Here is a link to the Georgia Tech Hearing Conservation Program.  This Program is based on the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) Threshold Limit Values (TLVs) and not the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Permissible Exposure Limits. The difference is that by following the ACGIH guidelines, the GT Program is more protective than federal law would require, were it directly applicable here at GT. The basics of this program are:

A “Hearing Conservation Required Area” is an area where hearing protection must be donned prior to entering because noise levels exceed 82 dBA for  8 hours/day when calculated as a Time Weighted Average (8 hr TWA), or noise levels routinely exceed 115 dBA.  An exception to the “don it at the door” rule can be made for areas where the 8 hr TWA does not exceed 82 dBA but noise levels do routinely exceed 115 dBA as a result of pre-planned experiments or activities that can be pre-announced with warning lights, claxons, or other type of warning system which has been approved by GT EHS.

Working in a “Hearing Conservation Required Area” requires participation in the GT Hearing Conservation Program and includes annual audiograms. Here is more information about the GT Occupational health program.

Hearing protection must be selected from the United States Air Force Approved Hearing Protection Devices list (Appendix B of the GT Hearing Conservation Program).  GT uses this list to narrow down equipment selection to devices which have been tested and found to be effective by a testing agency (the USAF) which is independent of device manufacturers. This list contains a variety of readily available makes and models of ear plugs, ear muffs, communication head sets, and helmets.

There are no restrictions on the use of hearing protection devices for intermittent use when working with noisy equipment, however, extended use of hearing protection is not advised as it may interfere with the ability to hear fire alarms and other warning systems.