Noise

Noise

Main Industries and Occupations at Risk

  • Shipbuilding & ship repairing – fitters, mechanics, etc;
  • Granite quarries – crushers, drillers, etc;
  • Engineering works – grinding, sawing involving high velocity equipment;
  • Iron and steel mills, other heavy metal industries;
  • Metal working industries, e.g., making of ball and roller bearings, nuts, bolts and screws, metal cans;
  • Woodworking industry;
  • Textile industry;
  • Paper industry;
  • Engine testing, e.g., jet engines;
  • Industries with bottling processes and operations involving cans and metal boxes;
  • Landscaping – use of leaf blowers, lawnmowers and trimmers.

Medical Examinations

Indications:

  • Workers exposed to noise exceeding the permissible exposure limit and duration, as specified in the Workplace Safety and Health (Noise) Regulations 2011.
  • The total duration of excessive noise exposure shall be obtained by adding up all the excessive exposures within the work day, whether short or long exposures. When the daily noise exposure is composed of two or more periods of noise exposure of different levels, their combined effect should be considered. Every continuous, impulsive or impact noise of sound pressure levels from 80 dB(A) to 140 dB(A) must be included in the computation of the noise exposure of the person.
    For any noise level, determine whether the maximum duration for exposure has been exceeded.
    The permissible exposure limit is exceeded if a person is exposed to noise at a sound pressure level in excess of the corresponding duration.

Types of Tests and Frequency of Examinations:

  • Pre-placement medical examination: within three months of exposure
    • Audiometric examination   Bone conduction and auroscopic examination should be done if any of the air conduction result is more than 30 dB(A).
  • Periodic medical examinations: every 12 months
    • Audiometric examination   Bone conduction and auroscopic examination should be done if any of the air conduction result is more than 30 dB(A).

Treatment

Workers with early NID should be counselled to wear appropriate PPE. Workers with rapid deterioration of hearing should be removed immediately from exposure.

 

Hearing Assessment
1 Audiometry (air conduction) $60.00
2 Audiometry (bone conduction when air conduction shows abnormal results)
Hearing Test conducted by MOM accredited Audiometrist and Certification by DWD