Sound Advice – Supporting Staff Welfare With Quality Acoustics

An open-plan office Often disregarded, poor workplace acoustics can seriously impact the health and welfare of staff, yet many facilities managers remain unaware of its affects. With the surge in hybrid working, Ben Hancock, managing director at Oscar Acoustics, explains why acoustic performance is integral to a successful post-COVID workspace.

Ensuring the safety and welfare of staff is always a top priority for facilities managers. In the right workspace environment, staff can feel energised and revitalised, especially for those who have been working solo at home. Yet as more companies introduce COVID control measures, the issue of poor acoustics is falling by the way side. Excessive sound reverberation continues to be a problem, creating noise ‘echo chambers’ that make staff feel stressed, uncomfortable and unable to concentrate. Over time, it can even lead to physiological issues such as hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, heart attacks and even strokes.

Falling Short Of The Mark

In our research into the ongoing refurbishment and fitouts we found that occupant safety is falling short of the mark when it comes to design plans. From the 200 office designers that were surveyed, just 9% believe acoustic design is receiving the attention it deserves and almost half reported clients aren’t interested in ‘end-user health’. What’s evident is that FM’s need to play a closer role in the design process to ensure staff are put first.

Stop The Noise

So, how can FM’s tackle the problem? Controlling the amount of noise reverberation in a room will go a long way to creating a more peaceful setting. Acoustic sprays are particularly effective at doing this, absorbing sound, rather than reflecting it.

These seamless and decorative acoustic sprays also allow complete flexibility with Cat A and Cat B configuration allowing for dividing structures such as office pods to be brought in without disrupting the acoustic finish on the ceiling above. They can be applied to nearly all types of surfaces too, including plaster, wood, metal and concrete, making them an ideal solution for all types of workspace environments.



Quality Assurance

Fire safety should also be a top priority and facilities managers should always look for sprays that hold third-party testing and safety credentials. FM’s should look for sprays that go above and beyond Approved Document B fire requirement (Class 0 to BS476 & B-s1, d0 fire rating), so that in the event of an emergency, the acoustic spray would provide little to no smoke and absolutely no droplets, assisting in the safe escape of its occupants.

Sustainability Benefits

A premium acoustic spray can also contribute towards many sustainable design and health certification systems including BREEAM, SKA, Living Building Challenge and adds up to 17 points towards the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating of a project. Before FM’s choose to invest in a spray, it’s also important to look for GREENGUARD Gold Certified compliance for Indoor Air Quality as these credentials will mean it meets the highest welfare standards.

Making The Change

As we come into the summer months, it’s likely that the number of returning workers will increase and companies that choose to ignore these warnings could be setting themselves up for potential legal claims further down the line if noise and health problems persist.

The health risks around excessive noise in the workplace should not be underestimated – they can be a silent killer. As the conversation around workspace welfare is heating up, now is the time for FM’s to put a stop to the issue of poor acoustics and create happy, healthy workspaces that work for everyone.

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Sound Advice – Supporting Staff Welfare With Quality Acoustics