A local machine shop faces a hazardous noise problem that poses potential threats to the well being of the firm’s employees as well as the general public in the surrounding. Additionally, some of the equipment used in the shop also faces the risk of frequent damages and breakdown. To safeguard the employees from potentially harmful noise as well as prevent losses due to frequent damage of working equipment, it was necessary to conduct an initial hazard assessment in the machine shop. The assessment entailed employee’s reports regarding noise in the work environment, accidents history as well as scientific analysis of noise levels. The hazard analysis monitored the six employees of the machine shop. It also involved an analysis of the noise levels in the shop to determine whether they were within tolerable limits.
The preliminary investigations included a noise survey that found sound pressure levels to exceed 100dBA in some parts of the shop. The study indicated that employees TWA for their noise exposure ranged between 88dBA and 97dBA.
Risk Assessment Matrix
When the twa of the machine shop was measured, it ranged from 88decibels to 97 decibels. This according to study is very harmful to the human ear since the normal ear noise limit should be 85 decibels. As seen from the survey, the noise was far above the limit. Sound of such high intensity has the potential of damaging ears within a short time compared to a noise of high intensity like that of a rock concert. Sound of 100 decibels can take about 30 listening minutes to cause permanent damage to the ear. However, a lower noise of 85 decibels can take up to 8 hrs of listening to damage the ear. Below is a table to show the noise levels with their recommended exposure times.
Recommendations.
The machine shop investors ought to look for ways to keep the noise decibels as low as possible so as to safeguard the workers’ hearing. For example, machines that produce lesser noise can be installed to replace the current ones. On the other hand, sound proof masks can be used so as to deter some noise from entering the workers’ ears.
