RR1086 - Noise risk as described in instructions supplied with printing machinery
The printing industry uses a wide range of noisy machines that have the potential to damage workers' hearing if the risks are not effectively managed. Users need information that represents noise emissions during the intended uses of the machine, to enable an assessment and the management of the associated noise risks.
There is a legal requirement under the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008 for machinery manufacturers to provide declared noise emissions in instruction manuals. (This legislation implements the EU Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC). However, there is a lack of information on the adequacy of declared noise emissions for printing machinery sold in the United Kingdom.
This report describes research that was carried out to assess the adequacy of the noise emission information provided in a sample of fifteen instruction manuals supplied by manufacturers of printing machinery. The study found that the noise content in the majority (approximately 75%) of the instructions gave declared noise emission information that would help the user assess and manage real use noise risks. However for 25% of the instructions, the noise emission information was either incorrect or not machine-specific. Additionally, none of the instructions provided information on the uncertainty associated with the measured noise emission values; this is legally required.
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