Why Choose Charlie Fleming Associates?
Rapid Response
We can normally carry out noise assessments at one or two day’s notice, if you are under pressure from the health and safety inspector, or insurance company. If we say we will get the assessment to you by a certain date, we will.

Competitive Fees
We can compete on price and give 15% and 20% discounts for retained commissions.

Fixed Fees
When we provide a quotation we stick to it. That is what you pay, regardless of how long it actually takes us to carry out the assessment.

No Disruption of Work
We work around you, measuring the noise during a normal day’s production, not disrupting it in any way.

False Economies
Other acoustic consultant’s methods can lead to expensive noise control measures being put in place which are not necessary. The reasons for this follow.

Poor Procedures and False Economies
Certain companies conduct what they call "workplace noise assessments" for lower fees than we quote. This is because they do not conduct the assessment as thoroughly as we do. In particular, their approach may involve a technician, (one company even sends a secretary), simply fitting noise dosemeters to the employees at the start of the day, leaving the premises and collecting the dosemeters a few hours later.

The disadvantage of this method is that dosemeters always record higher noise levels than are actually present, due to body reflections and employees singing, shouting into and otherwise tampering with the instrument. In turn, this means the employer has to pay for hearing protection and/or noise control that is not in fact needed. The acceptance of an assessment of this type can therefore be a false economy. Furthermore, the use of dosemeters precludes the provision of the detailed advice on noise control which is required by The Control of Noise at Work Regulations. To then complete the assessment properly, companies using dosimetry will have to revisit the premises to carry out further noise level measurements with a sound level meter, usually for a further, much larger, fee.

Another approach is such that the company carry out very basic measurements and give a general indication that the noise levels, not the exposure of the employees, which is virtually always lower, are within the lower or upper action values as appropriate. This again is a false economy as it can leave you providing noise control/ hearing protection where it is not needed. Alternatively, you might have to instruct the company to return to the premises to re-measure the noise and conduct a proper assessment, again for an additional, much larger fee.

To put the above into perspective, during a discussion with Patrick Corbishley, specialist Health & Safety Executive inspector responsible for noise in Scotland, we learned that 60% to 70% of all noise assessments submitted to the HSE are rejected on the grounds that they are not competent as prescribed in the Regulations. Charlie Fleming Associates has carried out dozens of assessments and have never had so much as a query from the HSE.

Measurement Instruments and False Economies
Should you see fit to commission us to conduct the assessment, we will use a Brüel & Kjær Modular Precision Analyzer Type 2260, loaded with the Enhanced Sound Analysis Software Type BZ7202, to measure the noise. This is the most accurate and reliable hand-held sound level meter available on the market, and as such it is ideal for conducting a thorough analysis of the noise. Again please bear in mind that an assessment conducted with a less accurate meter may be a false economy as it may lead to noise control and provision of hearing protection where they are not actually necessary.

Summary of False Economies
As mentioned above, some other firms do not carry out the measurements as carefully as we do. It is for this reason that their fees may be smaller than ours. However, in one year, we were commissioned 6 times to carry out work which was done badly by other “acoustic consultants”. In these cases the first fee, paid to the other firm, was a waste of money and accepting the cheaper quotation proved to be a false economy. More importantly, in one case the other firm had specified noise control measures costing over £100,000. Our more detailed investigation proved that these noise control measures were not necessary.

This continues, with at least two commissions coming to us every year because other “acousticians” have not managed to complete the job properly.

Better Service
We know, from what we have seen and heard, that our service is better than that offered by many of our competitors.