Sound absorption or acoustic absorption is the property of all materials to absorb sound energy, allowing only a part of it to be reflected. Sound absorption tends to attenuate the reflection of sound waves, while acoustic insulation aims to prevent the transmission of sound.
Materials that absorb sound energy have a porous structure and therefore have cavities filled with air. When struck by the waves, the air experiences a pressure and begins to vibrate.
Sound absorption, why is it so important in the office?
It is estimated that 35-40% of workers exposed to noise levels above 90 decibels will suffer hearing loss after the age of 60.
Noise is one of the major problems in the workplace, as it can cause stress, fatigue, depression, irritability… and more serious pathologies related to the tension that noise generates.
It also affects people’s productivity as it hinders concentration and communication. People subjected to high levels of noise suffer from nervous fatigue which reduces their efficiency at work. This is why sound absorption in the office is so important.
Meet UpWhat is the optimum noise level in the workplace?
Noise is measured in decibels (dB). A noise level of 0 is silence; 20 is very low; 60 is moderate; 80 is loud; 100 is very loud; 120 is deafening…..
The average figures in European legislation set an acceptable limit of 65 dB during the day and 55 dB at night. The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that the 55 dB threshold should not be exceeded during the day so that the body is not disturbed.
In offices, the maximum noise level in operational areas should be 50 dB, in conference rooms 40 dB and in offices 50 dB. However, the average level is generally higher than 70.
The hazardousness of noise depends not only on its decibel level but also on the daily time during which the person is subjected to it. Legislation recommends that continuous noise of more than 90 dB should be taken into account as a possible cause of occupational disease and sporadic noise of more than 130 dB as a cause of hearing accidents.
In an office, it is recommended that noise-generating equipment (printers, etc.) should be soundproofed or replaced by less noisy equipment. If the office is acoustically polluted, serious thought should be given to insulation. There are various products available for this purpose, such as thermo-clay panels, cork, cellulose fibres, etc., which are also environmentally friendly.
Noise-free offices
In addition to the general insulation of the building, when designing the interior of an office, it is necessary to analyse the level of privacy required for each workstation, which will be determined by the type of activity carried out by each person. For example, a telephone or call centre needs a higher level of sound insulation than others. Your privacy needs are easily met with the right choice of architectural panels or modules, which separate your workspace from that of your colleagues. If it has the right height and shape or layout, and if it is made of the right materials – sound absorption – the panel plays a decisive role in eliminating noise from an office.
Sound absorption and open space
Over the last few decades, corporate cultures, increasingly oriented towards horizontal communication, have made open space offices fashionable. This has significant advantages, especially increased teamwork and a smoother flow of communication, but also disadvantages, mostly associated with noise.
It is difficult to perform our work effectively when we can clearly hear a colleague’s conversation, particularly if our work requires a lot of noise.
It is difficult to perform effectively when we can clearly hear a colleague’s conversation, particularly if our activity requires a high concentration component.
Ofita’s sound-absorbing solutions
Faced with these needs that are required by work environments in open spaces, Ofita offers different furniture solutions in which sound absorption is a great added value.
Dividing panels, optimum sound absorption
Sound-absorbing separator panels
Sound-absorbing separator panels, both fixed and mobile, add a very important acoustic improvement to workspaces. The variety of sizes available and their different top quality materials offer a perfect adaptation to any office project.
On the other hand, as they are compatible with different desk programmes, the panels provide frontal and/or lateral privacy at each workstation, and allow light to pass through and visual contact between users to encourage communication.
Flip
Flip modular panels
Flip sound-absorbent panels are a modular and adaptive medium that facilitate the separation and creation of personal spaces in a comfortable way, both for individual tables and for collective spaces.
Sound absorption in collaborative spaces
Ofita’s sound-absorbent solutions extend to its proposals for new workspaces, both those designed for innovation and those more collaborative and informal. This is the case of Meet Up! and Forthink, two programmes with sound-absorbent solutions for the creation and separation of spaces.
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