Offshore Implementation Of The Physical Agents Directive Available to Purchase

The current EC Directive on Noise will shortly be replaced by the Physical Agents Directive, This will lower the 1st and 2nd Action Levels from 85 and 90 dBA8hour respectively, to 80 and 85 dBA8Hour. This paper presents the Noise Exposure Management methodology widely applied offshore in the UK. Apart from the lowering of the thresholds, the methodology is equally applicable to the Physical Agents Directive, and is suitable for all installations subject to EU rules. The method and risk scoring system is now the accepted benchmark for noise management across the UK. The industry wide results have been used to benchmark offshore noise designs. The benchmarking results indicate that the Physical Agents Directive will have a major impact on the operators of offshore installations, particularly those designed to meet older legislation.