Overview
EN ISO 5349-2:2001 - Mechanical vibration: Practical guidance for measurement at the workplace complements ISO 5349-1 by giving practical, workplace-focused guidance for measuring and evaluating hand-transmitted vibration. It explains how to make representative vibration measurements, identify relevant operations, determine daily exposure times, and calculate the 8‑hour energy-equivalent vibration total value A(8) (daily vibration exposure). The standard applies to exposures from hand-held and hand-guided machinery, vibrating workpieces, and controls of mobile or fixed machines.
Key topics & technical requirements
- Measurement strategy and preparation
- Identify discrete operations that make up normal work patterns and select those likely to contribute significantly to daily exposure.
- Organize measurements depending on operation type (long-term continuous, long-term intermittent, short-term intermittent).
- Quantities to be evaluated
- Single-axis, frequency-weighted r.m.s. acceleration values (ahwi) and the vector/root-sum-of-squares vibration total value (ahvi).
- Daily exposure duration per operation (Ti) and calculation of A(8) from all operations.
- Measurement practice
- Guidance on measurement equipment, accelerometer mounting, verification of the measurement chain, and use of mechanical filters (see informative annexes).
- Uncertainty and reporting
- Assessment of measurement uncertainties (acceleration and exposure time) and combining uncertainties to report a realistic exposure estimate.
- Required information to be reported for transparency and reproducibility.
- Informative annexes
- Examples of measurement locations, mounting guidance for accelerometers, multi-day exposure evaluation, and calculation examples.
Practical applications & users
EN ISO 5349-2:2001 is intended for professionals who perform vibration assessment and workplace monitoring, including:
- Occupational hygienists and health & safety practitioners
- Ergonomists and workplace risk assessors
- Engineers and maintenance personnel evaluating tool emissions
- Employers and compliance officers preparing vibration exposure reports
Typical uses:
- Conducting hand-arm vibration assessments for compliance and risk management
- Selecting tools, controls, or work practices to reduce exposure
- Establishing measurement programs, documenting vibration magnitude and exposure times, and producing defensible A(8) evaluations
Related standards
- ISO 5349-1:2001 - General requirements for measurement and evaluation
- ISO 8041 - Measuring instrumentation for human response to vibration
- ISO 8662 (series) - Measurement of vibrations at handles of hand-held power tools
- ISO 2041, ISO 5805 - Vibration and shock vocabulary
EN ISO 5349-2:2001 provides the practical, workplace-level procedures needed to convert field measurements into actionable daily vibration exposure (A(8)) assessments.
