Tag: On-Site Acoustical Analysis

Noise at Work

As we become old our hearing gradually gets worse however what if working in an environment that is noisy make this occur quicker. Hearing loss and damage due to work is generally preventable and it is the responsibilities of the business owners to safeguard workers from the dangers due to noise at work. As soon as hearing has been damaged it’ll never return and the outcomes on the individual and their family may be damaging.

There is estimation from the Health and Safety Executive that about a million workers in the UK work with levels of noise that put their hearing in danger. Also it is reported that there was suffering from hearing problems for over 20,000 people in the last year and there is a belief that most are work-related.

The measurement of noise is in decibels (db) and begins from silent 0 db to 120 db or more in some industries. Exposure to noise levels that are low or moderate will possibly not cause much harm but there can be damage to the ear through continuing exposure to loud noise and therefore lessen hearing ability.

Noise Reduction

A duty is placed on business owners by the Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005 for taking action when the levels of noise reach particular limit. As is the usual practice in UK Health and Safety law you must finish a risk assessment and if there is possible exposure of your employees to harmful levels, for controlling the risks you have to implement an action plan. This means looking at alternative processes, making equipment quieter, or reduction in the exposure time of the staff to the noise. It is not just sufficient to give ear protection to staff and allow them to carry on as usual since this would be a violation of the regulations unless nothing else could absolutely be done.

Stopping damage to hearing will possibly work only if there is cooperation between business owners and staff and reduction of noise is made a priority. A noise reduction program is probably to consist of considering plant and machinery to see if it could be made quieter, provide instruction and information to staff on the way to safeguard their hearing and a scheme for health surveillance for monitoring staff hearing.

Periodic hearing checks are important for monitoring the effect noise has on staff and the employer will be given an opportunity for identifying any problems at the earliest and ensure appropriate support needed.

Conclusion

Hearing loss caused due to noise is yet a main health issue not being addressed by employers sufficiently. Being a business owner, providing ear defenders and a hearing test occasionally is not sufficient to restrain staff from hearing problems and for action lacking in your legal duties you being taken to court.

Noise at Work Risk Assessment

To abide by the Control of Noise at Work Regulations, a risk assessment must be completed by an employer for determining the risk level in the workplace. An assessment of risk assessment for noise at work will perceive how employees are at risk, from what areas e.g. the actual processes or machines where noise is a problem, how their intention is to protect employees from probable damage and how it will be monitored and implemented.

It is stated in the regulations that action is needed if exposure to personal noise is more than 80 dB or if there is exposure of employers to loud and intermittent noises of greater than 135 dB. The signs typically in a workplace that could have noise issue include the noise level being intrusive such as for being heard people have to raise their voices, usage of noisy power tools or machinery in a day for more than half an hour or working in noisy industries like engineering or construction. There may not be a problem in few workplaces except from particular locations like plant and server rooms.

For completing a noise risk assessment number of suggested steps can be followed:

– Determine the existence of varied types of noise
– Take a dB reading of the areas involved
– Determine who may be exposed to the noise
– Identify the steps that have to be taken for controlling noise exposure
– Evaluate how staff are affected e.g. probable exposure to the noise level and document working patterns
– Provide information and training on the risks involved
– Consider surveillance of health and decide on how frequently to test employees
– Record the risk assessment so that review can be done on it
– Decide who will be answerable and the timescales involved
– After taking all other measures provide protection equipment
– Review the risk assessment. This will usually be there at least every year however more if there is an introduction of new equipment

Noise Levels

External assistance may be required for assessing risk for noise at work for measuring dB levels in your workplace; however buying a sound meter will cost less than £100 and are simple for operating. If you are unsure about noise being an issue, testing the sound level is worthwhile for knowing surely. If the levels of noise are less than 80 dB action level, formal action is not required but offering protection maybe sensible so that at least staff have the option of using it or not e.g. ear plugs outside plant or server rooms.

Conclusion

Assessing risk for noise at work should not be an activity hard to complete, however the actions required for reducing the workplace noise might not be very easy to implement.

Music Studio Construction with Soundproofing Products
If you have a choice to make from available rooms for a Music studio construction with soundproofing products then select the largest one. The reason is that more space allows more musicians to take part, it is better for sound effects and you can add more instruments to your collection. Select the quietest room if you have a choice so that outside noise in minimum. For your music studio, a hard floor like concrete, hardwood, or tile is better. Avoid carpets because it can interfere with frequencies. To avoid foot noise problem ground floor room is better. Of course if there is no choice, you have to do with available space.
Methods of Soundproofing Music Studio
Soundproofing a wall of the music room to prevent outside noise from entering in or inside noise escaping walls of that room need to be made more massive. This will prevent the walls from vibrating due to sound energy generated. To make wall more massive, additional materials like mass loaded vinyl may be used. Similar to adding mass, damping is another soundproofing method for music studio construction with soundproofing products which works by converting kinetic energy of sound waves to heat. One of the popular damping components in the market which is also effective is green glue. Sandwiching panels like plywood, drywall, or medium density fiber board (MDF) stuck together by green glue, you can make a good sound barrier for the home studio. This can be used for ceilings, doors, floors and walls of the room. Two structures inside the music room can be touching each other and due to this they may transfer vibrations from one unit to the other. Decoupling is a method of isolating such units with soft materials like rubber. Decoupling principle can be used in other ways also, like for example, floating floors where again rubber isolators are used on surfaces where such equipment is mounted. Leaving an air gap is another method to block sound. A floating ceiling or wall with resilient grid system and sound clips is another popular soundproofing method. Yet another method is using isolating studs with joist gasket tape fitted to the walls, ceilings or floors. The above techniques can be combined to eliminate any resonance that may develop in the room. To seal air gaps caused by electrical outlets, door and window gaps use foam gaskets. To close the gap between doors and the floor use acoustic door bottoms.
Conclusion
Even though you can avoid outside noises from vehicles, shops, neighbors etc., by choosing quieter time to work, there is no escaping from noise generated from equipment inside your room and to get good quality of sound for recording, there is no alternative to soundproofing your studio. Music studio construction with soundproofing products is the solution though it is an expensive job.

Moisture and Impact Resistant Products
Moisture and impact resistant products are designed for internal use in wall assemblies in areas where impact/penetration, surface durability, moisture, mold, and mildew resistance are major concerns. Given below are few such products.
Benefits of Moisture and Impact Resistant Products
A cement board is made by combining reinforcing fibres and cement formed into sheets that are 4 foot by 8 foot or 3 foot by 5 foot, 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick that are usually used as a backing board for tiles. Cement board can be screwed or nailed to steel or wood studs for creating a substrate for vertical tile. It can be attached horizontally to plywood for kitchen counters, tile floors, and backsplashes. Its usage can be on the outside of buildings for exterior plaster (stucco) systems as a base and at times as the finish system itself. Cement boards adds strength and impact resistance to the wall surface in comparison to gypsum boards that are water resistant. Cement board is also manufactured in thin sheets with polymer modified cements for allowing bending for curved surfaces.
Presently Sorbothane material is the most efficient in energy absorption. This material has the best resistance to shock. Whether a shock resistant material is needed for protecting workers from getting injured, product from damage, or equipment from breakdown, Sorbothane is the best for meeting your need. Runners, pneumatic tool users, industrial equipment operators, sensitive cargo, and machine parts all benefit from the properties of Sorbothane that is shock resistant. Avoidance of damage, injury and loss will improve the bottom line of your business.
For many applications Impact Modified Acrylic Sheet offers superior impact strength. This includes displays, signage, skylights, doors, windows, and any exterior or interior application where the requirement is durability. It is cheaper than polycarbonate sheet. It provides thermoforming capabilities and superior weatherability. It is available in widths up to 104″ and thicknesses of .040″ to 500″. It has various impact blend percentages with custom blends available.
Machine-grade polycarbonate is an amorphous thermoplastic material having high modulus of elasticity, high-impact strength, and good dimensional stability. These properties along with good electrical characteristics make polycarbonate stock shapes of machine grade a great choice for electrical/electronic applications. Its impact resistance, strength, and optical properties also make it a suitable material for certain structural applications requiring visual translucency.
Polycarbonate is a transparent thermoplastic showing great electrical properties and remarkable impact resistance properties. Also, its good chemical resistance and low moisture absorption rate make it a very adaptable engineering material and can be used in many industrial applications. For applications that require added stiffness, glass fibre filled polycarbonate can be got with fibre filler levels in the range 10% to 40%, but the standard is 20% glass fibre.

Mass Loaded Vinyl Sound Barriers
Mass loaded vinyl (MLV) sound barriers are made from vinyl of high grade to which silica (sand) and barium salts are added to make it equally effective like lead sheeting minus the health hazards of lead. Many suppliers now deliver mass loaded vinyl as soundproofing material to their customers. To name some suppliers, Acoustical Surfaces, Inc., Sound Isolation Company, Sound Proofing America, Green Glue Company and Super Soundproofing Company are few among them.
Applications
Mass loaded vinyl as a sound barrier material is used in homes, hospitals, businesses, music studios, theaters, and quite a few places. It possesses so many adaptable characteristics, that it can fit into nearly any situation. The other benefits of MLV are that it fulfils the building code regulations for fire ratings and does not pose any threat of toxicity to those who occupy the building.
Method of Fixing MLV
The best way to use mass loaded vinyl sound barrier to achieve the desirable effect is to fix it directly to the wall with the help of studs. In case there is any problem doing this at the time of constructing the main walls, the other way to do this is to fix it to the drywall and paint it or fit it to the rear side of paneling and then fix it to the drywall with finishing nails.
MLV for Homes
Mass loaded vinyl sound barriers can also be installed on the floor to insulate it from noises from below as well as to prevent impact noises like things getting dropped or children running from disturbing the floor below. Many houses today are built with home theater in the basement and the living quarters on the upper floors. To insulate floors above from the disturbance from the media room, the flooring of the upper floor and the ceiling of the media room below are treated with MLV.
MLV for Theaters
It is important to provide a theater with excellent acoustic quality. It has become a widely accepted practice to treat the floors, walls, and ceilings of a theater. Before MLV was introduced in the market, it was the practice to use raw lead sheets to act like a sound barrier and prevent noises from outside leaking in. Now, after the mass loaded vinyl sheets became popular, lead sheets are not used any more. The advantages of using MLV, like the ease with which it can be installed, the absence of toxicity unlike lead, and the lower cost have made mass loaded vinyl sheets the favorite alternative to raw lead.
Mass loaded vinyl sheets can be screwed, nailed, stapled or can be used as a curtain after reinforcing grommeting it. For situations where you need effective control of transmission of noise and sound, mass loaded vinyl sound barriers are the right choice as a sound barrier.