The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005

What employers need to know about occupational noise monitoring and management

Purpose-built technology can accommodate the demands of a modern dynamic workplace in ways that traditional approaches to risk management simply cannot.

In the UK, the current regulations which govern occupational noise exposure are the Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005. Under these regulations, employers are required to implement health surveillance (hearing checks) for workers who are regularly exposed to noise at levels above 85dB(A). Employers must also take action to protect employees’ from exposure to unsafe levels of noise at work, including the provision PPE, or the implementation of other controls measures, such as adapting ways of working.

In this article, we briefly explore the Control of Noise at Work Regulations, including their origin and requirements, before examining the current health and safety landscape with regard to occupational noise monitoring and management. Finally, we’ll review how a more modern approach to this area of risk management can drive better outcomes for both employees, and organisations.

An ineffective regulatory landscape leaves workers and organisations vulnerable.

The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005 are informed by the recommendations of the ISO, an internationally recognised authority for organisational safety, quality, and efficiency. Specifically, ISO 9612:2009 lays out the framework and methodologies for how employers must measure the amount of noise to which their workers are exposed.

And while these regulations and standards are useful for building a foundation for occupational noise monitoring and management, they fall short of well and truly protecting workers from exposure to potentially dangerous levels or types of noise. This is partly due to the fact that the ISO standards were last updated in 2009, while the Control of Noise at Work Regulations, which were last updated in 2005, have already been in place longer than the regulations which they replaced (which were implemented in 1989).

Given the rapid pace at which industries (such as manufacturing or transport, for example) evolve and change, the reality is that there are workplace situations - which are the result of modern workplace environments - that regulations which were last updated almost two decades ago simply cannot contemplate, or meaningfully address.

And the consequences of ineffective regulations for noise monitoring and management are clear: in the UK, nearly two million workers are exposed to unsafe levels of noise in the workplace, and thousands of new cases of Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL) due to occupational noise are reported every year, at great cost to employees, employers, and to the economy at large. Current estimates suggest that NIHL claims cost insurers approximately £70 million per year, while the overall impact of hearing loss on the UK economy has been estimated at £25 billion.

Given that noise-induced hearing loss is entirely preventable, these are staggering numbers, and it’s clear that change in this area is required.

Taking control of your risk environment with regard to noise requires a personalised approach to noise monitoring

Current regulations require employers to spend quite a bit of time and money on noise monitoring and management at work. Health surveillance programmes must be implemented, PPE must be provided, and risk assessments must be carried out. But despite these costly and time consuming measures, the hearing health of the UK’s workforce continues to decline, as cases of NIHL continue to rise.

This is because traditional approaches to risk management with regard to occupational noise (including risk assessments and standard-issue PPE) simply cannot provide a reliable or accurate measure of the amount of noise to which an individual worker is actually exposed. In the first instance, the mere provision of PPE does not guarantee that something like earbuds or over-ear protection are fit for purpose or properly fitted. Ultimately, averages and estimates can only provide a foundation from which employers can begin to better understand their noise risk environment, but when it comes to actually protecting the hearing health of workers, a more personalised approach is required.

On the ground with Galliford Try Infrastructure - controlling exposure to noise with a purpose-built solution

In 2023, following a successful trial, Galliford Try Infrastructure rolled out Smart Alert, a personalised noise monitoring solution, to employees and contractors across their worksites.

Powered by Reactec’s industry-leading Analytics platform, Smart Alert enables teams to better understand their risk environment by providing them with drilled-down insights and actionable guidance on exposure that’s proven to drive better ways of working while improving health and safety outcomes for workers.

Smart Alert fully prevents exposure to unsafe levels of sound by alerting workers, in real-time, to unsafe conditions. While providing protection from occupational noise, Smart Alert monitors workers’ exposure to noise from inside the ear, which means that the data captured by the device is the most accurate and reliable data available, and not simply an estimate based upon measurements of ambient or background noise in a workplace, as is the case with a traditional risk assessment.

Critically, Smart Alert works without getting in the way of workplace communication. With hear-through technology, Smart Alert can monitor the amount of noise to which a worker is exposed while simultaneously ensuring that workers can hear their environment and co-workers. 

This is an incredibly effective way to combat the issue of over-protection on worksites, which occurs when a worker must remove their PPE in order to hear colleagues, alarms, or other important information. Ultimately, this feature underpins how purpose-built technology can accommodate the demands of a modern dynamic workplace in ways that traditional approaches to risk management simply cannot.

The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005 provides the foundations for a successful approach to occupational noise monitoring and management. But in order to truly protect the health and safety of your workers, a more modern approach is required. 

Personalised noise monitoring, powered by sophisticated analytics empowers teams to accurately and reliably assess the amount of noise to which their workers are exposed, which enables them to make informed decisions that can transform ways of working and improve outcomes for workers.