Controlling sound in the conference rooms

The basic step is to make sure that sounds transferred outside the room are not permitted within the room. Common walls should be constructed with an STC of 55 or more, and should all the way extend to the structural deck on the top. Ratings of high STC can be achieved through the creation of a sound isolation room and vinyl noise barriers that add additional mass to the partitions and also dissociate them from the studs reducing both airborne and structural noise.

HVAC Systems

Air conditioning, heating and ventilation systems are a general source of unwanted noise and their design and location should be considered before construction. Fan-coil units and air handlers should never be situated in a conference room. The duct size should be proper just like the air duct noise silencer and not create high air velocities.

Absorption

Addition of absorptive materials and kinetics noise to the walls and ceilings prevents sound from bouncing back and forth creating an ambience convenient for speaking. Acoustic wall panels and ceilings wrapped with acoustic ceiling tiles, fabric and stretch wall fabric systems are all excellent products for absorbing sound and providing pleasing aesthetics. To ensure speech privacy, it is suggested to install sound masking in the areas beyond the conference room.

NC Rating

NC or Noise Criteria is utilized to measure the serenity of a room without occupants in the room and HVAC running. All the above mentioned factors add up to the general NC rating of the room along with the use of a noise blanket. For a conference room, the best NC rating is 35 dBA or less. Speech intelligibility will start to be affected by anything higher.

In a conference room, attention to acoustics is quite vital to ensure a meeting space that is not only acoustically pleasant but also functional.