Help Choosing a Urethane Vibration Isolation Material

The Need for a Material

    • The term vibration isolation is used to refer to two situations. The first refers to the physical isolation of a person or object from a vibration source. The second is an engineering term that refers to a material’s ability to alter the frequency of a vibration. Both are important in controlling harmful vibration—both within and outside of the work environment.
    • Within the workplace, vibration exposure may originate from the following: operation of heavy machinery, use of pneumatic hand tools, utilizing industrial equipment, operating commercial vehicles, and interfacing with material handling devices. Exposure may be due to whole body vibration. Whole body vibration exposure in not uncommon in workers who operate heavy machinery such as tractor trailers, bulldozers, farm implements, or fork lifts. It can cause fatigue and serious medical conditions, such as impaired circulation, and degenerative disc disease. Exposure may also be due to segmental vibration. This form of vibration exposure is confined to one body part or segment. Segmental vibration exposure may be found in workers who operate production and manufacturing equipment, as well as in those who use jackhammers, nail guns, and other pneumatic tools. This type of exposure can cause Vibration White Finger and other maladies of the fingers, hand, and wrist.
    • Vibration may also be to blame for decreased machine life and damage/destruction of vulnerable items during the shipping process.
    • In the non-work environment, vibration may be responsible for: degradation of the quality of sound in audio equipment; decreased appliance life; destruction of delicate electronics; and damaged optical elements.
    • When addressing vibration exposure, you need help choosing a urethane vibration isolation material. Contact us—you will find that Sorbothane® is the most effective.