{"id":18969,"date":"2017-09-05T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-09-05T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/architizer.wpengine.com\/how-to-specify-acoustic-panels\/"},"modified":"2022-05-31T06:22:53","modified_gmt":"2022-05-31T10:22:53","slug":"how-to-specify-acoustic-panels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/architizer.com\/blog\/practice\/details\/how-to-specify-acoustic-panels\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Specify: Acoustic Panels"},"content":{"rendered":"

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This might be the golden age of acoustic panels. Thanks to open-plan offices and industrial warehouse conversions, designers more than ever need ways to absorb sound in large echoey spaces. This week, we focus on acoustic panels that can be applied on or built into walls to make a room quieter.<\/p>\n

We talked to Willem Boning from Arup\u2019s SoundLab, who shared with us how challenging it is to design good acoustics for open offices. Historically, the study of acoustics has focused on how to deal with sound coming from one point, like a singer on the stage of a concert hall. Open-plan work-spaces are much more chaotic by comparison, with dozens of talking people scattered around a room. Researchers at Arup are working on building effective models to study how acoustics work in such environments and what products would be best suited to achieve desired effects.<\/p>\n

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<\/i>Parentesit<\/a> by <\/i>Arper<\/a><\/i><\/p>\n

The answer, Boning said, is not necessarily to try to make the room as quiet as possible by loading the room with acoustic panels. That would result in a library-like atmosphere that would feel oppressively silent \u2014 hardly the kind of place conducive to the creative conversations open offices claim to foster. A whisper in a reading room can be far more distracting than a lively conversation in a busy caf\u00e9.<\/p>\n

Instead of just trying to make all spaces as well-insulated as possible, Boning urged architects to think about how they can use varied acoustics to shape how a space is used. Cafeterias or meeting places could be lighter and brighter, while intimate work nooks could be lushly cushioned and insulated. Acoustic panels should be strategically placed and, ideally, in consultation with an acoustician.<\/p>\n

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Acoustic plaster from BASWA, image via Materia<\/a><\/i><\/p>\n

If you\u2019re specifying wall-mounted acoustic panels, you have a lot of options. These panels usually hang via z-clips and consist of a sound-absorbing material with a light covering like felt or thin metal. Most of these products perform approximately the same way, so it\u2019s really up to what fits your aesthetic and budget.<\/p>\n

Acoustic panels can also blend into traditional wall claddings. Thin perforated wood veneers are virtually indistinguishable from conventional wood panels at a distance and can cover sound-absorbing materials inside. Acoustic plaster panels look the same as regular drywall but can contain a variety of absorbent layers.<\/p>\n

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BuzziFrio<\/a> by BuzziSpace<\/a><\/i><\/p>\n

Freestanding panels can be placed on desks or floors to quiet spaces without many walls.<\/p>\n

Acoustic panels primarily deal with moderating sound generated inside the room as opposed to isolating the room from outside noise. Acoustic panels can never make a room completely quiet \u2014 sound waves traveling directly from someone\u2019s throat to your ears will always get there \u2014 but they can keep those sound waves from bouncing off of other hard surfaces and into your ears.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s analogous to how light works in a room. Light from a bare bulb will always hit your eyes, but a room with all mirrored walls will be much brighter than a room painted matte black. Panels can be acoustically very absorbent or \u2018dark\u2019 so that sound doesn\u2019t keep bouncing around a room, or they can diffuse reflected sound so sharp noises like speech or computer beeps get smoothed into a background hush.<\/p>\n

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\u00a9 Gensler<\/p>\n\t<\/div>\n\n

Pivot Interiors<\/a> by Gensler<\/a> and hood by BuzziSpace<\/a><\/i><\/p>\n

There are a lot of options out there, and we will cover them this week along with a look at some of the exciting research being done at Arup to bring science to work on the acoustic challenges architects are facing in the 21st century.<\/p>\n

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Xorel Artform by <\/i>Carnegie<\/i><\/p>\n

Application<\/u><\/b><\/p>\n