Student Job Shadows as an Acoustical Engineer
Many high school students have never heard of the “acoustical engineering” field so when local student Jordan Van Buskirk  (a Senior at Western Michigan Christian High School) asked his teacher about jobs that have to do with acoustics, it was a first for the school. After being contacted by Joyce Workman, Director of Advancement at WMCHS, Acoustics By Design proposed a project centered around a problematic space for the school. By working with an existing space, both Jordan and the school would benefit from the job shadow opportunity; Jordan was even able to get credit for a physics class by completing the project. Jordan worked with Tim Koldenhoven of Acoustics By Design and identified the gymnasium as a space that needed improvements. Not knowing what to expect, Jordan showed up on time and ready to learn. (more)
Acoustical Solutions for Cafetoriums and Gymnatoria
Multi-use school facilities (such as “cafetoriums” – cafeterias that double as auditoriums) are popping up all over Michigan because they save space and save money. But many schools are finding that they are not well-suited to serve multiple purposes. So how can multi-use facilities be optimized for both utility (think cafeteria) and performance (think auditorium)? (more)
ABD to Host 10 Year Anniversary Party
Acoustics By Design, an independent acoustical consulting and audio-visual design firm headquartered in downtown Grand Rapids, will celebrate its 10 year anniversary on October 6, 2011, at the Grand Rapids Art Museum. The invitation only event will host 300 architects and engineers as they celebrate a milestone for one of their own. (more)
Training Tips for Church Tech Teams
I run sound at a local church about once a month. I used to spend time behind a mixing board several times a week, but these days it tends to be more time in front of a computer. Several recent discussions with the Music Director at the church got me pondering this question: What really makes a “good” mix? And the inevitable follow-up question is: How hard is it to train a church tech team volunteer so that they can get a “good” mix as the church sound board operator? Here’s my opinion… (more)
Is It Really Sound Proof? Mixed Use Developments
Mixed use developments need to have the proper noise isolation partitions and the proper expectations for tenants. “I can hear their music and their phone ringing; I can even hear them repeat the order!” This comment came from a frustrated condo owner who lived above a sandwich shop in a mixed used condominium development. High density living often crashes with commercial spaces, and usually it is the residential owners that end up frustrated. (more)
Corporate Videoconference Guidelines & Recommendations – Part 2
Good communication can be difficult, especially over long distances. This is why we still get on airplanes and travel to meet face to face. Videoconferencing saves the travel costs, and it still gives us the face to face connection. But here’s the key: the videoconference environment itself is critical to ensuring communication success. Human ability (your eyes and ears) are much more forgiving than technology (cameras and microphones). For example, bad room lighting can automatically be mitigated by a change to your eye’s iris, but video cameras will capture an unusable or poor image. Another example is room noise which can be filtered out by the brain but will be picked up by the microphone and ultimately decrease intelligibility. So here is a list of common “weakest links” for corporate videoconferencing: (more)
Corporate Videoconference Guidelines & Recommendations – Part 1
Teleconferencing requires hearing the voice, so it should follow that videoconferencing requires seeing the people, right? Not so much. Videoconferencing actually requires a finer level of detail – it requires seeing the eyes. Why? We communicate with our eyes. If you cannot clearly see the eyes of the communicator, then you might as well be on a teleconference. This is why web quality video has become unacceptable for many types of corporate communication. Even more difficult are large spaces such as boardrooms or corporate auditoriums. The size of these spaces alone presents a real challenge to the video conferencing system, making it ever more difficult to see the eyes. “So what?” you say. Well, the eventual reality is that without seeing the eyes, users will eventually avoid the technology altogether. (more)
I recently attended concerts at two out-of-state prestigious university level music schools, and from a noise control point of view, the auditoria couldn’t have been more different. While the room acoustics of both halls were superb, the background noise level in one was quite distracting. (more)
IPTV –When it Makes Sense & Save Cents
One of the transitions that we are watching closely in the audio-visual Industry is the evolution of audio and video delivery over networks instead of through dedicated distribution systems. In the consumer world you may have noticed that some TV networks are starting to stream things like major sporting events from their websites, or you may have signed up for a service like Netflix or Hulu Plus to stream movies to your TV. These are examples of TV delivered over the Internet – commonly called IPTV. (more)
The other day at a popular chain restaurant, I dropped by the restroom before a long ride home. I’ve heard some loud toilet flushes in my day, and this one was right up there with the loudest of them. While it caught my attention, it didn’t make me jump too high out of surprise. However, when I saw a young girl coming out of the neighboring stall, she had a look of shock on her face. She said, “That SCARED me!” Not something I would think most businesses want to do to their customers. (more)
The National Council of Acoustical Consultants & the American Institute of Architects
The National Council of Acoustical Consultants (NCAC) is the only North American organization fully devoted to certifying the credentials of acoustical consultants. Kenric Van Wyk, President of Acoustics By Design, was elected to the NCAC Board of Directors in 2006. He has served as the Vice President of Finance, and was recently elected as the Vice President of Marketing and Communications. To join the NCAC, acoustical engineering firms have to be completely independent with no ties to any product manufacturers or distributors. This ensures that each firm provides objective recommendations that are free from bias. Since 1962, the NCAC has supported the acoustical profession through:
- recognizing expert Acoustical Consultants and Engineers.
- promoting opportunities for peer interaction.
- providing a reference tool for the public to learn more about the profession and to find a consultant matched to their needs. (more)
Acoustics By Design was recently honored by the Michigan Business & Professional Association as one of “West Michigan’s 101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For.” 2011 marks the fifth consecutive year that ABD has received the award. (more)
Quality, Service, and Price – How Acoustical Consultants Stack Up
Recently a client called to say they were trying to make a decision between our acoustical engineering firm and another acoustician for a church project they were working on. The client had received proposals from Acoustics By Design and another firm, but wanted to discuss the topic from a “quality, service, and price” perspective. So what did I tell him? (more)
LEED for Healthcare Acoustic Points
The new LEED for Healthcare system allows up to two points for acoustics under the IEQ Credit 2 Acoustic Environment. Its intent is to “provide building occupants with an indoor healing environment free of intrusive or disruptive levels of sound.” Points can be earned by meeting requirements for increased sound isolation between rooms, reduced room noise levels, controlled reverberation time (acoustical finishes), and reduced site exterior noise. (more)
Evidence Based Design for Healthcare Acoustics
In their November 2010 issue, Healthcare Design Magazine published an article entitled, “Too Noisy to Heal,” written by Dr. Erica Ryherd of the Georgia Institute of Technology. Dr. Ryherd lays out a clear case for the importance of acoustical design in healthcare facilities. She uses the term “soundscape” because healthcare acoustical consulting is so much more than just reducing unwanted noise. At Acoustics By Design, we couldn’t agree more. (more)
On Shaky Ground | Healthcare Vibration Problems
A friend of mine recently went to an eye appointment at a doctor’s office where outpatient surgeries are performed. The floor was noticeably shaking as a result of vibration energy from the air handling unit directly above the office. He asked the doctors if they have problems with sensitive medical instrumentation, such as data that seem erroneous. While the doctors didn’t directly admit to having any problems, he could see the look of concern and alarm on their faces, as if my friend had psychic powers to know something was wrong with their instruments. They were extremely interested in what my friend told them about how excessive vibration can be the source of errors, which apparently hadn’t occurred to them before. (more)
Troubleshooting Church Sound Systems
Recently I was working with a church that was experiencing some “issues” with their sanctuary sound system. They had just reconfigured their main worship space and everything had been fine. But now that several weeks had gone by, things were not right. They asked if I could come and help work with their sound volunteers to get everything straightened out. I’ve worked with many churches in somewhat similar circumstances so, at first glance, nothing in this scenario seemed out of the ordinary. (more)
Video Wall Design Considerations for Corporate Webcast Auditoriums
Out of curiosity, we asked one of our current clients what made them pick Acoustics By Design to be their audio-video consultant for their corporate webcast auditorium project. We beat out several national AVL consulting firms to get the project, so what made the difference? Well, there were a list of reasons why ABD was the best fit. One reason was that we took time to understand the client’s vision, and that we proposed the concept of a video wall rather than the traditional approach of using several projectors to accomplish their complex webcasts. Cool. So why did we pitch the idea in the first place? (more)
Optimizing Church Sanctuary Acoustics for Congregational Singing
I recently received a call from a pastor asking how to enhance their congregational singing. The church had recently inherited a new building, and the pastor was concerned that the congregational singing was just not “what it should be”. The band was great, and they rocked the place out. But the congregation was feeling a bit overwhelmed and “lost in the crowd”. (more)
Cost Saving Ideas for Industrial Noise Control
“Wow, you guys are expensive”. I’ve heard this once or twice so far in my career. Interestingly, I hear it the most from industrial and manufacturing clients where employee noise exposure is a major issue in their operations. It’s true, the consulting fee can be a little overwhelming at first, however, if you step back and look at the larger picture, you might be surprised how inexpensive the fee can be. (more)
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