I often get questions about OSHA guidelines and protection policies. That said, I thought you might want to review some of this research I just located:
About Occupational Safety and Health Association and Hearing Protection Guidelines
OSHA hearing protection guidelines stipulate that when noise in the workplace is found to be excessive, the employer is obligated to try addressing the problem through administrative or engineering measures. If the sound level is still excessive after these measures have been implemented, the employer must provide “personal protective equipment.”
The OSHA guidelines go on to specify details reflecting the findings of research on the effects of different noise levels on the human body. It has been shown that when a person is exposed to two or more periods of differing noise levels, there is a cumulative effect on the body that is greater than exposure to just one of those noise levels would be. If your work day involves going from one noisy place to an even noisier one, the effect on your hearing and general health will be especially damaging. In this situation, hearing protection would probably be mandated under the OSHA guidelines.
Loud Noise Impacts More Than Your Ears
There is more than just hearing involved here. Science has further shown that when a person hears excessively loud noise, their whole body tenses. Their stomach secretes more acid and their blood pressure rises. Due to the rise in blood pressure, persons who already have heart problems and are exposed to excessive noise will experience an increased risk of stroke or heart attack. It is findings such as these that prompted the OSHA hearing protection guidelines. There is now a general recognition that exposure to excessive noise is more than just an annoyance; it is actually life-threatening.
How Can HEAROS Help You and Your Employees?
In response to the seriousness of the threat, HEAROS designs and makes all of its products to the highest standards of performance. HEAROS offers protection for extreme noise exposure with its Xtreme Protection ear plugs. These protectors have a Noise Reduction Rating (NRR) of 33, which makes them perfect for high-noise environments.
But what about workplaces where sound cues are important? On construction sites and other jobs, equipment sometimes gives signals that employees need to hear, and for these places HEAROS makes High fidelity HEAROS ear plugs. While these plugs were originally designed for music events and are widely used for that purpose, they might be good for the kind of workplaces where hearing is important. They allow the full range of frequencies to come through, but at a greatly reduced level. If there’s a sound that the employee needs to hear, he’ll be able to hear it.
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