It’s time for another semester, and I tell my architecture students that if there’s one thing they learn in my acoustics class, it’s that porous absorbers do not block sound. A porous sound absorber, by definition, has many tiny interconnected voids that sound travels through. Fiberglass and open cell foam are examples. The sound wave loses its energy through friction between the air particles and the fibers/void walls of the material it is passing through. (more)
Doggy Daycare Noise Control – Acoustic Roadblocks
Are you planning to open a veterinary hospital? A doggy daycare? A kennel? A private dog park? If so, then make sure that you consider the noise issues ahead of time (i.e., the barking)! Although these types of projects only account for a small portion of our work at Acoustics By Design, we end up assisting with noise control for at least a couple of these animal facilities every year. And when it comes to building the perfect doggy daycare or kennel, there is always a common list of acoustic roadblocks. (more)
LEED for Healthcare to be Adopted in 2009
The LEED Green Building Rating SystemTM is a voluntary, consensus-based national standard for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings. LEED was created by the U.S. Green Building Council to define “green building” through a common standard, and to promote integrated, whole-building design practices. There are several categories of LEED building certification programs including: LEED for New Construction, LEED for Existing Buildings, LEED for Schools, and LEED for Retail, just to name a few. And as of last week, the U.S.G.B.C. announced plans to adopt a new LEED category in 2009: Healthcare. (more)
Noise Isolation for Mixed-Use Developments
In the world of architecture, we frequently hear the term “mixed-use development,” and our firm is increasingly called upon to provide mixed-use development acoustical consulting. The term “mixed-use” generally refers to a development that incorporates residential and commercial space in a close-knit fashion. Mixed-use developments have been constructed for centuries, often taking the form of residential space above retail space – such as the shopkeeper living above the shop. As industrialization increased, mixed-use fell out of favor, and segregated land-use became popular. But late in the past century, mixed-use developments resurfaced, often with the intent of revitalizing urban areas and creating walk-able communities – as opposed to communities where a person must drive a car or take some form of public transportation to perform their daily routine. (more)
OSHA, The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, has long had policies regulating noise in the workplace. Their “Hearing Conservation Program” is designed to protect workers from suffering hearing loss even if they are subject to loud noise exposures over their entire working lifetimes. But navigating the waters of OSHA’s 1910.95 Noise Exposure Standards document can be a difficult (and daunting) task, and many industrial facilities are happy to outsource this task to the nearest hearing protection salesperson. Unfortunately in this case, ignorance isn’t bliss. (more)
“…You can’t handle the truth!” If you’re a movie fan, then you probably recognize this line from the 1992 blockbuster, A Few Good Men. Of course, Nathan R. Jessep (Jack Nicholson) delivered the line in response to Lt. Daniel Kaffee’s (Tom Cruise) questioning in that tense courtroom scene. But in the real world, what happens when a loud outburst like this takes place…in a Courtroom, in a Judge’s Chambers, or in a Jury Room? How is that sound stopped from transmitting into adjacent rooms and hallways? The unfortunate truth is that in many cases, it’s not. (more)
The Secret Lives of IMAX Theatre Designers
Ask typical movie goers for the definition of an IMAX Theatre, and they will likely give you an unclear response about a big screen and loud sound. On these points they would be right – but only as a vague definition. You see, the IMAX Corporation has gone to great lengths to make sure that every IMAX-certified theatre actually delivers what they consider to be “The IMAX Experience ®.” They want to make sure that the IMAX brand truly means something to consumers – something more than “a big screen and loud sound.” And if that IMAX brand is to mean anything, then every IMAX Theatre must deliver the same high quality movie experience from Los Angeles to New York to your hometown, and so on. This is achieved through the process of IMAX certification, which involves enforcing stringent specifications in two realms: film production and theater design. (more)
The Wailing Industrial Demon Next Door
I am not about to compose a post vilifying the American industrial complex; I’m only expressing the attitude of many people that I come across who live near a noisy factory, processing plant, scrap yard, or other type of industrial facility. Perhaps in some cases, criticism by nearby residents is justified, but usually it is not, and often it is avoidable. Multiple times every year I am called in to assess industrial noise and vibration emissions to residential communities. Often I am hired by the company, sometimes by the local government, and occasionally by a residential group. And by the time I get involved, edgy relations have frequently devolved into contentious confrontations, accusations of purposeful illegalities, and claims of ill health due to noise. (more)
Auditorium Noise Isolation: You Gotta Keep Em’ Separated
Mixing noise pollution with an intimate auditorium setting is almost always a bad idea, and as the song says, “You gotta keep em’ separated.” There’s nothing like untimely noise pollution to ruin the flow of a good theatrical performance or vocal recital. For our purposes today, we will define “noise pollution” as any unwanted sound impeding at an unwanted time. When you’re engineering acoustical solutions for an auditorium, the importance of noise isolation is paramount, and it’s the only way to really keep the “bad sound” out. Noise pollution can hinder speech intelligibility and greatly reduce the ability for an audience to hear and understand what is being said. In auditoriums, noise pollution can come from a wide array of culprits from within or without the facility. (more)
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