A college that trains people for the hospitality industry operates a number of kitchens and restaurants. A large food store provides a service for the cookery lecturers who place food orders and collect them daily for their classes and the restaurants. An industrial washing machine is located in the food store near the service desk. Tea towels used in the kitchens are washed daily in the machine.
The washing machine is quite old and the food store staff have started to complain about the noise it generates in their work environment. The initial response to this complaint was to put the food store staff in hearing protectors (earmuffs or earplugs). However, since their work is of a service nature, they need to be able to communicate with the cookery lecturers and other staff.