Imagine you and 10 other colleagues are sitting on a steel beam suspended 260 meters in the air. You’re enjoying your lunch and having a good chat, with a bustling city sitting beneath your feet.
Health and Safety Then and Now
Oh, and did I mention there are no helmets, safety harnesses, or steel-toe-capped boots? Talk about health and safety gone mad! This was an actual photo taken in 1932 named [1]‘Lunch atop a Skyscraper’.
Several hazards are obvious here, even to the untrained eye. Losing balance and plummeting thousands of feet, slipping, tripping…sneezing? To a large majority of us today, this experience would feel like our worst nightmare; however, to workers back then, it was second nature, having been a part of their lives from such a young age.
Thankfully, with laws and regulations in place, workers are provided with the right equipment and procedures to do their jobs effectively, all while feeling safe and secure.
While we're quick to spot and steer clear of immediate dangers, why do we often overlook those long-term risks and their lasting consequences?
Noise Hazards in Construction
In a recent survey, it was reported that [1]51% of all workers within construction have been exposed to hazardous noise, with 14% of these workers reported to have hearing difficulty. It was also noted that out of [2]765 cases that were recorded between 2013 and 2022, only five of these were women, with a whopping 760 cases being men. As well as this, construction has been voted as the [3]fifth noisiest job in the U.K. in a report taken last year.
It must be considered that construction work undertaken on a construction site not only impacts the workers but also the members of the public who pass the site daily.
Urgent Need for Action
Annual studies suggest that hearing loss within construction is becoming an escalating problem with long-term impact within the sector. It’s time to act now, act fast, and act together to curb these statistics for the benefit of future generations of workers.
Luckily, we have a solution that reduces the risk for anybody in a close radius of a construction site, so hear us out…
Five words: BIGBEN Sound Blocker Acoustic Barrier.
Features and Benefits
Specifically engineered to reduce the impact of noise on site, BIGBEN Sound Blockers employ cutting-edge materials and state-of-the-art manufacturing techniques.
- With their lightweight and exceptionally robust design, the Sound Blockers are simple to install, transport, and store.
- They can be effortlessly attached to scaffolding and any temporary or permanent fencing with our selection of two sizes (1.2m x 2m vertical or 3.6m x 2m horizontal). There are several eyelets in each design to allow simple toggle ties to secure them in place.
- They are fast becoming an industry favourite thanks to their incredible sound absorption properties, which help mitigate the long-term impact of hearing loss.
- They overlap seamlessly, accommodating sites of any size, enhancing privacy, and reducing dust pollution that may blow onto nearby streets.
- A fire retardant option is also available, alongside bespoke custom printing. Get your logo custom printed on each barrier with a custom background colour available on request.
Click here to find out more about our BIGBEN Sound Blocker Envirohedge Acoustic Barrier.
Click here to shop our BIGBEN Sound Blocker Options.
[1] https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/noise/surveillance/construction.html#:~:text=Approximately%2014%25%20of%20all%20Construction,report%20not%20wearing%20hearing%20protection.
[2] https://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/causdis/deafness/index.htm
[3] https://probuildermag.co.uk/features/research-shows-construction-ranks-as-the-5th-worst-job-for-hearing-loss
[1] https://www.rockefellercenter.com/magazine/arts-culture/lunch-atop-skyscraper-irish-immigrants/
