In various Manufacturing industries such as:
AmCraft’s noise-dampening and noise-blocking curtain panels will make a very noticeable difference for all of your employees and facility visitors.
Building a quieter environment by enclosing and/or separating the noise will be appreciated by your employees and increase their comfort levels while at work. Keeping noise at bay will also help keep OSHA out of your business.
Please take a look at OSHA’s daily permissible noise level exposure matrix below. This matrix explains how long, according to OSHA regulations, an employee can work in areas with high decibel levels. If you reduce the overall noise level, a given employee can work in the reduced noise level area for longer periods of time.
In an effort to address these issues, the REP empowers regional officials to:
If your facility is in Region V, you may receive communications from OSHA to remind you of regulations, invite you to engage in training sessions, and share the latest news about how noise affects workers. OSHA officials may also choose to inspect and review your operations, records, and health and safety programs.
You can find the full list of manufacturing industries being inspected by reviewing the OSHA REP declaration. It includes facilities manufacturing everything from concrete pipe to aircraft. Ultimately, whether your facility’s NAICS code is on the list or not, you should make meeting noise exposure guidelines a priority.
If your facility is in Region V, you may receive communications from OSHA to remind you of regulations, invite you to engage in training sessions, and share the latest news about how noise affects workers. OSHA officials may also choose to inspect and review your operations, records, and health and safety programs.
You can find the full list of manufacturing industries being inspected by reviewing the OSHA REP declaration. It includes facilities manufacturing everything from concrete pipe to aircraft. Ultimately, whether your facility’s NAICS code is on the list or not, you should make meeting noise exposure guidelines a priority.
OSHA penalties for failure to abate can reach up to $13,653 per day, while willful or repeated violations can cost up to $136,532 per violation. Those numbers don’t include the productivity losses and potential legal penalties that could result from inadequate noise protection for employees.
Inspectors operating under the REP may review your noise monitoring and conservation programs. They may also take their own readings throughout your facility. You’ll want to verify that your employees never exceed OSHA’s permissible exposure limit. OSHA recommends that employers keep noise levels below 85 dBA for an 8-hour shift. As dBA increases, the amount of time an employee can be exposed to the noise decreases. Excessively noisy workspaces can lead to productivity loss since employees are not allowed to spend as much time in the space.
Personal protective equipment like earplugs and headphones can help protect the hearing of manufacturing workers. But remember that employee noise exposures are computed without regard for personal protective equipment, per OSHA regulation 1910.95(c)(1). So an employee can’t work in 90 dBA for 8 hours even with ear protection. However, employers can make adjustments to the spaces where manufacturing employees work to help minimize noise.
As mentioned above, PPE can help protect workers, but it’s not enough to meet OSHA standards for hearing conservation. You’ll need other strategies to bring noise levels down to acceptable ranges. These could include:
Installing acoustic panels, curtains, and baffle systems. Such acoustic barriers and containment systems can reduce noise, echo, and reverberation, with a much lower one-time investment than new machines. Over time, they can increase productivity by allowing workers to safely spend more time in the space.
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