Acoustical Products | MN Acoustics

February 24, 2016

Design team of a restaurant

Designing of a restaurant is an important task that needs to be carried out with utmost precision and knowledge about every aspect from trends to the factors appealing the consumers. Various professionals that include the design team of a restaurant are as follows.

Architect
Interior designer
Food service consultant
General contractor

There are a few more experts that handle more complex jobs like landscaping, acoustics and so on. Let us dig deeper into these professions and their role in designing a restaurant.

General contractor

A General contractor is someone who provides labour force for construction purposes. This includes plumbers, painters, electricians etc. It is important that you get the best construction crew available at an affordable cost.

Interior designers

Interior designing is a profession that is often looked down on by people who are unaware of the effect the interiors of a place has. Interiors of all places from a home to an office to a hangout place, plays a significant role in the optimized functioning of that place. In the case of a restaurant, good ambience and splendid interiors will attract customers, thereby increasing business and bringing in more profit to the place.

An interior designer designs the interior of a place to suit the consumers tastes and needs with certain constraints like space and money. He/she consults with the customer, analyses the space and comes up with a colour theme and design for the place. If the customer approves, the designer will proceed with the design or else it is reverted back to the drawing table. The interior designer will also help select the furniture for the room. From the owner’s point of view, he/she should be clear about his views, tastes and ideas in designing the interiors of a room. The interior designer should be made aware of the real life practicalities and complications in running a restaurant so that they shouldn’t come up with ideas that will adversely affect the smooth running of a restaurant.

Food service consultant

If there is any uncertainty in how to proceed any task, hire a food consultant. If you have money to start a restaurant business but has few knowledge about it and to ensure its proper functioning, it is necessary that you consult a food service consultant. The consultant will brainstorm and provide you with ideas, concepts and solutions after adequate research and analysis. Before hiring a consultant, learn the kind of services provided by him and the cost so that by the end of it all, the cost is affordable. The bills can be paid in sections or at the end.

Architect

An architect is a person who deals with the engineering aspects of construction of a restaurant like ventilation, heating and cooling systems. After acquiring the labours required for the work and deciding on the work to be done, it is the architect’s job to coordinate all concepts and put into action.

Like any group work, the members have to work to the best of their abilities and also cooperate with other group members, supporting them so that one’s weakness strength is compensated by another one. This can be achieved by a skilled leader.

February 24, 2016

Role of curtains in soundproofing

Curtains have been a part of interior designing process since long. We all know how a properly styled curtain can enhance the appearance of a room or how it can control the lighting inside a room and also how it provides privacy but what most of us do not know is the soundproofing capability of curtains.

How does a curtain help in determining the acoustics of a room? To what extend do curtains contribute to soundproofing a room? This article will answer the questions that rushed into your mind after reading the title.

Physics behind why curtains can be used for soundproofing

Curtains are mostly made of cloth or other materials that can absorb sound. Since curtains are soft, sound hitting on them will not bounce off but instead be absorbed into it. This will prevent sound waves from reverberating and tampering incident sound waves in the room. It also, to an extend, blocks external noises from entering the room.

How well can curtains absorb sound?

The sound absorption property of curtains are limited. They only reduce the noise level in the room and do not block it from entering or leaving. This may not be sufficient for most applications. For better absorption of sound, one can go with acoustic blankets. Acoustic sound blankets can absorb sound to reduce noise or absorb and block sound. They use fibreglass absorber quilts for better absorbent properties. But if you only want to reduce noise for a better sleep or the sorts, you can go with curtains, which are more economical.

Types of curtains

Curtains range from fairly thin curtains that can reduce noise to acoustic and theatre curtains that can block out a considerable amount of sound. There are curtains that come with different layers like vinyl or foam that can help reduce noise. Curtains with multiple layers will have the best results, even if they are thin. Double curtain set-ups are becoming a popular trend due to the fact that they can further reduce noise.

Things to consider while buying soundproof curtains

Specifications like blackout and heat reduction are there while shopping for curtains but rarely do curtains talk about how much noise they reduce. See in specs whether there are words that will help you determine whether the curtain has good soundproofing.

First and foremost, see how close and tight the weave is and if it says blackout. If it says 99% blackout, it means that the curtain has three coats of liquefied rubber polymer. This helps in closing gaps and thus blocking light as well as absorbing sound waves. While buying a carpet, check the reviews to see if there are persons claiming that they saw light coming in through the curtains because that means it is probably not coated and the noise reduction will be less. Despite what the companies say, avoid buying curtain materials made of silk since it doesn’t block sound. Buy curtains made of thick or heavy fabric. The thicker the fabric is, the better soundproof abilities it possesses.

Check out the curtains and see if they satisfy your needs before deciding on which set matches. There are curtains in different colour themes, styles and materials available that will suit the interiors of your room.

February 23, 2016

Top six trends in architectural design

When constructing an office building or building your new home or designing the interiors of your space, anyone would like to keep up with the trends. Architecture, like any other art form, has trends that vary from time to time. When constructing a new building, anyone would want to keep up with the current trends. This article will help you familiarize with the current architectural trends.

Sustainable design

One of the important trends in the architectural world is the lineage towards lower power consumption and reduction of Carbon emission. Eco-friendly interiors are now preferred by both interior designers and consumers. It is important to design interiors that are not only are attractive looking but does less damage to the environment. Use natural materials like stone or wood for construction. Artisan products have smaller carbon footprint when compared to its mass-produced competitors and thus should be used.
Flex rooms

Flex rooms are rooms or areas in the house with more than one use. As time advanced, space has become a major issue in when it came to constructing buildings. One cannot sacrifice his need, thus within the available space, everything a person needs was to be made available. This compelled the architects to come up with innovative solutions that ensures effective utilization of the available space and is cost-friendly.
Prefabricated buildings

We may be familiar with pillars and sections of flyovers being prefabricated and then brought to the destination and assembled. This similar concept is now applied to construction of buildings including homes, offices, hospitals, and so on. Less building time and cost, easier project management, and reduced work force required are the reasons why this has become a trend.
Modern metallics

Metallics have the ability to bring a sophisticated and glamour look to any interior. Be it Copper, Gold, Rose Gold, Silver or any metallic colour, mix and match them up or use one metallic piece as focal point in designing the interiors.
Groovy Geometrics

A few Geometric shapes can contribute significantly to the aesthetic appearance of the interiors of a room. This idea can be incorporated into any style of design. For modern interiors, use differently shaped furniture or paintings, and for a classy look, incorporate this into tiles.
Design for relaxation

In this modern world of busy life, it is necessary that there should spaces where you can relax amidst your busy work schedules. Be it at your home or office, everyone needs a go to place that helps them relax. A home spa is one of the preferred places of relaxation. In general, a soundproof room can provide you with a minimum level of relaxation. Different soundproofing techniques are available that helps keep noises from entering your relaxation room.

There are many different architectural trends that you can incorporate for a trendy looking building. You can also incorporate two or more architectural designs while constructing new buildings or designing interiors. But in the end, the interior designing choices depend on the consumer’s personal tastes, wants and constraints.

February 23, 2016

Barrel vault roofs to improve lighting and appearance of your interiors.

Barrel vault is an architectural element formed by the extrusion of materials along a single curve that are used in interior designing. Barrel vault roofs were known to be used in the Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamian civilizations. The necessity of this construction came at places where there was scarcity of wood since these structures could be built using stones or bricks. Barrel vault roofing was not widely used in the Ancient Egypt due to the requirement of complex formwork and measurements. It was widely used by Ancient Romans while building their cathedrals, monasteries and so on. Arches shaped like horseshoes were also part of Indian architecture and are found in Ajantha-Ellora caves and old places of worship in India. Barrel vault roofs were also used in old cities like New York but with the incoming of RC pipes, barrel vault roofs has become less desirable. This is because maintenance is tough and also RC pipes can be installed and replaced easily. Also in a barrel vault, pressure is outwards and to withstand this pressure, either the thickness of the wall must be increased, which is not desirable, or two barrel vaults must be constructed parallel to one another so that the pressures cancel out.

In olden times, barrel vaults were constructed using stones or bricks but now, with the advancement of technology, barrel vaults can be constructed using almost any material. Its a common misunderstanding that barrel vault roof construction is very costly and has low life. Though construction of barrel vault roofs are costlier than that of normal roofs, it doesn’t add much to the cost and once constructed, they last over 50 years without any significant maintenance. Since it uses metal roofing, it is a green-technique and can be reused. Thus barrel vaults are more affordable than what most of us think.

Barrel vault roofs, apart from giving an attractive appearance to the building has other advantages as well. One of the prominent advantages of a barrel vaulted ceiling is its ability to light up the building properly. Barrel vault roofs can help bring natural light indoors and evenly distribute it in the interiors and thus light the room appropriately.

Below are a few advantages of barrel vault roofs when used for lighting purposes.

Provides more light than a vertical roof with same surface.
Ensures that the light is evenly spread.
Natural light is allowed inside to light up the room for enhanced appearance and mood, which in turn increases productivity.

Barrel vault rooflights are modular rooflighting systems that can provide long continuous runs of lighting systems. Here are some characteristics of barrel vault rooflighting.

Simple installation.
Ideal for walkway and canopy applications.
Wide span of light can be provided.
Continuous runs of unlimited lighting systems.
Suitable for commercial and industrial applications.
Cost effective systems available.
Light is evenly distributed.
Designed for use on low pitch, flat and the crown of curved roofs.

Barrel vault roofs, on top of being affordable, can add to the appearance of the room. Unlike old times, barrel vault roof constructions are not complex and tedious and thus is more consumer and construction friendly when it comes to architecture and interior designing.

February 23, 2016

Basics of soundproofing drywalls.

Do you live close to busy roads? Do you not want your neighbour to hear your private conversations? Soundproofing your interiors is the ultimate solution to your

Soundproofing includes methods with which sound or noise in a room to meet various needs. It usually includes blocking any sound from entering or leaving the room as well as reduce reverberations in the room that can cause echoes, or muffled and unclear voices. One of the ways through which this can be achieved is by soundproofing the walls.

STC rating denotes the ability of a material to resist the passing of sound through them. The more the STC rating, the better acoustical properties the material possess.

Drywall has low STC rating which means that its ability to block sound from entering or leaving a room is low. Also, sound waves hit drywall and bounce off of the wall, reverberating across the room interfering with the sound waves. Hence we can say that drywall has poor acoustical properties and we should implement ways to improve the same for soundproofing any room that needs privacy, be it a mini home theatre or your bedroom, or simply to block any external noise from entering your room and disturbing you.

Let us discuss some ways with which the acoustical properties of a drywall can be improved.

Increase thickness
The principle behind enhanced acoustical properties of a material with more mass is that sound transmits through a medium through vibration of particles. When the mass of a material increases, it will be difficult for it to vibrate and hence, only less noise will be transmitted. Mass loading method involves adding mass-loaded vinyl. Sheets of heavy vinyl can be installed between studs and drywalls to increase the mass of the drywall. Employing mass-loaded vinyl will give good soundproofing results but installing it is labor intensive with high labor cost, and needs a combination of materials. Thus it is an unattractive option since it is highly error prone when we one tries to install it on their own.
Soundproof drywall panels.

Soundproof drywall panels have high STC rating and ensure good soundproofing. For 100% soundproofing, the space between panels should be vacuum but it is absolutely impossible for manufacturers to achieve that and hence no acoustic panel is 100% soundproof. But soundproof panels can be easily installed and are available.
Soundproofing materials.

Materials with high STC rating can be used for soundproofing drywalls.
Viscoelastic soundproofing.

Viscoelastic soundproofing is the newest technology in the field of soundproofing. Viscoelastic materials have both viscous and elastic properties. When sound waves hit these materials, they are deformed and slowly goes back to their true form. Thus the energy of the sound waves is dissipated by the contraction and expansion process and converted into thermal energy. In constrained layer viscoelastic damping, a thin layer of viscoelastic material is sandwiched between two rigid surfaces, in this case dry walls. When sound wave hits the first drywall, the particles vibrate and the energy will be transmitted through it. But when these vibrations reach the viscoelastic material, the energy is dissipated and only very little energy is transmitted to the second layer. This is how soundproofing is achieved by the use of viscoelastic materials.

In terms of quality and cost, soundproofing drywalls is the most preferred interior designing way of achieving soundproofing.

February 23, 2016

Classroom acoustics for enhanced learning experience

Poor classroom
acoustics

For better classroom environment, we need acoustical soundproofing products in the interior designing and construction. The major existing learning process in our country relies on oral communication. Ideal auditory learning is affected by two factors,acoustics of the room and hearing ability of the students. Second factor is not up to the teacher or the authorities to deal with, but what they can make sure is the quality of the classroom acoustics. It has been found that 90% of the students are not able to completely hear what the teacher says. Thus, poor acoustics will adversely affect a child’s learning experience as well as the teacher’s vocal health.

Cause of poor
acoustics.

Poor acoustics occur due to background noise and reverberation in the classroom.

Background noise is constituted of external and internal noises. External noise is the noise that enters the classroom from outside of the school. It can be anything from a bird’s chirp to a truck passing-by. Old school buildings were not built with the acoustic properties of the room in mind. Hence, the materials used in constructing these buildings don’t have the ability to block these external noises from entering the classroom. Internal noise, on the other hand, is the noise that is generated within the classroom. A student whispering to the one sitting next to him or a pen dropping on the floor or even shuffling of feet, all of this contribute to the internal background noise and interferes with the teacher’s voice.
Echoes are a common issue when it comes to large rooms with high ceilings. These echoes are formed due to sound reverberating off the walls or desks in classrooms. These sound waves bounce off of one surface to the other and interferes with the speech. The longer this reverberating sound persists in the room, the more it will affect the necessary sound waves. Thus the reverberation time, the time taken to absorb a reflected sound, should be low. Human body can absorb these sound waves to an extend but other materials that can control reverberation effects, like carpets and curtains, should be used.

Effects of poor
classroom acoustics

The effects of poor classroom acoustics are

Reduced performance
Delayed language acquisition
Lower speech intelligibility of the child

Acoustical Solution

According to American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA), the background noise in an empty classroom should be less than 35 dB and the reverberation time should be with in 0.4 seconds for the child to hear properly what is being taught. It also requires that the Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) should be no less than 15 dB. That is the voice of the teacher should be 15 dB higher than the background noise. Here are some solutions to ensure proper classroom acoustics.

Soundproof windows and doors of the classroom to block external background noises from entering the classroom.
Use felt pads one the legs of chairs and desks so that not much
noise is produced due to their movement.
Curtains and carpets can reduce background noises and reverberations. If large carpets are not preferred due to hygienic reasons, use a strip of carpet on the teacher’s common walking path.
Make sure all electrical instruments are working properly and are
not creating any buzzing sounds, adding to the background noises.
Split large rooms into smaller areas by using free-standing
furnishings.

Providing an environment with good acoustic properties should be included along with other factors to ensure high quality education. For enhanced learning process, it is essential that classroom interiors satisfy acoustic requirements.

February 17, 2016

Sports and Musical Auditorium Acoustical Products and Control for better performence

Auditorium acoustics

What to say about the beauty of a flower if one is not bestowed with the power of sight!, so in Acoustic soundproofing Auditorium.

The same thing can be said about an auditorium that has a beautiful construction but fails to deliver the sound from the source on stage to each and every audience with top notch quality.

Auditoriums that are parts of an educational institution or a religious place or the sorts, will serve as the venue of an important event where a delegate might be delivering speech to thousands of listeners or a musical night hosted by a renowned singer entertaining a large crowd of music enthusiasts. In all these cases one of the things that should be ensured is that the speech or music should be clearly heard by the audience.

Sound waves Makes the difference

Considering the behavior of sound waves we can say that one of the major reasons of unequal delivery of sound to different parts of the auditorium is reflection. When the sound waves from the source traverse through the space and hits the walls of the auditorium, a portion of the wave is reflected. The reflected wave may interfere with the incoming sound waves and cause resonance which results in a ringing noise. This is unpleasant to the listeners. At the same time, the incident and reflected waves may combine destructively causing the sound wave to lose energy thus parts of the audience may not be able to hear. Thus ‘live’ and ‘dead’ areas are created at different parts of the auditorium.

Now that we have discussed about how the unequal distribution of sound occurs, let us go into the steps to be taken to avoid this. The sound solutions vary from one auditorium to the other since the construction of each auditorium varies from one to the other. Basically, the solution is incorporating absorption panels and diff-users strategically so that reverberations are absorbed and sound is scattered uniformly throughout the room.

Sound Absorbent panels

Absorption panels absorb sound and convert it to kinetic energy. They are available in different colors and styles suiting the decor of any auditorium. These panels range from basic fabric panels to class A fire rated wall coverings to ultra modern multicolored suede wrapped panels. They thus absorb excess sound reverberations thereby improving clarity of the sound delivered to the audience and are an essential part of auditorium acoustics improvement project..

Diff-users contribute to the improvement of auditorium acoustics by scattering the sound evenly throughout the auditorium. They help distribute the sound more evenly throughout the arena so that there are no ‘dead’ spots and the sound reaches each person no matter his position.

Effect of Acoustic Panels and Diff-users

Simply installing acoustic panels and diff-users doesn’t necessarily ensure good auditorium acoustics. Considering the characteristics of the auditorium, appropriate products must be chosen and placed precisely for an effective auditorium acoustical improvement. Though not approaching a professional for the same may seem economical, it is advised to consult appropriate professionals and seek for advice before dipping your hand into improvement of auditorium acoustics.

Acoustical surfaces‘ is a leading company in the soundproofing field. Apart of an experience of over 25 years in this field, they also have over 400 soundproofing and noise control products.

Visit acousticalsurfaces.in for more details and queries.