Damage from noise exposure of sufficient intensity and duration is well established and hearing loss may be temporary or permanent. Fortunately, noise exposure can be controlled and technology exists to reduce the hazards. Aside from employer/employee concern with the inherent hazards of noise, added attention has been brought to focus on the subject through regulatory requirements. Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) every employer is legally responsible for providing a workplace free of hazards such as excessive noise. It has been estimated that 14 million US workers are exposed to hazardous noise. This book is presented as an overview summary for employers, workers, and supervisors interested in workplace noise and its control. We believe that in order to understand and control noise it is not necessary to be highly technical. Noise problems can quite often be solved by the people who are directly affected. Presented is an overview of noise, the regulations concerning its control, an explanation of specific principles, and a discussion of some particular techniques.
Nicholas P. Cheremisinoff heads the Industrial Waste Management Program to eastern Ukraine under the United States Agency for International Development. He has nearly twenty years of industry and applied research experience in polymers, petrochemicals, and environmental and energy management in the heavy manufacturing and processing industries. Among his experience includes nearly thirteen years as product development manager and specialist for Exxon Chemical Company's elastomers product lines, and he actively provides consulting for private industry in the polymer technology areas. He has contributed extensively to the industrial press by having authored, co-authored or edited over 100 reference books and numerous articles. Dr. Cheremisinoff received his B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in chemical engineering from Clarkson College of Technology, Potsdam, New York.