
Hearing Protector Fit Testing
Author: Garry G. Gordon, M.S., CEO, EAR, Inc., Boulder, CO. Article also published in Safety and Health magazine. Should I fit-test the hearing protection my workers use? Traditionally, the verification of how well an ear protector (earmuffs or earplugs) attenuates has been conducted under laboratory standards that resulted in reporting a noise reduction rating. The resulting NRR score simply implied the expected attenuation when the product was properly installed at the time of use. Eventually, it became recognized that numerous