New acoustics keep staff safe from sound

Two major manufacturers are installing suspended acoustic ceilings this summer in a bid to keep noise down to more manageable levels.

Inbev is introducing a sound-absorbing ceiling into a new facility at its Magor factory in South Wales, while Arla Foods is installing one at its Stourton dairy in Leeds as part of a £71M expansion project.

The ceilings can reduce noise levels by up to 10 decibels average (dB(A)), which can be enough to take a firm from the 85dB(A)+ range at which it must legally introduce noise reduction initiatives, to less than 80dB(A), which falls below the radar of noise legislation.

Although the latest revisions to the Control of Noise at Work Regulation came into force in the UK three years ago, a surprising number of smaller firms were still unaware of the legal requirements and the risks to which they were exposing their staff, said Mike Prince, key account manager, clean industry, at Ecophon - which supplied the ceilings.

"Larger manufacturers tend to be much more clued up, but some smaller players are not even conducting noise audits."

Noise-induced hearing loss is incurable and an increasing percentage of civil liability cases against employers are related to hearing loss, he said. "But it's not simply about compliance with the law; if you have a very noisy workplace, it's stressful, isolating, hard to concentrate and to communicate."