Every day, whether we are working onboard a ship, in an office or relaxing at home, we are exposed to noise. Noise may take a continuous form, such as the hum of an air conditioning system or the rumble of an engine; or it may have an impulse character, like that produced by the crack of gunfire.

Any exposure that is above a recommended safe level may be dangerous to your hearing. Noise exposure in the workplace is given the title “occupational noise”. The Commonwealth OHS (CE) Act and Regulations, together with the Occupational Noise Management Standard AS/NZS 1269, establish a duty of care on the employer (Commanders, Managers or Supervisors) to manage the risk to your health from occupational noise.

Navy’s policy for occupational noise management, set out in ABR6303, is based on the information contained in SAFETYMAN Volume 1 and is compliant with the legislation. Navy recognises that occupational noise is a widespread hazard in our work environment.

Across many employment spheres (not just the Navy), noise induced hearing loss (NIHL) is considered to be one of the commonest occupational diseases.

This is tragic because it is almost entirely preventable. NIHL shows itself as progressive and permanent deafness (usually starting with higher frequencies) and is often accompanied by a ringing in the ears (tinnitus). No matter where we work, our employer is required to manage the occupational noise risk by identifying the noise hazards, assessing their risk and implementing effective and suitable controls.

These steps are set out below:

• Identification. Awareness of the noise hazard by individuals is vital; as a good rule of thumb, if you have to raise your voice to speak to someone who is within arm’s reach, you are probably in need of a noise assessment. A preliminary noise assessment is usually the first step and can be conducted by anyone. Maybe by a ‘walk through’ the workplace or by use of a sound level meter, if available.

Having identified a possible noise hazard you will need to arrange for a formal noise survey; this is where it gets a little complicated. For seagoing units the Maritime Command Environmental Medicine Unit (EMU) should be contacted (OIC EMU (02) 9359 2597) to arrange a survey.

Subject to resources, EMU is attempting to overhaul its system for fleet-wide noise surveys and you should hear more about this over the forthcoming months.

For shore establishments there is no single point of contact to manage noise surveys and it will have to be arranged by the establishment concerned, ideally with the involvement and support of CSIG. Any problems encountered with arranging noise surveys for shore establishments should be brought to the attention of the SHORESAFE team ((02) 6266 4121). • Assessment.

A noise survey will test your workplace noise levels against the exposure standard recommended in AS/NZS 1269 and classify the level of protection required. The survey should also make recommendations for the implementation of controls to reduce the hazard.

• Control. There are many ways to control noise. The hierarchy of controls starts with elimination – if you can remove the source of noise it can no longer do you harm. If it must stay, you should attempt to reduce the noise levels by isolating or containing the source (eg. gas turbine enclosures) or by reducing the amount of noise transmitted (eg. use of curtains or sound deadening wall/ceiling panels).

Lower level administrative controls (eg. modified watchkeeping routines to reduce exposure) are potentially less effective because they do not actually reduce the noise and will only work if strictly adhered to. PPE is always a last resort but is still necessary in many workspaces. Where required, the employer must issue (and ensure the use of) hearing protection such as ear plugs and ear muffs.

Although Duty of Care focuses heavily on the employer, we all have our own individual duty as well:

• We are required to use the hearing protection devices provided by our employer and follow instructions on noise safety.

You must be conscientious in wearing hearing protection as the reduction in protection levels resulting from an imperfect fit, or from their removal whilst still in a noise hazard area (even for a few minutes), is significant.

• We must report noise hazards when we find them; even if we just use the rule of thumb method described above and report hazards to the OHS Committee, then we are doing the right thing by our shipmates.

Every Ship and Establishment should have a copy of the Defence Occupational Noise Awareness DVD, which was produced by the Navy Video Unit.

The DVD presents the issues of occupational noise safety in an ‘easily digestible’ format, suitable for a Divisional Meetings or ship orientation sessions.

Remember, by the time you know that you’re losing your hearing, it’s too late. It’s your hearing – look after it!

BZ Locker

Well done HMAS IPSWICH, where a Sailor was saved from electrocution by the vigilance and swift preventive action of their Supervisor.

The Member was nearly electrocuted by touching energised power cables within the Aft Control Box when, while conducting ECCDs (steering gear failure/steering from aft).

The Member did not isolate power to the box before attempting to open it. The Immediate Supervisor stopped the Sailor and power was isolated before the Member was permitted to proceed with remainder of ECCD.

After the evolution, the Member was counselled and provided with remedial training, plus the Ships Company was briefed on the dangers associated with handling energised power cables.

A sign now exists at the Aft Control Box, warning personnel of the associated dangers. BZ IPSWICH.

Using a Mobile Phone When Driving Quadruples Crash Risk

People who use a mobile phone when driving are four times more likely to have a serious crash and hands-free devices are no safer, concludes new research published by the British Medical Journal (12 July 2005).

The study took place in Perth, WA, and involved 456 drivers aged 17 and over who owned or used mobile phones and had been involved in road crashes requiring hospital attendance between April 2002 and July 2004.

Using phone company records, the researchers assessed phone use immediately before a crash and found that mobile phone use, 10 minutes before a crash, was associated with a fourfold increased likelihood of crashing.

Similar results were found for the interval up to five minutes before a crash and the risk was raised irrespective of sex, age group, or whether or not a handsfree device was used.

More and more new vehicles are being equipped with hands-free phone technology.

Although this may lead to fewer hand held phones used while driving, the research indicates that this may not eliminate the risk.

Indeed, it could contribute to even more crashes. In the short term, it seems likely that mobile phone use in cars will continue to grow, despite the growing evidence of the risks it creates.

Have you got the sense and willpower to switch your phone off while you are driving?

Electric Shock Incidents - From MCAUST 110651Z AUG 05

During the period Jul 03 - Jul 05 there were a total of 119 electric shock incidents throughout Defence, of which seven resulted in serious personal injury (SPI) and one caused a fatality. 68 of these incidents happened in Navy.

In other words, 57 per cent of these incidents happened in Maritime Command.

I am sure you would agree that this is unacceptable. The majority of these incidents occurred through failure to follow Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) or a lack of adequate supervision. In essence, they were avoidable. Both of these factors are Prime Risk Mitigants. Use them.

Supervisors are accountable for exactly what it says - supervising. We owe it our people and to the principle of KEEP NAVY SAFE. The value of positive supervision is illustrated in this month’s BZ Locker.

 

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