Details:

Personal Author:
Murphy, William J. ; Themann, Christa L. ; Murata, Taichi K.
Murphy, William J. ; Themann, Christa L. ; Murata, Taichi K. Less -
Corporate Authors:
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Engineering and Physical Hazards Branch.
Description:
"Historically, employers have been reluctant to institute hearing protection device (HPD) fit-testing due to a number of limitations. HPD fit testing is not required by regulations. Previous HPD fit test systems required unique hardware and software. Costs are associated with worker time away from the job. Starting in 2009, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has developed an HPD fit testing system [HPD Well Fit(TM)] based on a computer with high definition audio, a mouse and noise isolating headphones. The system can determine HPD attenuation quickly for individual workers. During 2012 and 2013, NIOSH conducted field surveys in Louisiana and Texas to test the performance of HPD Well-Fit and provide technical assistance to the U.S. Department of Interior, Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement. Fit tests were performed on over 150 inspectors and engineers working in the off-shore oil industry. Based on the workers' noise exposures, subjects were fit tested with the goal of achieving 25 dBA Personal Attenuation Rating (PAR). Less than half of the workers were achieving sufficient protection from their hearing protectors prior to NIOSH intervention and training; following re-fitting and re-training, over 85% of the workers achieved sufficient protection. Recommendations were made for other hearing protection solutions for workers who could not achieve the target PAR. Average test times were 6 to 12 minutes. HPD Well-Fit demonstrates the need for individual hearing protector fit-testing and addresses many of the barriers, which have prevented its widespread implementation." - NIOSHTIC-2

NIOSHTIC no. 20046624

360-11a.pdf


Subject:
[+]
Ear Protective Devices
Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced/prevention & Control
Noise, Occupational/adverse Effects
Occupational Diseases/prevention & Control
Occupational Exposure/adverse Effects
Oil And Gas Industry

Document Type:
Report
Place as Subject:
Louisiana ; Texas
Louisiana ; Texas Less -
Collection(s):
Stephen B. Thacker CDC Library collection
Main Document Checksum:
[+]
urn:sha256:d5029dc2f69cc6e08a005d942fd5395489b88470d3d0283a8f88aa694946f1f4
File Type:

Supporting Files

• No Additional Files

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