THE HANDICAP RESULTING FROM NOISE-INDUCED HEARING LOSS
-
Upload
tiger-carter -
Category
Documents
-
view
30 -
download
0
description
Transcript of THE HANDICAP RESULTING FROM NOISE-INDUCED HEARING LOSS
THE HANDICAP RESULTINGFROM NOISE-INDUCED HEARING
LOSS
Communication
Self-Esteem
Interaction with Environment
Intimate Relationships
SIC Industry Description 19951000semploye
NIOSH %exposed> 85 dBA
152 Residential builders 609 12.4
154 Nonresidential builders 567 11.7
161 Highway and streetconstruction
223 27.1
162 Other heavy construction 526 17.2
171 Plumbing, heating, and airconditioning
172 7.4
172 Painting and paperhanging 179 19.6
173 Electrical work 593 12.5
174 Masonry, stonework, andplastering
409 8.2
175 Carpentry and floor laying 219 32.3
176 Roofing, siding, and sheetmetal
208 10.7
177 Concrete work 248 39.7
179 Miscellaneous special tradecontractors
548 13.6
Total 5,041
Total Number Exposed > 85 = 754,174
1995 Construction Employment Data and NIOSH Estimates (1981-1983) of Numbers
Exposed at or above 85 dBA
1995 Construction Employment Data and NIOSH Estimates (1981-1983) of Numbers
Exposed at or above 85 dBA
Type of Construction Number samples
Av. dBA
Range dBA
Residential 7 93.1 87.2-96.1
Roads/bridges 16 93.2 84.0-100.4
Shop work 26 94.9 84.5-103.8
Maintenance 2 95.2 91.4-97.2
ICI 23 96.2 81.3-108.0
Sewer/water 17 98.8 85.3-107.5
Plant work 6 100.7 86.7-106.0
Power station 6 107.7 92.7-113.0
Total 103 98.8 81.3-113.0
Notes: Shop work = work in a contractor's fabrication shop ICI = industrial, commercial, or institutional Plant work = work in a construction contractor's plant
Average noise exposure levels (daily Leq) by type of construction.
(Adapted from Sinclair and Haflidson, 1995)
Operator or Task Mean S.D. Range
Heavy-duty bulldozer 99 5 91-107
Vibrating road roller 97 4 91-104
Light-duty bulldozer 96 2 93-101
Asphalt road roller 95 4 85-103
Wheel loader 94 4 87-100
Asphalt spreader 91 3 87-97
Light-duty grader 89 1 88-91
Power shovel 88 3 80-93
Laborers 90 6 78-107
Crawler crane <35 ton Noninsulated cab 97 2 93-101
Crawler crane >35 ton Noninsulated cab Insulated cab
94 84
3 3
90-98 80-89
Rubber-tired crane >35 ton Noninsulated cab Insulated cab
84 74
5 9
78-90 59-87
Rubber-tired crane <35 ton Insulated cab 81 4 77-87
Truck-mounted crane 79 2 76-83
Tower crane 74 2 70-76Adapted from Legris and Poulin (1998).
Average Daily Noise Exposure Levels(8-hour Leq) of Heavy Equipment
Operators and Associated Laborers in dBA
COMBINED EXPOSURESCOMBINED EXPOSURESNOISE AND OTHER AGENTSNOISE AND OTHER AGENTS
Lead
Vibration
Carbon Monoxide
Chemicals
Solvents Toluene Xylene
SIC Industry Description NIOSHest. no.exposed> 85 dBA
Reported% usinghearingprot.
152 Residential builders 75,516 1
154 Nonresidential builders 66,339 15
161 Highway and streetconstruction
60,433 11
162 Other heavy construction 90,472 44
171 Plumbing, heating, and airconditioning
52,688 16
172 Painting and paperhanging 35,084 0
173 Electrical work 74,125 0
174 Masonry, stonework, andplastering
33,538 11
175 Carpentry and floor laying 70,737 0
176 Roofing, siding, and sheetmetal
22,256 3
177 Concrete work 98,456 19
179 Miscellaneous special tradecontractors
74,528 35
Total 754,174 av. 15 %
Estimated Numbers of Workers Exposed at or above 85 dBA and Percent using HPDs. (NIOSH percentage estimates (1981-1983) using 1995 Construction Employment Data.)
NIOSH (NOES) (1981-1983)
Highway and street construction 11% Carpentry and floor laying 0% Plumbing, heating, and air cond. 16% Overall average 15%
Lusk et al. (1998)
Operating engineers 49% Carpenters 18% Plumbers/pipefitters 32% Overall average 33%
British Columbia, Workers' Comp. Board (1998)
1988 1998 Equipment operators 74% 72% Carpenters 49% 76% Electricians 55% 64% Laborers 64% 90% Truck drivers 46% 77% Overall average 56% 75%
HEARING PROTECTOR USE AMONG CONSTRUCTION WORKERS
Problems
Intermittency:
Need to communicate during low-noise periods whenhearing protectors may attenuate too much
Need to take on and off easily Muffs sometimes incompatible with hard hats and
safety glasses Semi-aurals often uncomfortable and may not attenuate
enough for high noise environments Dirt and dust in work environment may be problem
with user-molded plugs
Need to communicate in all noise environments
Hearing protectors can reduce ability to localize
Solutions
Active attenuation
Communication headsets
Hearing protectors with flat attenuation
NOISE CONTROL
HEARING PROTECTORSPRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS
Barriers:
Mobility of construction workersTemporary and seasonal nature of employmentSmall size of construction companiesPrevalence of self-employment
Solutions:
Centralized systems
British Columbia - Worker Compensation Board Sweden - Bygghalsan (no longer functional) Germany - occupational health centers U.S. - joint programs (unionized contractors)
Existing employer pays for test as in asbestos and lead requirements
Credit card storage devices
AUDIOMETRIC TESTING
Construction:
6.5 % workforce18 % fatal injuriesranks third for workplace fatalities and injuries (after mining and agriculture)
Leading causes of construction fatalities:
Falls 31 %Transportation incidents 27 % Construction worker twice as likely as average worker to be
killed by a motor vehicle 40 % worker fatalities from motor vehicle accidents are
pedestrians
Noise exposure and hearing loss linked with increase risk of accidents:
Noise and hearing loss accountable for 43 % injuries in ashipyard*
Laborers show higher risk of accidents than any other occupational category studied**
Workers with hearing impairment show 55 % greater risk ofaccidents than those without**
Moll van Charante and Mulder, 1990 ** data from National Health Interview Survey (Zwerling et al. 1997):
ACCIDENTS IN CONSTRUCTION
Audibility may be compromised
22 fatal accidents from problems with back-up alarms inQuebec alone over 15-year period (Laroche, 1998)
Causes:
1. Hearing loss among construction workers2. High noise levels on some sites3. Worker attentional demand or complacency4. Inadequate placement of alarms5. Deficient acoustic features
Solutions:
1. Hearing conservation2. Reduce noise levels3. Worker training4. Better positioning of alarm5. Greater attention to sound environment and
propagation in design of alarm6. Spotters
BACK-UP ALARMS
Diesel-powered rotary drills………...Diesel-powered rotary drills………...
Electrically driven rotary drills……...Electrically driven rotary drills……...
Machine-Mounted percussion…….. Machine-Mounted percussion…….. drills (surface)drills (surface)
Crawler tractors……………………...Crawler tractors……………………...
Electric shovels and draglines……..Electric shovels and draglines……..
Diesel-powered draglines, cranes…Diesel-powered draglines, cranes…shovels, and hydraulic excavatorsshovels, and hydraulic excavators
Haulage trucks………………………Haulage trucks………………………
Scrapers……………………………...Scrapers……………………………...
Front-end loaders…………………...Front-end loaders…………………...
Graders……………………………….Graders……………………………….
Coal augers………………………….Coal augers………………………….
Quieted UnquietedUnquieted
|| || || || || ||
|| || || || || ||
7070 8080 9090 100100 110110 120120
7070 8080 9090 100100 110110 120120Typical worker exposure, dBaTypical worker exposure, dBa
SURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT INDEXSURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT INDEX