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FEATURE MACHINE BUILDING, FRAMEWORKS & SAFETY
sponsored by Under legal requirements,
machines need to be designed and built to reduce noise risks. Darren Hugheston- Roberts, head of
Machinery Safety at TÜV SÜD, comments
CONTROLLING M
achinery manufacturers are legally required to provide information about the noise emissions from their machinery
if it exceeds certain levels. They are also legally required to ensure that it is designed and constructed to reduce noise risks to the lowest level, alongside use of protective measures and information relating to any remaining noise risk. Purchasers of machinery should therefore expect equipment being sold on the market to reflect technical progress in low-noise design. Employers and duty holders are required, under the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER), to provide workers with equipment that meets relevant supply laws. They must also adhere to the Control of Noise at Work Regulations, and the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) offers guidance which sets out an employer’s legal obligations. To ensure that noise levels are minimised, not
only should purchasers take noise into account when selecting machinery, they should also ensure that it is maintained in accordance with manufacturers’ recommendations. Machines deteriorate with age and use, and if they are not maintained appropriately they are likely to generate more noise because of worn parts, poor lubrication and the vibration of loose panels. Appropriate maintenance should therefore
prevent noise emissions increasing over time and ensure that a machine’s performance does not deteriorate so that it puts employees at risk from increased noise emissions. Likewise, it is vital to have a company policy in place that requires machinery operators to report any unusually high noise levels and which ensures they regularly check that machines are operating properly.
COMPLYING WITH EHSRs The Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008, which is the UK implementation of the European Union’s (EU) Machinery Directive, require manufacturers and suppliers of machinery to comply with particular essential health and safety requirements (EHSRs): • Produce machinery that can be used without risk, including risk from noise
• Alert users to residual risks including risks 14 DESIGN SOLUTIONS JUNE 2023 MACHINERY NOISE
from noise – for example, when a noise test code produces noise emission values that do not represent noise emissions during intended uses of machines
• Include the information on airborne noise emissions in the sales literature describing the performance characteristics of the machinery
• Provide information in the instructions accompanying the machinery, including instructions on how to reduce risks from noise.
NOISE OUTSIDE There are also separate regulations for equipment for use outdoors – the Noise Emission in the Environment by Equipment for Use Outdoors Regulations 2001. This requires that the guaranteed sound power level must be marked on the equipment. The responsible person must also ensure that the machinery has been UKCA marked and has the indication of a guaranteed sound power level. The equipment must also be accompanied by a declaration of conformity. Qualifying Northern Ireland products can be placed on the GB market with the CE or CE+UKNI conformity markings. For equipment that is subject to noise marking, the manufacturer or their authorised representative must subject the equipment to an ‘internal control of production procedure’. Any equipment that is
subject to noise limits must be subject to noise emission limits tests before it can be placed on the market or put into service. This means that the manufacturer, or their authorised representative, must subject equipment to one of the following conformity assessment procedures: • The internal control of production with assessment of technical
documentation and periodical checking procedure referred to in Annex E of this guidance
• The unit verification procedure referred to in Annex F
• The full quality assurance procedure referred to in Annex G. Any of these three assessments will require
the involvement of approved or notified bodies, depending on the marking requirement.
NOISE EMISSION DATA HSE advises that machinery owners check with their manufacturer and/or supplier to ensure that the noise information they have made available is a reliable guide for the intended use of the equipment. A manufacturer should therefore state emission sound pressure levels that are representative of the noisiest operation in typical use of a machine. This means that they may provide noise emissions for more than one operating condition for some classes of machine. Even though BS EN ISO 12001:2009 states that noise emission data should represent the noisiest operation in ‘typical use’ of the machine under test, it is worth noting that data may not always be supplied for the noisiest operation. If the purchaser has a specific use in mind for the machine, they can also ask the manufacturer to provide relevant noise data, but this is not a legal requirement. Ultimately, the manufacturer’s noise emission data in the instruction manual should enable the purchaser to compare similar machines and identify the most suitable machine when buying or hiring new machinery.
Darren Hugheston-Roberts
TÜV SÜD
www.tuvsud.com/uk
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