Volume 15, Number 4, December, 2007 - Noise News International

Pan-American News.....................................................................Paul Donovan, Pan-American EditorNew hearingprotector ratingstandard isapproved.USANAE Publishes an Issue of The BridgeDevoted to NoiseThe National Academy of Engineering (NAE) iscurrently involved in a study titled “Technology fora Quieter America.” As a second initative related tonoise, the NAE devoted the 2007 September issue ofits quarterly publication, The Bridge, to topics relatedto noise. The titles of the papers and their authors are:Technology for a Quieter America (editorial)George C. Maling Jr.Noise as a Technological and Policy ChallengeWilliam W. Lang and George C. Maling Jr.Designing Quiet ProductsRichard H. Lyon and David L. BowenPerception-Based Engineering: IntegratingHuman Responses into Product and System DesignPatricia DaviesChallenges and Promises in MitigatingTransportation NoiseIan A. Waitz, Robert J. Bernhard, and Carl E. HansonEngineering Controls for ReducingWorkplace NoiseRobert D. BruceCopies of these papers in PDF format may bedownloaded from the NAE web site. Go towww.nae.edu/nae/bridgecom.nsf/weblinks/MKEZ-78BPPS?OpenDocument.New Hearing Protector RatingStandard is ApprovedThe Acoustical Society of America has announcedthe publication of ANSI/ASA S1 2.68-2007American National Standard Methods of EstimatingEffective A-Weighted Sound Pressure Levels WhenHearing Protectors are Worn.This standard will be valuable to managers, industrialhygienists and hearing conservation professionalsresponsible for selecting and assigning hearingprotectors for noise-exposed workers: militaryand law-enforcement personnel; manufacturersof hearing protectors; hearing protection testinglaboratories; acoustic consultants; and regulatoryagencies. Though rating and computational methodshave been previously described in the literature, andgovernmental publications and regulations, this isthe first time that an American National Standardspecifies such procedures.This standard specifies three methods, in ascendingorder of complexity of use and potential accuracy,for the estimation of the sound pressure levels thatare effective when a hearing protector is worn. Thesimplest of the methods is similar to the well-knownNRR, but diverges in two key aspects: namely itcan be used with A-weighted sound pressure levelsinstead of requiring the use of C-weighted levels,and instead of specifying a single number at the 98thpercentile, it provides values for the 80th and 20thpercentiles. This standard is accompanied by aninformational spreadsheet programmed to performthe calculations specified in the standard itself.This Standard was developed by AccreditedStandards Committee S12, Noise, under operatingprocedures accredited by the American NationalStandards Institute (ANSI). These procedures assurethat the Standard represents the consensus of opinionamong those with a direct and material interest inthe subject matter. The standard was drafted by aworking group comprising experts from all segmentsof the hearing conservation community.This standard and many other national andinternational noise standards can be obtained fromthe Acoustical Society of America Online Store athttp://asa.aip.org. Or, order by phone, fax or mail fromthe Acoustical Society of America, 35 Pinelawn Road,Suite 1 14E, Melville NY 11747-3177. Phone: 631-390-0215; Fax: 631-390-0217. Email: asastds@aip.orgNew Standard on Loudness isAvailableThe Acoustical Society of America has announcedthat a new standard, ANSI S3.4-2007, AmericanNational Standard Procedure for the Computation ofLoudness of Steady Sounds, is now available. Thestandard is a revision of ANSI S3.4-2005.This standard specifies a procedure for calculatingthe monaural and binaural loudness of steady sounds154 www.inceusa.org • www.noisenewsinternational.net • www.i-ince.org 2007 December