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Acoustics are far too expensive!
The underestimated importance of room acoustics – Part 1
Statements such as “Acoustics are far too expensive!” or “Acoustic measures are not worth it.” we’ve probably all heard them before. But why are room acoustics a topic that deserves attention at all?
There is an opinion that room acoustics are not so important and that a loud colleague should simply leave the room to make a phone call. The solution seems simple: If everyone sticks to the office rules, there will be no problems. However, the reality is much more complex.
The power of hearing: how room acoustics influence our health and productivity
Hearing is a sense that we cannot switch off. For evolutionary reasons, our hearing protects us from danger. A loud bang immediately puts us on alert and our body goes into “fight or flight” mode. So it’s no wonder that our stress hormones react sensitively to sounds. A constantly noisy environment increases stress hormone levels and can damage our health in the long term. As our brain is constantly processing environmental sounds and assessing them for danger, this auditory strain impairs our cognitive performance. Studies have even shown that poor room acoustics can lead to cardiac arrhythmia.
In addition to the health aspects, a high or restless noise level at the workplace is disturbing and makes us feel uncomfortable. A look at psychoacoustics can help here. Our concept developer Acoustics has provided us with a graphic that shows how listening effort strains our brain. The schematic diagram shows the cognitive performance distribution of a person with normal hearing under optimal conditions in contrast to the cognitive performance distribution of someone who has difficulty understanding. This may be due to a hearing impairment, a foreign language or poor room acoustics. Under optimal conditions, we understand more easily, learn better and can concentrate better. Our brain has more reserves, we are more relaxed and efficient.
The OFFICE ROXX reader survey “Room acoustics 2023” commissioned by the “Quiet please!” acoustics campaign shows that office workers find conversations and phone calls from colleagues particularly distracting. This underlines the fact that room acoustics are more important than you might think. Good room acoustics not only ensure better health for employees, but also fewer days of absence, longer periods of concentration and reduced errors at work. This means that the effectiveness and therefore the performance of the company increases.
How can room acoustics be measured?
Room acoustics are mainly measured using the reverberation time, i.e. the time it takes for a sound event to decay in a room. Roughly speaking, this time describes the reverberation of a room. In offices, this time should be significantly less than one second1. The geometry of the room, the nature of the surfaces and the furniture play a decisive role here. In addition to the reverberation time, speech propagation and speech intelligibility are also of decisive importance. There are also very different acoustic requirements depending on the use of the room and the activities. For example, a lecture room requires different acoustic conditions than an open-plan office. In the lecture room, the aim is to improve speech intelligibility and speech transmission. In an open-plan office, however, speech should not be carried throughout the room.
Standards, guidelines and calculation bases help us to plan and calculate optimum acoustic equipment. However, practice shows that numbers alone do not do justice to room acoustics. There is more to it than pure mathematics. There are many individual factors that interact and work together. It is therefore advisable to seek advice, because the fact is:
Eine optimale raumakustische Umgebung sorgt für
1. optimal speech intelligibility: improved communication, easier to follow conversations – more capacity for memory and reserves.
2. increased work performance: better concentration leads to fewer errors, more effective work and improved performance.
3. reduces stress and fatigue: fewer days off and more relaxed evenings.
4. greater well-being: The room is perceived as more pleasant – we feel more comfortable and can work more productively. This shows appreciation for the employees.
“Acoustics are far too expensive!” – Room acoustics are a worthwhile investment: for the health of employees, their productivity and ultimately for the success of a company!
- This is a simplified specification and does not reflect the complex interrelationships of room acoustics. More details and connections will follow in further articles). ↩︎
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