Hearing Protection Training PART 1 – THE PROBLEM © Copyright SHS 2006

Who is UniSafe? UniSafe® UniSafe® is a brand manufactured and distributed by Scott Health and Safety. The company behind the brand, Scott Health & Safety, has been manufacturing high quality personal protection equipment in Australia for over 65 years. UniSafe is striving to make the workplace safer for everyone with head, face, hearing and respiratory equipment that is effective and comfortable. compromise is not an option. When it comes to personal safety, achieving and exceeding Australian and New Zealand standards is our aim, and compromise is not an option.

Training Requirements To ensure AS/NZS :2005 Hearing Protection Program for Hearing Conservation against noise exposure, are achieved. To protect your invaluable sense of hearing. Objective

Why is hearing protection important? It is a noisy planet, whether at work, home or leisure Some of those noises (unwanted sound) may damage your ears and prevent you from hearing important sounds Once damage has occurred it is irreversible

How does hearing work? Pinna Outer Ear Canal Eardrum Cochlea Auditory Nerves Semicircular canals Eustachian Tube Hammer Stirrup Anvil

Damage to the Cilia is Irreversible BEFORE AFTER (Lim, D.J & Melnick.W, 1971, Archives of Otolaryngology, 94, ) Fig A Scanning electron micrograph showing normal appearance of three rows outer hair cells and tectorial membrane (TM). Fig B Degenerating outer hair cells resulting from a 6- hour exposure to a 1-2 KHz octave band noise of 117 dB SPL.

Types of Injuries Hit by moving object Hitting an object with a part of the body Falls/Trips/Slips Others Heat / Radiation Sound/Pressure Source: New South Wales WorkCover 2001

Severity of Ear Injuries Less than 6 Months 6 months and over Permanent Disability Source: New South Wales WorkCover 2001

Effects of Noise Exposure What Exposure to Loud Noise Will Do Exposure to loud noise will inevitably cause hearing loss over time. Loud noise damages or destroys the nerves in the inner ear. Another effect can be “tinnitus” or permanent ringing in the ear.

Effects of Noise Exposure Duration, Intensity and Frequency Our ears can recover from short exposure to loud noise, but over time nerve damage will occur. The longer and louder the noise, the greater chance permanent damage will occur. High exposure to various pitches can interfere with our ear’s ability to pick up sounds at certain frequencies i.e. “m”, “i”, “e”

Effects of Noise Exposure Hearing Loss from Noise Exposure Hearing loss from noise exposure is usually not noticed because it is so gradual. Usually a person looses the ability to hear higher pitches first. Often the first noticeable effect is difficulty in hearing speech.

Effects of Noise Exposure Tinnitus from Noise Exposure Exposure to high noise levels can also cause permanent ringing in the ear called “tinnitus”. Tinnitus sufferers usually complain of constant whistling, squealing, roaring or buzzing in one or both ears. Severe tinnitus may disrupt sleep, reduce concentration and cause irritability and depression.

Effects of Noise Exposure What is too much Noise Exposure? Exposure to noise levels above 115 decibels for even 5 minutes is very risky. Impact or banging noise above 140 decibels will cause immediate damage to nerves in the ear. Studies indicate Noise is: - Anxiety, Lack of concentration, Reduced productivity (Noise & its effects, Suter, 1991) - Heart Disease (Federal environmental agency Germany, 2004) - Elevated blood pressure (Univ. of Michigan, 2004)

Effects of Noise Exposure When is Noise too Loud? Noise is measured in units called “decibels” or “dB” If two people 3 feet apart must shout to be heard, the background noise is too loud (above 85 decibels). Noise above 140 decibels causes pain and immediate hearing loss.

Duration Noise (dB) Permissible (Hrs) Exposure (Mins) —

Duration In Noisy areas removing hearing protection” just for a minute” is not recommended. Sometimes people will remove hearing protection for “just a minute” in a noisy area. If you wear a 30dB earmuff for 99% of the time its actual performance drops to 20dB HPD’s won’t protect your ears around your neck or in your pocket!!! Wear your hearing protector 100% of the time Wear your hearing protector 100% of the time

Intensity Decibels (dB) 90+ dB dB dB dB dB 0-20 dB Jet Aircraft Takeoff (25m away) Drilling Concrete Chainsaw Truck Rock Concert Lawn Mower Busy Road Telephone Power Mower Loud Radio Conversation Vacuum Cleaner Business Office Living Room Library Quiet Office Bedroom Leaves Rustling

Frequency 100 Hz 1000 Hz 10,000 Hz Hz 5000 Hz KHz Human Hearing Range

Noise Levels Lets discuss your noisy equipment and noise sources and their noise levels here. Noisy areas and equipment at our Company