A nationwide hearing aid practice has said that noisy building sites and road works operations need to have warning signs in order to protect the hearing of those passing by the site and the operators that are carrying out work on the site.

The Yorkshire-based hearing aid specialist has said that many of the construction sites across the country operate with noises that far exceed the level that is considered to be safe for people’s long-term hearing. The company suggest that the industries should be taking more precautions and action in order to protect the long-term hearing of those working on the site and moving around the area.

Audiologist.co.uk has said that good measures are implemented on site, such as issuing siteworkers with ear defenders in order to offer some protection. However the noise still carries out side to those working on the site, and those passing by the work while it is being carried out are left unprotected. The very young, the elderly and people that already have some level of compromised hearing are at most risk from the noise created on building sites and during road works and it is worrying that a person in this category could pass by a site with a pneumatic drill or heavy machinery while it is being used on a daily basis.

A pneumatic drill has been recorded to give off up to 90 dB of sound, when experts have said that any noise above 85 dB could lead to damaged hearing. The decibel scale is logarithmic as opposed to linear, which means that the 90 dB is one and a half times louder than the more 85 dB noise limit before damage, rather than the 5% noise increase expected in a linear scale. Each 10dB as part of the scale represents a doubling in the level of noise.