Acoustics:Layout 1 11/09/2009 16:35 Page 50
acoustics
Acoustic
panels
to match
decor
S
T PETER CHANEL Catholic Primary all sides with the fabric bonded to the
In classrooms where
School, a voluntary aided school in face and then wrapped around all four
the archdiocese of Southwark, sides. The finished product is an individual acoustics are poor, children
experienced noise problems and, in sound absorbing panel which can be used
particular, needed to reduce the echo and in single units, joined with other acoustic
with normal hearing are
reverberation in its classrooms. Extra- panels or installed with shadow gaps as a
often unable to make out
curricular activities at the School include design feature. The fabric finish is
orchestra, and instrumental tuition on wrapped around the two long and the two what is being said in class.
string, brass and woodwind is also provided. short sides which all have reinforcing
Soundsorba was appointed to provide a strips to protect the edges.
While adults will guess at
solution. A reverberation time of 0.6 or The Wallsorba acoustic panels also
missing words, children find
0.8 is required for classrooms and, after fitted in well with the colour schemes in
acoustic calculations were carried out, the separate classrooms. This was a key
it much harder to fill in the
the company was able to quantify issue for the school, which did not want
exactly how much sound absorption was the additional costs of re-decorating all
gaps and their educational
needed in each room. the classrooms. Soundsorba also offers
Wallsorba Type C panels were used for many different fabric colour finishes to
development can suffer.
the project.The Wallsorba Shadow Joint help match the acoustic panels with décor.
Panel system has no visible fixing
sections on any of the four sides of the
www.soundsorba.com
panel. The panel has reinforced edges on
Floating panels control reverberation
T
HE NEW £45m St Helens College in EWA Architects conceptualised a ‘floating’ of prototypes were manufactured and
Merseyside is being constructed acoustic panel to assist reverberation tested on-site, resulting in the development
over 17,500 sqm and will provide new control and blend with the interior. CMS of a final system that achieved the
facilities for 15,000 full- and part-time Acoustics designed an innovative ‘floating’ illusion combined with the required
students, to include a theatre, art rooms, translucent hanging system that could load bearing and acoustic performance.
fitness suites and administration areas. horizontally suspend a 25mm thick SuperPhon is designed to absorb
In designing the teaching environment, SuperPhon Suspended Absorber. A number high levels of reflected noise within a
room to improve the listening
environment. Panels are manufactured in
standard 25mm and 50mm thicknesses,
with bespoke thicknesses made to order.
At St Helens, a combination of Super
Phon Suspended Absorbers and Wall
Panels were used throughout the
development. A total of 320 panels were
installed, covered with standard
SuperPhon open weave fabric and in a
combination of Adriatic and White
colour schemes.
www.ewa.co.uk
www.cmsacoustics.co.uk
50 edbmagazine.co.uk
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