Industrial Acoustics improve the Productivity and health of the employees

Productivity Improved By Acoustic System

Though there are many methods to improve productivity, improving productivity by acoustic system is a new and welcome trend. It is well known that office space is at a premium in cities, and companies are trying to cut down the work place area requirement to beat the phenomenal cost increase. This results in crowding of work area with lesser and lesser space per employee. There is more and more noise in work place and distractions for those working leads to lesser productivity, dissatisfaction and errors in work. According to one report an employee takes 23 minutes to get back his concentration in work once he is distracted. The solution to improve productivity is a better acoustical system.

How it is done by acoustical products

When ambient background noise in very low, and with no acoustic panels or walls around, the conversations between employees can be heard all over the work area and with several people talking at a time, it will be only a clutter of unclear noises leading only to distraction and stress. This is evident in several offices today. We can improve productivity by acoustic system with some meaningful changes in acoustics of the open office. Efficient acoustical ceiling tiles having a Noise Reduction Coefficient (NRC) of at least 75 can absorb considerable sound in the area. In spaces with noisy HVAC (Heating Ventilation and Air-conditioning) sources, the high rated ceiling tiles are not recommended. They are also not ideal for offices and conference rooms where mineral tiles can be used to control sound. Once you install a good acoustic ceiling a sound masking system can be added which will help in reducing sound levels considerably. Sound masking system is another technique for improving productivity by acoustic system. It lets in a pleasing background, sound that will negate the nearby conversations. Sound masking system is made up of a network having few speakers fixed above the ceiling or hung from it. When properly installed the sources of sound cannot be identified.
In an open office environment, like you see in many IT organisations properly designed and tuned sound masking system will in effect minimize the distance from sources of sound at which conversations are clear and understandable. This distance is known as the Radius of Distraction. Generally as measured in many offices, the radius of distraction is around 30 to 60 feet. All the conversations taking place within this radius will distract the employees in that space. When sound masking is added, this distance, that is the radius, is down to 10 to 15 feet. With this change, employees can communicate with each other freely.

Also their conversation does not disturb those around them. Office administrators have started realizing the importance of work place productivity to improve employee morale and reduce costs. The productivity goals can be met more comfortably in a better noiseless environment. Though the current trends in work places do help to cut costs, planning for a better and more performance oriented work place by improving productivity by acoustic system will go a long way in productivity improvement.

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