that detail the average (and/or peak) noise levels to which your employees are exposed to on a minute by minute basis.
Contact us today to find out how we can provide you with the information you need to safeguard the hearing safety of your employees, as well as inoculate your company from the risk of legal action based upon avoidable noise violations.
Start the ball rolling by using the convenient form located below:
Or you can speak to one of our consultants by calling 1-800-665-0080
