Construction Plant Noise at a Neighbour Calculator (BS 5228-1 / FHWA RCNM)
Predict the noise up to three items of plant make at a neighbouring property, from each one's reference level, distance and on-time, and any screening.
Imperial / Metric
Sustainability & Compliance
Occupational health & welfare
What a working day does to the people doing it, measured the way the regulations measure it.
- 10Calculators
- 10Work in imperial
- 10Work in metric
What this covers
Daily and weekly personal noise exposure from task levels and durations, the OSHA noise dose and time-weighted average beside the NIOSH figure, the level left at the ear under a rated earplug or earmuff, plant noise predicted at a neighbouring window, decibel sums and background corrections, hand-arm and whole-body vibration against the action and limit values, 8-hour averages of dust, fume and vapour, and the toilets and washing stations a headcount calls for.
What decides which one you need
Which regulation the figure is read against, because the arithmetic is fixed and the values are not. A day at 90 dBA is exactly OSHA's permissible limit and three decibels over the British exposure limit value, since one rule halves the permitted time every five decibels and the other every three. Each page names the rule behind its comparison, asks for your own measurements rather than a typical figure, and stops at the comparison — what a result requires of an employer is the risk assessment's call.
What this does not cover
Measuring anything, which needs a calibrated meter, dosimeter or pump in the worker's breathing zone; health surveillance and audiometry; and manual handling, whose lifting equation needs a published multiplier table this site does not reproduce.
Every calculator in this family
10 calculators
Daily Noise Exposure (LEP,d) Calculator
Combine each task's noise level and duration into a worker's daily exposure, LEP,d, and set it beside the action and limit values the regulations name.
Decibel Addition and Background Correction Calculator
Add up to six sound levels on an energy basis, or take a background level out of a measured total to find what the source produces on its own.
Hand-Arm Vibration Exposure (A(8)) and Points Calculator
Daily hand-arm vibration A(8) and HSE points from each tool's magnitude and trigger time, with each tool's time to the action and limit values.
Hearing Protection Attenuation Calculator (SNR, HML, NRR)
Estimate the noise reaching the ear under an earplug or earmuff from its SNR, HML or NRR rating, with the real-world allowance HSE and OSHA each apply.
OSHA Noise Dose and 8-Hour TWA Calculator
OSHA's noise dose and 8-hour TWA from periods at measured levels, on both the hearing-conservation and PEL bases, with the NIOSH figure beside them.
Site Welfare Toilets and Washing Stations Calculator
The minimum toilets and washing stations for a site headcount, from the UK workplace welfare code's table or the one OSHA sets for US construction sites.
Weekly Noise Exposure (LEP,w) Calculator
Average a week of daily noise exposures into LEP,w, the figure UK and EU rules allow instead of the daily one when exposure varies markedly by day.
Whole-Body Vibration Exposure (A(8) and VDV) Calculator
A plant operator's daily whole-body vibration A(8) from seat measurements on three axes, and a measured vibration dose value scaled to the whole day.
Workplace Exposure 8-Hour TWA Calculator (Dust, Fume, Vapour)
Turn measured dust, fume or vapour concentrations into an 8-hour TWA, as exposure limits are set, or combine several substances into one mixture index.