Facilitair & Gebouwbeheer April 2009

Acoustics do not immediately spring to mind when designing and constructing buildings, but it is wrong not to consider them, as the acoustic conditions within an office are particularly important for the welfare of the people who work there. Noise, even at a low level, can give rise to problems such as disturbed concentration, tiredness and stress.
Sound-absorbent office furniture from Voortman Kantoormeubelen provides a high degree of acoustic comfort, which allows employees to feel more comfortable, to concentrate better and to work more effectively.

The office is changing
Technological progress and social changes mean that the way in which we work is radically changing. This can be seen in the design of offices and the way in which they are laid out. Modern technology enables a high degree of mobility. This means that people are able to work in different positions within an office, as well as at home, on the move or with customers. The nature of work has also changed and has become more varied. This requires an office layout that is geared better towards the different activities and processes that take place there.
Office space costs money, so it is important to use this space efficiently. By giving offices open spaces in which flexible workstations are created, many valuable square metres of floor space are saved, compared to the traditional cell offices.

The use of materials within offices is also changing. In order to create a transparent interior, modern-day offices usually have large windows, high ceilings, hard floors and makes use of materials such as glass, concrete and metal. This produces a beautiful interior, but is often disastrous for its acoustics. This is why Voortman offers a wide range of sound-absorbent office furniture that easily resolves the sound problem and offers employees the privacy they require.

Annoying reverberation
In environments in which a number of people work in close proximity to one another, such as open-plan offices, large quantities of sound are produced that fill the room. All of this sound reverberates against walls and objects in the room and the sound recurs to a decreasing extent until it dies out altogether. This phenomenon is known as reverberation. A long reverberation time is detrimental to the degree to which people can make themselves understood, which is also referred to as speech audibility. In order to compensate for this, people are inclined to raise their voices, which in turn increases the noise level in the room.

The consequences of noise
Disruptive noise is a major source of irritation in open-plan offices. Studies reveal that noise in an employee's office environment causes symptoms such as headache, stress and tiredness. People who are troubled by noise achieve less, their ability to concentrate is reduced and they make more mistakes. In the end, all of this can even lead to a greater degree of sickness absenteeism.

Sound absorption
In an open-plan office, the noise must therefore be absorbed in order to reduce reverberation to the correct level. By adding sound-absorbent materials, the reverberation is reduced and the noise level in a room decreases. This increases an individual's ability to concentrate and makes it more possible to have a conversation without disturbing other employees in the room.

The indicator for dominant sound is the reverberation time. The reverberation time is the time in seconds in which the noise level has reduced by 60 dB after stopping the source of the noise. This means that the more soft, absorbent materials there are in a room, the quicker the noise level will decrease and the shorter the reverberation time. The desirable reverberation time in a room depends upon the work that is undertaken there, the size of the room and the volume of noise in the room.

Acoustic office layout
Sound-absorbent materials can be used in an office in various different ways, such as floor coverings and ceilings, but also office furniture. Voortman Kantoormeubelen provides cabinets made from sound-absorbent materials, which reduce noise pollution and provide a high degree of acoustic comfort. Office screens and dividing walls are highly suitable for this purpose. As these components are placed close to the source of the noise, they have a major impact upon the acoustics of the room and are therefore extremely effective when it comes to noise control.

In addition to its acoustic properties, the sound-absorbent office furniture produced by Voortman Kantoormeubelen has an additional important function as a room-separating object. Cabinets, office screens and dividing walls create personal space without being detrimental to the atmosphere in the office. This provides employees with the privacy that they often need in open-plan offices.

Author: Ellen Visch
Since April 2008, Ellen Visch works as Marketing & Communication Manager at Voortman Kantoormeubelen in Purmerend.