BS EN 352-2:2020

What is BS EN 352‑2 about?  

BS EN 352‑10 is the second part of the hearing protectors multi-series. 

BS EN 352‑2 specifies requirements on construction, design, performance, marking, and user information for earplugs. 

BS EN 352‑2 specifies requirements regarding the sound attenuation of the earplugs, measured by EN ISO 4869-1:2018. 

BS EN 352‑2 applies to earplugs designed for users who can follow supplied instructions and understand the related risks, can fit the earplugs correctly, and can give feedback on the performance. 

Who is BS EN 352‑2 for? 

BS EN 352‑2 on requirements for earplugs is useful for: 

• Hearing protector device manufacturers 
• Hearing protector device testers 
• Hearing protector device designers 
• Acoustic engineers 
• Safety and health departments 

Why should you use BS EN 352‑2?  

Earplugs are hearing protection devices that protect your ears from damaging sounds or noises. Poorly made earplugs might be uncomfortable for the users and won’t even perform their basic function. 

The requirement about the ability of hearing protectors to reduce noise below limit levels is addressed in BS EN 352‑2 by requiring the sound attenuation of the hearing protectors, measured by EN ISO 4869-1, to be not less than a specified minimum. 

BS EN 352‑2 provides requirements for the physical and acoustic performance of the earplugs. BS EN 352-2 also provides you with the performance requirements, material, and construction requirements, and marking requirements of earplugs to ensure that they will not cause physical harm to wearers.  

BS EN 352-2 ensures that your earplugs perform at an optimum level and meet the minimum quality requirements for hearing protectors 

What is changed since the last update?  

BS EN 352‑2:2020 supersedes EN 352-2:2002 and includes some technical changes concerning EN 352-2:2002 such as: 

• Additional requirements for custom-moulded earplugs: requirement on taking ear impressions and fittest of test samples 
• Drop test, clarification of test criterion: only the passive function (sound attenuation) needs to be checked (relevant for products with electronic supplementary functions) 
• Minimum sound attenuation: change of requirements for minimum sound attenuation from octave band values to HML values and APVf98 
• Marking, additional requirement: marking with manufacturing date or date of obsolescence, marking of re-closable packaging for reusable earplugs 
• User information: warning statements not verbatim anymore, HML values on packaging/box, declaration of product lifetime, information on replacement tips for banded earplugs, fitting instructions for replacement tips for banded earplugs, declaration of sound attenuation values according to EN ISO 4869-2:2018, warnings for preformed earplugs.