Why should an employer spend money on noise reduction – especially to save only a few decibels?
The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005 require the reduction of noise exposure. Reducing noise levels at source provides the most effective way of protecting workers’ hearing as well as providing numerous other benefits to companies. Noise can create stress, and can be a safety hazard at work, interfering with communication, acting as a distraction and making warnings harder to hear. Because noise is measured on a logarithmic scale, a reduction in noise of 3 dB, which seems small, is in fact the equivalent of halving the intensity of the noise. This would mean that the person could work for twice as long at the reduced level and have the same daily personal noise exposure as before.
