In an industrial environment, noise is not only unpleasant, it can also cause some productivity losses. Hearing loss caused by noise can lead to higher workers’ compensation requirements and higher insurance costs.
Too much noise can interfere with communication between people. Continuous noise exposure can also cause fatigue, which usually leads to accidents and reduces the efficiency and quality of work.
In preventing occupational hearing loss: a practical guide, the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health discusses several strategies for dealing with noise in the workplace. In short, they include:
Prevent or control excessive noise in hazardous workplaces.
Use barriers (sound-proof boxes or sound-proof rooms) to control the contact between workers and hazards.
If there is no noise in the noisy workplace at the beginning, then you have no problem. It would be great if it were that simple. But there is more than one type of noise pollution, it may have point source noise and overall noise.
Point source noise is audible and can be traced back to the kinetic energy of a particular device. These may include industrial machines, presses, pumps, blowers, and generators.
The overall noise is an uncontrollable sound with no identifiable source. This will include noise from conversations, tools, and small machines in industrial environments.
To complicate matters, the frequency of noise will also affect you in different ways. Fatigue and nausea are usually caused by low-frequency vibrations, while high frequencies can cause pain and hearing loss.
Finally, reverberation can disrupt communications and cause higher noise levels. Reverberation is caused by the reflection of sound waves from hard surfaces. Usually this is experienced in gymnasiums.
There are many different products that can help control noise. Once you determine the source, you can learn to control it. Some strategies include:
First create a shell or barrier to help suppress noise, and then install the sound-absorbing material, because now it is closed, we don't want it to bounce around. Some machines or equipment also need to be installed with vibrating brackets. If they have something that can help absorb the noise between them and the surface to which they are attached, they may be very quiet.
Noise is harmful outside the workplace. High noise levels and reverberation are also common problems in non-industrial environments. Problems often arise in stadiums, auditoriums, cafeterias, multi-purpose rooms, churches and other large public spaces. Unwelcome and uncontrolled sounds are not only counterproductive, but also hinder the intended use of the room. It can also cause fatigue, pain and hearing loss.