Acoustic design and testing for health and wellbeing
Acoustic design and testing for health and wellbeing was written by Stephanie King and Gary Timmins and was published by the BRE Trust in February 2019. It is freely-available to download from the BRE Website.
Good acoustic conditions are fundamental to the quality and enjoyment of homes. Domestic noise problems may arise either from sound travelling from one premises to another, such as music, voices and footsteps, or from noise entering from outside, such as road and aircraft noise. The two are regulated in different ways. Sound insulation issues are dealt with through the Building Regulations. Exposure to outside noise is dealt with through the planning system. Both require careful consideration, as poor acoustic design is difficult and expensive to remedy once a building has been completed.
This 16-page guide identifies the basic elements of acoustic design and the standards most commonly used when considering noise impact on homes. It is intended to help housebuilders, building owners, designers, architects, planners, landlords and householders take the first steps towards understanding acoustic requirements for homes and the kind of technical data they might encounter on the way.
Its contents are:
- Summary.
- Introduction.
- Sources of noise disturbance – sound insulation.
- Sources of noise disturbance – environmental noise.
- The role of laboratory testing.
- Case studies.
- References.
- Acknowledgements.
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki
- Acoustic consultant.
- Acoustics.
- Acoustics in the workplace.
- Airborne sound.
- Approved Document E.
- Audio frequency.
- BRE articles on Designing Buildings Wiki.
- BRE Trust.
- BREEAM Acoustic performance.
- Building Bulletin 93: acoustic design of schools.
- Decibel.
- Flanking sound.
- Impact sound.
- Noise nuisance.
- Pre-completion sound testing.
- Reverberation.
- Room acoustics.
- Sound absorption.
- Sound insulation.
- Sound insulation in dwellings: Part 1: An introduction (GG 83-1).
- Sound reduction index (SRI).
- Sound v noise.
- Structure-borne sound.
- Suitable insulation can help preserve the golden sound of silence.
- Timber and healthy interiors.
- Wellbeing.
Featured articles and news
Report on the construction sector in Ireland
TASC/CIOB study looks at post-pandemic struggles and trends.
Revised targets for Carbon Budget 6
The Government announces recalibrated goals.
ECA proposes strategies for the present and the future.
Paul Morrell to lead independent review of the construction products testing regime.
Standard will help employers foster wellbeing and manage psychosocial risks.
The United Nations has approved the IFSS common principles
Global fire standards for safety of people and property.
An introduction to the 5 core principles of lean.
Civil engineers and environmental methods of construction
Can the profession use its skills to save the world from climate change?
How faulty science resulted in sanitation reform.
Conserving the Hilda Besse Building
Improving facilities, accessibility and overall appearance.
BSRIA IAQ topic guide published
Free download of TG 12/2021 available.
Electrotechincal mentors wanted
TESP works with The Youth Group to form skill sharing network.
OpenBuilt supply chain technology in development
Big tech collaborates on platform for the built environment.
Concerns raised over Future Buildings Standard
Letter signed by 21 organisations sent to MHCLG.
Receive the Designing Buildings newsletter
Click the button to subscribe.