• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.45 no.6
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• pp.605-612
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• 2019

Objectives: This study aims to examine receptor-perceived characteristics of environmental and health damage in areas surrounded by industrial workplaces using environmental complaints collected by local governments in Korea. Methods: The environmental complaint data related to workplaces was collected by local governments at each municipality between the years 2015 and 2017. We analyzed the complaint data from the Busan area by the type of business (industry classification), the content of complaints (odor, smoke, noise, and certain health damage), and the frequency of complaints. Results: Among the workplaces examined, industry categories related to retail and service received the highest frequency of complaints related to noise. On the other hand, complaints of dust and odors were raised in higher frequency against manufacturing industries, indicating that air pollution was the main driver of such complaints. Most of the complaints regarding health effects from industries also contained other complaints, such as odor, noise, and dust. Our results indicate that environmental discomfort can lead to more serious health damage, and should be dealt with more seriously. Further management plans for mitigating discomforts such as noise are necessary. Conclusion: This study can be used as background data for identifying the policy priorities related to vulnerable areas polluted by industry and will contribute to improving the environmental health of residents in identified areas.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.185-195
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• 2020

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to analyze noise exposure levels and the rate of exceedance of exposure limits in workplaces from a 2015 measurement of working environments according to area, industry, and scale of workplace and to determine changes compared to the past. Methods: Among the 408,875 measurements of noise in working environments from 27,030 workplaces in 2015, 16,359 workplaces that were linked to special health examination data were selected as the subjects of this study. The eight-hour corrected measurements and geometric mean values of the individual noise measurements of the workplaces were used to calculate noise exposure levels and the exceedance rate of exposure limits. Results: The average noise exposure level of the overall workplaces making up the subjects of this study was 83.6 dBA, and the exceedance rate of exposure limits was 15.1%. At least half of the noise measurements exceeded the exposure limits in 13.7% of the workplaces. Noise exposure levels were higher in the manufacturing industry and in smaller-scale workplaces. The exceedance rate of noise exposure limits was higher in the mining and manufacturing industries and in smaller-scale workplaces. Conclusions: Noise exposure has shown improvements compared to the past, but the exceedance rate of exposure limits was still high, and more than half of the workers were being exposed to noise of 85 dBA or higher. Therefore, it is necessary to make more active improvements in working environments in terms of noise exposure.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.205-213
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• 2002

Objective : Whether exposure to chronic noise induces an increase in blood pressure, or the development of hypertension, has not been established. A cohort study was performed to identify the effects of chronic noise exposure on blood pressure. Methods : 530 males working at a metal manufacturing factory in Busan, Korea were enrolled for the study. They were monitored for 9 consecutive years, from 1991 to 1999, with an annual health check-up. The subjects were divided into 4 groups, which were determines by noise level categories(NLC) according to noise intensity ; NLC-I: office workers, exposed to noise a level below 60dB(A) ; NLC-II: field technical supporters or supervisors, frequently exposed to workplace noise, wearing no hearing protection device; NLC-III: workers, exposed to workplace noise below 85dB(A), wearing ear plugs or muffs; NLC-IV: workers, exposed to workplace noise over 85 dB(A), wearing both ear plugs and muffs. Results : After controlling possible confoundens, such as baseline age, smoking, alcohol intake, exercise, family history of hypertension, systolic(SBP) of diastolic blood pressure(DBP) and changes in BMI (body mass index), the pooled mean for the systolic blood pressures, over the duration of the study period, were 3.8mmHg, 2.0mmHg and 1.7mmHg higher in NLC-IV, NLC-III NLC-II groups, respectively, than in the NLC-I group. There were no significant differences in the diastolic blood pressures between the groups. Conclusion : This study suggests that chronic noise exposure increases systolic blood pressure independently, among male workers.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.94-101
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• 2011

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the noise exposures of firefighters according to their time-dependent activity patterns. Methods: Personal exposure levels were measured for six days and nights using noise dosimeters; three days and nights for on-duty tasks, the other days and nights for off-duty activities. Results: The total amount of time spent in the workplace was 13,677 min (67%), outside areas 4,833 min (23%), in transit 1,002 min (5%), and other indoor area 807 min (4%) during a working period. However, during off-days they spent 10,858 min (76%) at home, 1,382 min (10%) outdoors, 1,225 min (9%) other indoors, and 493 min (3%) in transit. As a result of individual exposure levels, TWA did not exceed 90 dBA of the occupational exposure limit for the majority of the firefighters, whereas the levels of Lmax were 119 dBA, which were higher than the noise levels of firefighters in USA. Sometimes during dispatching the levels of Lpeak exceeded the ACGIH exposure standard (140 dBC). The Leq levels in transit were higher than the levels in home and other indoors even though the activity time is short. Conclusions: This paper characterized the noise exposure patterns of firefighters in Korea. We suggest that special noise sources, including sirens and speaker phones, should be readjusted to reduce noise exposure.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.42-52
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• 2018

Background: Maintenance operations on-board ships are highly demanding. Maintenance operations are intensive activities requiring high man-machine interactions in challenging and evolving conditions. The evolving conditions are weather conditions, workplace temperature, ship motion, noise and vibration, and workload and stress. For example, extreme weather condition affects seafarers' performance, increasing the chances of error, and, consequently, can cause injuries or fatalities to personnel. An effective human error probability model is required to better manage maintenance on-board ships. The developed model would assist in developing and maintaining effective risk management protocols. Thus, the objective of this study is to develop a human error probability model considering various internal and external factors affecting seafarers' performance. Methods: The human error probability model is developed using probability theory applied to Bayesian network. The model is tested using the data received through the developed questionnaire survey of >200 experienced seafarers with >5 years of experience. The model developed in this study is used to find out the reliability of human performance on particular maintenance activities. Results: The developed methodology is tested on the maintenance of marine engine's cooling water pump for engine department and anchor windlass for deck department. In the considered case studies, human error probabilities are estimated in various scenarios and the results are compared between the scenarios and the different seafarer categories. The results of the case studies for both departments are also compared. Conclusion: The developed model is effective in assessing human error probabilities. These probabilities would get dynamically updated as and when new information is available on changes in either internal (i.e., training, experience, and fatigue) or external (i.e., environmental and operational conditions such as weather conditions, workplace temperature, ship motion, noise and vibration, and workload and stress) factors.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.94-101
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• 1977

Noise pollution, both in the environment and in the workplace, has been recognized as a major health hazard -one that can impair not only a person's hearing but also his physical and mental well-being. As industrialization progresses, the prevalence rate of occupational diseases is increasing, especially hearing loss, which has the highest prevalence rate among the occupational diseases. The major cause of noise is the construction of various large industries without any regulation of noise sources. Therefor, we must establish an enactment to control mechanical noise sources. as soon as possible. For the purpose of controlling the noise source, we must have exact data about such things as the sound level, the frequency of the peak sound and the revolutions per minute (r.p.m.) of the machine (a measure of the power of its motor). This study was undertaken in order to define the noise characteristics, the power of the machine's motor, the change of the sound level and the peak sound as the r.p.m. increases, and the permissible exposure time. The sample size of this study was 74 machines at 11 plants in 6 industries. The results are as follows; 1. The breakdown of the types of mechanical noise noted was : 63.6% continuous normal sound, 26.9% intermittent sound, 4.7% continuous repeating sound and 4.6% impulsive sound. 2. With respect to the type of industry, the overall sound level was the highest in the mechanical industry, with $103.8{\pm}2.8dB(A)$, and lowest in the textile industry, with $89.2{\pm}1.43dB(A)$. 3. With respect to the type of machine, the highest sound level was 124 dB(A) caused by Gauzing(II), in the mechanical industry, and the lowest was 76 dB(A) caused by Attachment (Jup Chack) (I) in the timber industry. 4. The shortest permissible exposure time to Gauzing(II) in the mechanical industry was less than 15 minutes. 5. Among 74 machines, 68.2% of the peak sound was situated in the high frequency range (52.7% at 2 KHz, 4.1% at 4 KHz and 1.4% at 8 KHz). 41.8% of the peak sound was in the middle frequency range (4.1% at 250Hz, 14.8% at 500Hz and 22.9% at 1KHz). 6. If one machine had two motors or more, the peak sound was shifted to the low frequency range. 7. As the r.p.m. increased, the overall and peak sound levels were increased without any change of the frequency of the peak sound. 8. Whenever the machines had the same kind and the same r.p.m., the overall and peak sounds were changed by the physicochemical characteristics of the raw materials and the management.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.249-261
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• 2020

Background: Hearing loss is one of the most prevalent worker health conditions worldwide. Although the effect of noise exposure on hearing is well researched, other workplace exposures may account for significant hearing loss. The aim of this review was to determine whether occupational hand-arm vibration exposure through use of power or pneumatic tools, independent of noise exposure, is associated with permanent hearing loss. Do workers suffer from hand-arm vibratione-induced hearing loss? Methods: Peer-reviewed articles published in English between 1981 and 2020 were identified through five online databases with five search keywords. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines, including online database search methodology, study selection, article exclusion, and assessment of potential study design confounders and biases, were followed. Results: Database searches retrieved 697 articles. Fifteen articles that reported 17 studies met the criteria for review. All but two studies revealed statistically significant associations between occupational exposure to hand-arm vibration and hearing loss. The majority of the study results revealed associations between hand-arm vibration and hearing loss, independent of potential age and noise confounders. Conclusion: Few studies have examined the association between occupational exposure to hand-arm vibration and hearing loss. Dose response data were limited as only one study measured vibration intensity and duration. Although the majority of studies identified statistically significant associations, causal relationships could not be determined. Further research using standardized and uniform measurement protocols is needed to confirm whether the association between occupational exposure to hand-arm vibration and permanent hearing loss is causal and the mechanism(s).

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.298-309
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• 2019

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate stages of safety and health culture change through a reflection on 40 years of hearing conservation history at a multinational company. Methods: The target workplaces were multinational companies with more than 1,000 employees. The research used the clinical case study and system analysis methods based on direct observation of the research from 1994 to 2009. The latter method performed an analysis of the equilibrium state of the cross-section in the given period and the longitudinal profile of the change during the given period. Results: The stages of cultural change are divided into five stages and summarized as follows. In the first stage, workplace noise was not widely recognized as a hazard, while in the second stage, the measurement of noise levels and audiometric testing were conducted under the Korean Occupational Safety and Health Act (KOSHA). The driving force for change in the second stage was the amendment of the KOSHA. In the third stage, noise came to be recognized as a hazard factor through awareness training. The driving force of change during the third stage was the strong executive power exerted by the audit of the industrial hygiene program from the US head office. In the fourth step, there was a change to actually reduce noise. The driving force in this stage was a change in company executives' risk perception resulting from lawsuits over noise-induced hearing loss and the task force team activities for culture change based on the action learning protocol. At the fifth stage, a 'buy quiet policy' was institutionalized. The management's experience that noise reduction was difficult was the motivation to manage noise from the time of purchase of equipment. Conclusions: The activities of a hearing conservation program are determined by the improvement of the legal system and by the way it is enforced. Noise control activities to reduce noise areas may be possible through the shared risk perception of noise-induced hearing loss and by a change agent role as a facilitator to implement noise control.

• Proceeding of Spring/Autumn Annual Conference of KHA
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• 2002.11a
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• pp.167-172
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• 2002

This study examines and analyzes residential environment and factors with partial region of Chungjang-dong, Dong-gu, Gwangju based on land register and questionnaire. Consequently, most of residents are in their forties or over and working at downtown or place near it. It is found that rate of their own house is high and they live in the current house over 10 years. Residential factors at downtown area include its convenience, distance to workplace, convenient transportation and easy use of cultural and commercial facilities, but their consciousness of residence shows a low satisfaction with children education, air pollution, noise, parking facilities, green zone for making community, resting place, sunshine, view and privacy.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.29 no.1 s.52
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• pp.1-14
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• 1996

To evaluate the health risk of the workplace environment of a general hospital toward the hospital workers, a questionnaire survey on the perception of risk at the workplace environment and environmental measurements at 27 locations with 240 workers in the hospital were made from October 25th, 1993 to October 30th, 1994. The results were as follows ; 1. By the environmental measurements, 86 workers(36%) were found to be exposed to poor or harmful degree of general illumination, 193 workers(80%) were exposed to poor or harmful local illumination, 34 workers(14%) were exposed to poor or harmful degree of thermal condition and 180 workers(75%) were exposed to poor or harmful noise level, but nobody was exposed to poor or harmful dust and toluene concentration. Also nobody was exposed to poor or harmful level of radiation or anticancer/antibiotic agents. 2. The subjective perceptions on the environmental conditions felt by the workers were different from the objective findings by the environmental measurements. The workers underscored the poor illumination state and overscored the dust concentrations. Also workers oversensitized about the thermal condition, the noise level, the radiation level, the toluene concentration and anticancer/antibiotic agents 3. The sources of noise were the dialogue(179 workers) and the office instruments(131 workers). The sources of dust came from the clothes(108 workers) and the building materials(79 workers). 4. The questionnaire survey showed that the 28 workers were exposed to poor or harmful level of the antibiotics, 10 workers to alkali or acid and 6 workers to drug dust in the pharmacy but the above findings could not be proved by the environmental measurements.