Quieting the world by fostering a "Buy Quiet" attitude among product purchasers

An efficient and inexpensive approach to making our world quieter is to reduce sound at its source and to develop simplified labels for the noise level of products which will encourage a demand for and an incentive to manufacture quieter products. Urban noise has a serious impact on the quality of life and the health of the world’s citizens, and the situation has not improved in past decades. Current noise policies are ineffective because those based on noise immissions have failed to control the increase in urban noise worldwide, and policies based on noise emissions should be closely linked to noise immission policies, but this has not been achieved. One reason for the failure of noise emission policies is the absence of effective product labeling. New policies are needed to promote the incorporation of quiet components during the design of a new product, a simplified label adapted for each category of product should be used, and an attitude to “buy quiet” must be created in the public and with purchasing agents. Many are involved in the development of policies to promote quiet machinery and products: national authorities, governmental agencies, design engineers, test laboratories, distributors, consumer associations, and those involved with standardization and regulations. A simple labeling scheme is needed for the consumer which includes technical information for knowledgeable buyers. The need to “buy quiet” is global and must be developed for machinery and products used in all human activities and for all prospective buyers.