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Commercial soundproofing

Description

Commercial soundproofing in Kenya is essential not only for complying with the law but also for creating comfortable, productive, and efficient work environments.

Modern office with acoustic ceiling panels
Modern office with acoustic ceiling panels

It involves reducing unwanted noise to improve sound quality and clarity. Whether you’re dealing with noisy machinery, open office spaces, or bustling restaurants, effective soundproofing can enhance your business operations.

Industrial pollutants are not limited to solids, liquids, and gases. Industrial processes can also produce loud noises. Noise pollution occurs when sounds from industrial operations impair the hearing of workers, bystanders, or nearby residents. Twenty-four percent of people with hearing impairments have suffered from exposure to noise in the workplace. Residents may also suffer from noise from machinery, safety alarms, and heavy trucks at industrial sites.

One of the disadvantages of modern buildings is poor sound insulation. Silence is vital and noise can be tolerated. But it occurs at the most inopportune times and distracts employees from their work. The shaking of walls from a passing tram or hammer drill is structural noise. But impacts on the floor, falling objects, and conversations of employees behind the wall are impact noise. An echo in an empty office is an acoustic noise phenomenon.
But every type of noise can be reduced. So soundproofing an office is a solvable, and sometimes necessary, task.

In the competitive business world, every detail counts in creating an exceptional customer experience. Soundproofing commercial establishments such as restaurants, cafes, auditoriums, and offices is a crucial factor that is often overlooked. However, good soundproofing not only improves customer comfort and satisfaction but can also be a determining factor in the success of the business.

Soundproof recording studio

Why is Commercial Soundproofing Important?

Commercial building wall soundproofing by physically separating the new wall from the existing structure to minimize vibration transmission.

 

Noise pollution is an irritating noise of anthropogenic origin that disrupts the normal life of humans and animals. Anthropogenic factors include sounds of moving transport, operating industries, construction equipment, and various mechanisms. Sounds from natural sources are not considered noise pollution: the body easily adapts to them, and they cannot cause harm.

Investments in commercial real estate have always attracted business in Kenya. However, tenants above shops, bars, and other objects regularly cause long-term legal and domestic conflicts.

It is almost impossible to predict the activity profile of your future commercial tenant. For this reason, reliable protection of the apartment stock is needed.

The main problem is that general construction materials, plasterboard, gypsum board, mineral wool, etc., are unable to solve the problem of high-quality sound insulation.

And yet, constantly exceeding the comfortable noise level has negative effects on a person. According to WHO, noise pollution provokes cardiovascular pathologies, diseases of the central nervous system, sleep disorders, and even diabetes. But first of all, high noise levels lead to hearing impairment.

Acoustic ceiling soundproofing of a banking hall.Improve customer experience

In restaurants and cafes, a quiet environment free of disturbing noise is essential for customers to enjoy their meal and conversation. Excessive noise can result in a negative experience, upsetting customers and affecting your reputation.

Increase productivity

In offices and workspaces, noise can be a significant distraction that reduces concentration and productivity. Soundproofing helps create a quieter and more productive work environment, allowing employees to focus on tasks without interruption.

Comply with legal regulations

In Kenya, there are loose regulations governing noise levels in commercial establishments. Complying with these regulations prevents fines and penalties and demonstrates the business’s commitment to the well-being of its customers and employees.

Improve sound quality in auditoriums and conference rooms

In spaces designed for events, presentations, and conferences quality sound is essential. Good soundproofing ensures that sound is clear and interference-free, improving the audience experience.

Assessment of the acoustic environment

Before beginning any commercial soundproofing or conditioning process, you assess the premises’ acoustic environment. Identifying noise sources, such as external traffic or internal activity, is crucial to determining which areas need priority attention and what type of work is necessary.

It is best to hire a Wallpaper Kenya to carry out this study and implement the appropriate measures to ensure that your premises comply with the relevant regulations.

Differences between soundproofing and conditioning of commercial premises

These two concepts, although related, address different aspects of sound control.

Acoustic conditioning

strategically placed acoustic absorbers, diffusers, and reflectors to control reverberation and improve sound clarity
strategically placed acoustic absorbers, diffusers, and reflectors to control reverberation and improve sound clarity,

Acoustic conditioning focuses on the conscious manipulation of sound within a space to achieve optimal sound quality. This involves incorporating strategically placed acoustic absorbers, diffusers, and reflectors to control reverberation and improve sound clarity.

Acoustic conditioning’s main objective is to create a pleasant and balanced sound environment, ideal for environments where the quality of communication is essential.

Soundproofing, on the other hand, limits sound transmission from one space to another. This involves the application of insulating materials and physical barriers to prevent noise from escaping or entering certain areas.

If you are looking for a construction and renovation company with extensive experience that can implement conditioning or soundproofing solutions in your business so that it complies with legal requirements, contact Wallpaper Kenya via phoneemail, or WhatsApp. We will be happy to assist you and evaluate your project.

Measuring commercial building acoustics

When measuring building acoustics, several key parameters must be considered to assess the acoustic performance of a building. Some of the essential parameters for measuring building acoustics include:

Sound Transmission Class (STC)

STC is a rating that measures the ability of a building’s partition (such as walls, floors, or windows) to attenuate airborne sound. It indicates a partition’s ability to block sound transmission. A higher STC rating indicates better sound insulation.

Impact Insulation Class (IIC)

The IIC measures a floor assembly’s ability to reduce the transmission of impact sound, such as footsteps, from one space to another. It quantifies the floor’s effectiveness in absorbing and isolating vibrations generated by impacts.

Reverberation Time (RT)

RT is the time it takes for sound to decay 60 decibels in a room after the sound source has stopped. It measures the overall “echo” or decay characteristics of sound in a space. Different spaces require different reverberation times depending on their intended use.

Noise Criteria (NC)

Noise criteria is a system that defines acceptable levels of background noise in a specific space. It takes into account factors such as ambient noise, room size, and function to determine appropriate noise levels. It is commonly used in the design of HVAC systems, offices, and other spaces.

Speech Transmission Index (STI)

The STI measures the intelligibility of speech in a room. It assesses speech intelligibility in the presence of background noise and other acoustic factors. The STI is often used to assess the acoustic quality of spaces such as classrooms, lecture halls, and auditoriums.

Sound absorption coefficient (α)

The sound absorption coefficient measures the amount of sound energy that a material absorbs. It indicates the extent to which a material or surface reduces sound reflections. The coefficient ranges from 0 to 1, with higher values ​​indicating greater absorption.

Background noise level

The background noise level in a space is an important parameter to consider. It refers to the ambient noise present in a room or building. Lower background noise levels are often desirable in spaces such as offices, libraries, and concert halls.

These parameters are commonly used to assess and design building acoustics, ensuring that the right acoustic conditions are achieved for a variety of applications, such as minimizing sound transmission between spaces, optimizing speech intelligibility, and controlling reverberation.

Common Areas for Commercial Soundproofing

Hotel lounge room soundproofing with thick carpets, excellent at absorbing sound.
Hotel lounge with thick carpet, excellent at absorbing sound.

Restaurants, hotels, and fitness centers are also notorious for their high noise levels. But if your customers are faced with increased noise levels, it can affect their overall satisfaction with your business. This will lead to some bad reviews, no matter how good your service is or how modern your premises look. Soundproofing a public space will help avoid negative reviews and give you a competitive advantage.

As you can see, soundproofing commercial premises is a necessary component of a successful business in the modern world.

By consulting with the sound engineers at Wallpaper Kenya to eliminate noise issues before they become a major problem, you can increase customer satisfaction and quickly increase the value of your commercial property. There are many ways to solve acoustic problems. We will find the right solution for you.

Soundproofing is crucial in many commercial settings to enhance productivity, privacy, and overall comfort. Here are some of the most common areas where soundproofing is often implemented:

The purpose of Commercial Soundproofing

floating floor, which involves installing the floor on top of resilient underlayment, decoupling it from the subfloor, and reducing the transfer of impact noise.

 

The purpose of commercial sound insulation is to deflect sound and prevent it from passing through the wall of the room. The characteristic structure of commercial soundproofing materials creates an obstacle to the passage of sound and deflects it. The soundproofing ability of a commercial building structure is determined, first of all, by its mass. The more massive and thicker the wall, the more difficult it is for sound vibrations to rock it. The sound insulation ability of enclosing structures used in construction is assessed by the value of the sound insulation index. The sound insulation index is measured in dB, and optimally it should be from 52 to 60 dB (for enclosing structures). Soundproofing materials include dense materials such as concrete, brick, drywall, and other materials that can reflect sound.

 

Commercial bar door soundproofing to reduce sound spilling through.
Door soundproofing to reduce sound spilling through.

Sound absorption

Acoustic Insulation, rock wool placed between joists to absorb sound energy.
Acoustic Insulation, rock wool is placed between joists to absorb sound energy.

The purpose of commercial sound absorption is to absorb noise and prevent it from being reflected from the obstacle back into the room. Commercial sound-absorbing materials have a fibrous, granular, or cellular structure. The sound absorption characteristics are assessed by the sound absorption coefficient. The sound absorption coefficient varies from 0 to 1. With a zero sound absorption coefficiency sound is completely reflected. While with complete sound absorption, the coefficiency is equal to one. Sound-absorbing materials include those that have a sound absorption coefficient of at least 0.4.

According to the degree of rigidity, sound-absorbing materials are hard, soft, and semi-rigid.

  • Solid materials are produced from granulated or suspended mineral wool and include porous aggregates such as pumice, expanded perlite, and vermiculite. The sound absorption coefficient is 0.5. The volumetric mass is 300-400 kg/m3.
  • Soft sound-absorbing materials are made from mineral wool or fiberglass; as well as cotton wool, felt, etc. Sound absorption coefficient: from 0.7 to 0.95. Volumetric mass: up to 70 kg/m3.
  • Semi-rigid materials are mineral wool or fiberglass boards, materials with a cellular structure are polyurethane foam, etc. Sound absorption coefficient: from 0.5 to 0.75. Volumetric mass: from 80 to 130 kg/m3.

To combat impact noise, elastic materials are used, mainly with a closed cellular structure. And porous or fibrous ones with a high sound absorption cope coefficient with airborne noise. Structural noise can be combated by using cushioning material to protect the joints of load-bearing elements.

Airborne sound insulation

Soundproof Drywall with higher density and improved sound-blocking properties.

 

One way to protect against the penetration of extraneous sounds is to install dense and massive walls and ceilings. These can be monolithic reinforced concrete, expanded clay, foam concrete blocks, etc. The main thing is that they, together with the binding solution, form a sealed structure without cracks and holes.

However, increasing the massiveness of walls and ceilings is a rather complex and ineffective task. Doubling a structure’s mass increases its sound insulation index by only a few decibels.

A more acceptable way to protect against airborne noise is to create a multilayer structure consisting of several alternating layers of hard, dense, and soft building materials.

Dense materials such as brick, concrete, plasterboard, etc. can be used as a rigid layer. They exhibit sound insulation properties, and the greater their density, the higher the sound insulation. The layer of soft material has a sound-absorbing function. Materials with a fibrous structure are used as a sound-absorbing layer: mineral wool, glass wool, and silica fibers. In this case, the thickness of the sound-absorbing material in the structure matters; the effective thickness starts from 50 mm. The thickness of the absorbent layer must be at least 50% of the internal space of the partition.

Currently, the most effective materials with high sound absorption coefficients are products made of mineral wool and fiberglass.

Double glazing consists of two panes of glass separated by a space filled with air. This creates an air gap that acts as a barrier to sound waves.
window double glazing

The “box in box” commercial soundproofing technique

Box in a box commercial soundproofing technic

 

The techniques used to obtain good acoustic soundproofing are very varied. They will depend on the position of the noise source and the position of its possible receivers. The solution most widely used by acoustic engineers for correct noise reduction is based on the “box in box” construction technique.

The concept is based on ensuring that the interior enclosure is mechanically separated from the exterior enclosure. You can achieve this thanks to the construction techniques used for the floating floor, the insulating ceiling, and the acoustic cladding.

An important factor to consider is the frequencies from which we want to isolate ourselves. The behavior of acoustic materials and their effectiveness against noise depend directly on this parameter. That is why acoustic engineers use different construction techniques to achieve the necessary insulation improvements in each frequency range to be treated.

But we must not forget that this would be the ideal situation since the enclosures need different elements to be functional: doors, viewers or windows, ventilation systems, air conditioning systems, water installations, electrical and data installations, etc.

All of these elements, in one way or another, will break the “box-in-box” and reduce the acoustic conditioning designed to achieve efficient insulation.

When we encounter these situations, the sound insulation resulting from the wall, which comprises multiple elements (eg door + window + duct + wall), is what we call mixed sound insulation. This will depend on the individual insulation of each element and the surface area they occupy within the wall.

 

Furring Strips attached to the wall, providing a space for insulation and the new wall layer.
Furring strips are attached to the wall, providing a space for insulation and the new wall layer.

Commercial Soundproofing Regulations in Kenya: A Challenge

Unfortunately, there are no specific, detailed regulations explicitly outlining soundproofing standards for premises in Kenya.

This lack of specific regulations presents a challenge for both property owners and residents. While there are general building codes and environmental noise pollution laws, these often don’t delve into the specifics of soundproofing residential or commercial spaces.

Potential Sources of Guidance

Though not legally binding, the following might provide some guidance:

  1. Kenya National Building Code: While this code may not have specific soundproofing requirements, it could offer general construction and structural standards that indirectly influence sound insulation.
  2. Environmental Management and Coordination Act (EMCA): This law focuses on environmental noise pollution. While primarily concerned with external noise, some provisions might indirectly relate to internal soundproofing.
  3. Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS): While not directly involved in regulations, KEBS might have published standards or guidelines related to building materials and construction practices that could impact soundproofing.
  4. Industry Standards and Best Practices: International building codes and standards, such as those from the International Code Council (ICC) or the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), can offer valuable reference points.

Other ways to protect yourself from commercial noise pollution

Resilient bars used to decouple plasterboard from stud walls and beneath timber joists to improve the soundproofing of walls and ceilings

 

Today, there are many ways to protect people’s health from sound pollution. For example, noise level standards have been established for residential premises, such as apartment buildings. According to the so-called “silence laws,” the noise level should not exceed 45 decibels from 07:00 to 23:00 and no more than 55 decibels during the daytime. Compliance with this rule will not only help residents preserve their hearing but also establish good neighborly relations.

Proper development planning is the most effective way to protect against noise in the urban environment. A suitable location is selected when constructing large facilities with a high potential for creating sound pollution. For example, airports are being built outside the city. The same applies to production. In addition, according to environmental legislation, such facilities are surrounded by sanitary protection zones.

The fight against noise at work depends on the type of industry and is determined by its characteristics. For example, standards are established for interaction with equipment, after which the employee must take a break. Personal safety and protective equipment are also used.

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