Industrial Ear Plugs & Hearing Protection

Industrial ear plugs and hearing protection for high-noise Australian worksites: mining, construction, manufacturing, food processing, transport and defence. Custom-moulded and reusable options from Class 3 to Class 5, with on-site fitting for teams, per-worker records and bulk pricing.

If you are responsible for a hearing conservation program, the pages below are built for you: how to select a class against your measured exposure, where custom protectors fit against disposables, and what a site rollout involves.

Selecting the right attenuation class

Hearing protectors sold in Australia are tested under AS/NZS 1270, which assigns each product an SLC80 value and a Class from 1 to 5. The class you need is determined by the noise exposure measured at your site, not by choosing the highest number available.

As a general guide, AS/NZS 1269.3 relates protector class to the eight-hour equivalent noise level (LAeq,8h) at the worker:

• Class 1 - less than 90 dB(A)
• Class 2 - 90 to less than 95 dB(A)
• Class 3 - 95 to less than 100 dB(A)
• Class 4 - 100 to less than 105 dB(A)
• Class 5 - 105 to less than 110 dB(A)

The Australian WHS exposure standard is 85 dB(A) averaged over eight hours, with a peak of 140 dB(C). Personal hearing protection sits at the bottom of the hierarchy of controls, so it works alongside your noise assessment and engineering controls rather than replacing them. The SLC80 value and Class rating for each product are shown on its individual product page.

Why the highest class is not automatically the safest choice

Issuing Class 5 across a whole site looks conservative and often is not. A worker who cannot hear a reversing alarm, a spotter calling, or a change in machine noise is less able to respond to what is happening around them, and will frequently lift a plug to compensate. Once a plug comes out, the attenuation on the box is irrelevant.

Matching the class to the measured exposure, so that speech and warning signals stay intelligible, is the approach we recommend and what we will advise when we assess your site.

Custom-moulded, reusable or disposable

• Custom-moulded ear plugs are made from an impression of each worker's ear. The seal is exact and repeatable, requires no insertion technique, and one pair can last years. Best suited to regular, full-shift exposure.
• Reusable universal ear plugs use an acoustic filter in a pre-formed body. A practical middle option for contractors, visitors and intermittent exposure.
• Disposable foam ear plugs are inexpensive per pair but depend entirely on correct insertion, and the real-world attenuation achieved is often well below the laboratory-tested figure. The recurring cost across a full headcount is usually where the comparison turns - our cost saving calculator runs it on your numbers.

Communication and Bluetooth in high noise

The most common reason hearing protection comes out mid-shift is that the worker needs to talk. Our communication range includes custom ear plugs with built-in communication for two-way radio and phone, plus Bluetooth safety ear plugs and headsets designed to keep crews connected without removing protection. Options include the Elacin RC series and the Shokz OpenComm 2 industrial version.

Fitting out a team

• On-site impression clinics - our fitters come to your site or depot and work through the crew in a single visit, roughly 15 minutes per person, including regional and remote operations.
• Fit verification - testing with an SI meter measures sound pressure inside and outside the canal while the plug is worn, so your records show verified rather than simply issued.
• Individually labelled sets, with grips, cords and laser etching for names or serial numbers to suit helmets and reduce losses.
• Documentation for your WHS records and audits, supporting your obligations under the AS/NZS 1269 noise management series.
• New starters - we arrange appointments with partnered audiologists near the employee, produce the set and send it to site.

Next steps

Read more on custom industrial ear plugs for workplaces and how a rollout works, see our client procurement brief for supplier details, or request a quote for your site. To talk it through first, book a workplace assessment.