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Noise exposure may be caused by loudness, proximity and/or the duration of exposure.

Whatever the state of your hearing, the message is the same: you must look after your ears. If you are a musician or work with music or sound this is particularly important, as they are the most important tools of the trade and your hearing health is vital to your quality of life.

What Can Go Wrong?

• Loud noise can have long term effects on hearing, from a variety of sources for example, headphones, speakers and the local environment e.g. explosions, events, music etc.
• Exposure to this loud noise can cause permanent deafness or other forms of hearing damage such as tinnitus (a ‘ringing’ in the ear) or other impairments, which can also occur in combination with hearing loss.
• Acoustic shock (sudden exposure to very loud noise) may cause damage to hearing. 

Legal/´óÏó´«Ã½ Requirements

• The Control of Noise at Work Act 2005 requires employers to ensure that their employees are protected from exposure to excessive noise levels that could have a detrimental effect upon their hearing. 

Control Measures

General Controls

• Identify where there may be a risk from noise and who is likely to be affected.
• Consider what action needs to be taken to eliminate or reduce the noise level and implement it.
• Compare the level of exposure relative to the time exposed (see Daily Noise Exposure Calculator chart opposite).
• Reduce and keep to a minimum the amount of time exposed to the noise.
• Reduce noise levels using distance so teams should position themselves away from loud noise.
• Ensure hearing protection is provided if assigning staff to foreseeably noisy places or equipment.
• Use hearing protection that is specific to the environment, particularly when mandatory protection is required (eg in industrial environments).
• Make a record of what is done and review this regularly.
• Make sure hearing protection is replaced if it becomes damaged or worn out.
• Headphones should be limited to 93db when using for up to four hours continually.
• Use limited headphones & limit to 88dB, if using for more than 4 hours a day or 20 hours a week.
• Consider using headphones with HDM Pro limiting, a type of hearing dose management intelligent unit that monitors your listening experience. More information is available via LimitEar (see link).
• The use of unlimited headphones must be strictly controlled and monitored. A risk assessment is required for the job role/person where it is identified that using unlimited headphones is required; as well as training and health surveillance (see controls below).
• Take regular breaks and take them somewhere quiet if using headphones for prolonged periods.
• Consider the Noise Awareness Training course if routinely exposed to noise via headphones.
• Identify any employees who need to be provided with health surveillance - audiometry via Occupational Health - and whether any are at particular risk.
• Acoustic Trauma procedure starting with urgent referral to Occupational Health to be used in event of sudden very loud unplanned exposure. 

Acute Exposure / Acoustic Trauma

It is important to take appropriate action, following an episode of acute noise exposure. Following any sudden, unexpected loud noise exposure where there may be risk of damage to hearing, please do the following:

• Injured party to inform manager/supervisor
• Equipment to be isolated and retained for inspection
• Report incident on the Safety Hub
• Contact the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Occupational Health Service and arrange for urgent (ideally within 36 hours) post exposure hearing test -

An occupational health nurse will conduct a hearing test comprising of a review of the persons medical and hearing history, an ear examination, an audiometric test, possible referral to the persons own doctor and follow up tests should be arranged to be at interval of one week and then one month or as specified by a ´óÏó´«Ã½ occupational health nurse.

• Reserve any equipment for investigation and prevent others using until it has been fully checked by competent person
• Reassess the noise control measures for the activity and check fault has been rectified to prevent further occurrences

Division Specific Issues

Radio

Monitor Earpieces

Each player/musician should have an individual volume control to limit the monitor output from the mixing desk. Any audio that is to be put into musicians’ ears should be checked for the correct volume before sound transmission. Any changes to pre-recorded elements should be pre communicated fully, so that sound technicians are able to check output levels before they are used. 

The ´óÏó´«Ã½ has produced three noise guides for musicians playing acoustic instruments and singers working with orchestras. They can also be used as a reference tool for ensemble and venue managers, sound engineers and teachers. They can be downloaded from the useful documents links on the right hand side of this page. They are:

• Musicians' guide to noise and hearing: Part I - full guide.
• Musicians' guide to noise and hearing: Part II - Toolkit for managers. (This should be read in conjunction with the text of the Noise at Work Regulations 2005 and Sound Advice.)
• Musicians' guide to noise and hearing - musicians' summary. 

News

Earpieces / in-ear headphones

Uncontrolled devices inserted directly into the ear canal have an inherent danger since they are closely coupled to the hearing mechanism. Listening levels when using these earpieces are often very high, particularly when listening against high-level background sounds. Zero level talkback fed to an unlimited earpiece may well result in a sound level around 100dB(A) with peaks rising above 110dB.

Earpieces inserted into the ear canal should only be used by persons who need to hear talk-back or programme information whilst appearing on camera.

Guidance

• The use of any non-standard in-ear device of unknown characteristics is not to be allowed, which includes the use of in-ear headphones (those supplied with personal stereos, mobile phones, etc.)

• Earpieces should be limited to 106dB - These are limited to this level due to the fact that the acoustic tube and ear mould, reduce the noise level by 13dB. (Thus maintaining the output capability to 93dB, which is likely to result in noise exposure below the upper exposure action value of 85dB(A)).

• Where the level of limiting required exceeds 106dB, as may be required for some individuals, a separate risk assessment for the individual concerned must be carried out. The equipment should still be limited, albeit at a higher level and such use must be authorised by the manager responsible and hearing health surveillance introduced.

• The upper lead and transducer should be plugged into a limiter box, limited to 93dB and the user able to control the volume level being received, so that a comfortable listening level can be maintained.

• Where the role requires earpieces to be worn for more than 4 hours per day, the limiting level of the limiter box should be reduced to 88dB thus maintaining exposure to below the lower exposure action value.

• Earpieces should be issued for personal use by individuals, to maintain an appropriate level of hygiene. A stock of clean earpieces should be kept for guest presenters.

• Before using devices inserted into the ear canal an adequate noise assessment together with a written safe system of work must be in place, which prevents persons wearing them from receiving a noise dose equal to or exceeding the lower or peak exposure action values.

Controlling the Dose – Best Practice

Where ear-pieces are cabled, such as on studio floors or in presentation areas, sound feeds to earpieces should be restricted to those controlled at source by a limiter/compressor. The sound level delivered at the earpiece for differing settings of limiter/compressor would thus be known and could be adjusted by the Sound Supervisor. The noise dose could consequently be kept below the lower action value by controlling the combination of sound level delivered at the earpiece and duration of exposure.

Types of Earpiece

The range of earpieces should be restricted to one or two locally preferred types. These should be appropriate to the circumstances of use and their electrical and audio characteristics known. Control measures, which ensure that only the specified types can be used, include design features such as fitting unusual or modified plugs and sockets.

FAQs/Did You Know?

• If you have to shout to make yourself heard at approximately 2 metres, you need to make additional effort to lower your exposure (eg reduce how long you stay there or use hearing protection).
• Hearing protection, such as ear plugs and ear defenders, are available from the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Safety Equipment Stores.
• You might just notice a 3 dB change in noise level, because of the way our ears work. However, every 3 dB doubles the noise exposure, so what might seem like small differences in the numbers can be quite significant.
• The use in the workplace of personal headphones or ear pieces (ie those supplied with mp3 players) won’t be of the appropriate quality and won’t be noise limited.
• You can have you hearing tested by Occupational Health if noise exposure is considered excessive. Please speak to your line manager in the first instance.

Useful documents

• Amended August 2021 - Publicly Available
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Recommended links

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