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

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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