No. S 372
Factories Act
(Chapter 104)
Factories (Noise) Regulations 1996
In exercise of the powers conferred by section 102(1) of the Factories Act, the Minister for Labour hereby makes the following Regulations:
PART I
PRELIMINARY
Citation and commencement
1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Factories (Noise) Regulations 1996 and shall come into operation on 1st January 1997.
Definitions
2.—(1)  In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires —
“A-weighted sound pressure level” means sound pressure level measured by an instrument with an electrical network having the characteristics specified in the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) Publication 651;
“dB(A)” means decibels of A-weighted sound pressure level;
“equivalent sound pressure level”, in relation to a fluctuating sound pressure level, means a constant sound pressure level measured over a duration of time having the same cumulative acoustic energy as the fluctuating sound pressure level measured over the same duration.
(2)  For the purposes of these Regulations —
(a)a person shall be deemed to be exposed to excessive noise where the noise that he would be exposed to, if he was not wearing any hearing protector, exceeds the permissible exposure limit for noise specified in the First Schedule or, if the noise is at a fluctuating sound pressure level, the equivalent sound pressure level of 85 dB(A) over an 8-hour work day; and
(b)the sound pressure level (SPL) shall be calculated according to the following formula:
SPL = 10 log
where log is the common logarithm;
 
P is the sound pressure; and
 
Po is the standard reference pressure of 20 microPascals.
Application
3.  These Regulations shall apply to all factories where any machinery, equipment or process used is likely to expose any person to excessive noise.
Made this 19th day of August 1996.
MOSES LEE KIM POO
Permanent Secretary,  
Ministry of Labour,  
Singapore.    
[ML C21/74; AG/SL/9/94 Vol. 1]
(To be presented to Parliament under section 102(3) of the Factories Act).