Getting the acoustics right

Within the workplace – be it an office block, school or hotel room; the space must be designed so that the internal environment can be controlled.

Environmental factors need to suit the occupants so they can operate at the optimal level throughout the day and these include both the heating and cooling of a room, and the sound transmission between other rooms or from corridors.

You might be looking at acoustics particularly if you working with a space where loud noises are inevitable (schools, music rooms, theatres, cinemas), but equally you’ll need quiet spaces for places where privacy is key (doctors’ surgeries, offices, meeting rooms).

Generally speaking it’s easier to reduce the transmission of airborne and impact sound between fixed walls and floors due to the configuration of materials used to form those structures.

But there is always a weakness - the door. Although most doors will already be dense and heavy due to their fire resistant design; human nature and general wear and tear might mean that the doors are not closed correctly. It is therefore important that there are assurances in place to allow the door to fully close when it’s not in use. It’s also important that it doesn’t just pop or slide open.

If the building is air tight, then doors opening within adjacent corridors can cause a vacuum action and the rooms with lower pressures are at risk of the doors pulling back. This can break the seal of an acoustic barrier and affect temperature control.

To overcome this weakness, self-closing devices can be used to ensure the doors are kept shut, allowing the sound sensitive rooms to maintain a stable db (decibel) rating, which is agreeable to the occupants. 

Within a school; the benefit of self-closing devices on doors to classrooms helps ensure the minimum resistance of db per room. This will ensure compliance is achieved under the

Building Bulletin 93, including guidance on how to achieve the minimum acoustic levels within a school under the Building Regulations 2010.

The reason this is so important is that it will help reduce distraction between classrooms and corridors, to settle pupils down as the room is quiet, and to create a suitable learning environment.

This also helps children with special needs who require absolute quietness.

Door Controls Direct has a variety of door closers which ensure the acoustic properties of buildings are maintained. Our overhead door closers include slide arm and scissor arm configurations.