Hearing protection for vehicle body repairers and workshops

Noise exposure in the workshop by occupation

For assessment, AUVA recommends assuming the 95th percentile. Panel beaters are then at 92 dB(A) and painters at 89 dB(A), both clearly in the range where hearing protection must be worn.

How loud are impact wrenches, air saws and the like?

The noisy tasks often last only minutes. For panel beaters, for example, AUVA found 8.1 minutes of straightening and 3.6 minutes with the pneumatic saw per day. Because noise counts by energy, these few minutes still push the daily exposure up.

Which hearing protection in the vehicle workshop?

Level at the ear = level − (M − real-world deduction), HML check according to DGUV Rule 112-194 (2024). Target range 70 to 80 dB(A). A calculated guide that does not replace a risk assessment.

Hearing protection	Effective	Daily exposure, panel beatersapprox. 87 dB(A)	Straighteningapprox. 97 dB(A)	Pneumatic sawapprox. 102 dB(A)
EP1227BWGDisposable foam earplugs EP1227BWG, SNR 37	26 dB	61 dB(A)Too strong?Check for overprotection	71 dB(A)RecommendedRecommended	76 dB(A)RecommendedRecommended
EP902EP902 earmuffs EP902, SNR 33	26 dB	61 dB(A)Too strong?Check for overprotection	71 dB(A)RecommendedRecommended	76 dB(A)RecommendedRecommended
EP001YReusable silicone earplugs EP001Y, SNR 32	24 dB	63 dB(A)Too strong?Check for overprotection	73 dB(A)RecommendedRecommended	78 dB(A)RecommendedRecommended
EP906EP906 earmuffs EP906, SNR 30	23 dB	64 dB(A)Too strong?Check for overprotection	74 dB(A)RecommendedRecommended	79 dB(A)RecommendedRecommended
EP100BYBanded earplugs EP100BY, SNR 29	21 dB	66 dB(A)Too strong?Check for overprotection	76 dB(A)RecommendedRecommended	81 dB(A)Not rec.Not recommended
EP904EP904 earmuffs EP904, SNR 28	20 dB	67 dB(A)Too strong?Check for overprotection	77 dB(A)RecommendedRecommended	82 dB(A)Not rec.Not recommended
EP102BOBanded earplugs with conical tips EP102BO, SNR 27	19 dB	68 dB(A)Too strong?Check for overprotection	78 dB(A)RecommendedRecommended	83 dB(A)Not rec.Not recommended

For short, noisy tasks, what matters most is that hearing protection is within reach and quickly fitted. BG BAU recommends earmuffs when hearing protection is often put on and taken off. For straightening at around 97 dB(A), every hearing protector in the table is in the target range, the EP906 and EP904 earmuffs with 74 and 77 dB(A). At the pneumatic saw at around 102 dB(A), disposable and reusable earplugs and the EP902 and EP906 earmuffs fit; banded earplugs and the EP904 are just above at 81 to 83 dB(A).

In the workshop and body shop

• Hang earmuffs at the workstation so that they are within reach before every noisy task.
• Low-noise equipment: AUVA mentions noise-reduced compressed air guns and grinding discs. Under the STOP principle (substitution, technical, organisational, personal), hearing protection is the last measure.
• Neighbouring workstations are also loud when straightening or sawing is going on.
• Mechanics with a daily exposure of around 81 dB(A): from 80 dB(A), the employer must make hearing protection available and offer hearing checks where the risk assessment shows a risk.