BAP Acoustics

Sound, Noise and Vibration Consulting Engineers

That which doesn’t kill us (part 1)

There’s not a lot to be said about last year that hasn’t been said ad nauseum, so I won’t waste your time or my own. And because we’re still bombarded with it when we watch the evening news, I’ll also refrain from using that C-word. (You know the one.) While most of us have cause for optimism as 2021 begins to unfold, here at BAP Acoustics we look back on 2020 with a considerable amount of gratitude. Good things happened… things that form a solid foundation for even better things to come.

Proposals were submitted. Proposals were won; enough so that we found ourselves growing the BAP team and consequently bringing that expansive energy to our clients’ projects. We couldn’t be more pleased about our recent additions, and we hope you’ll enjoy getting to know them as much as we have…

Giorgio Burella, PhD EIT

Naval architect Giorgio Burella developed an interest in acoustical engineering while conducting PhD research on feasible ways to reduce noise aboard small fishing vessels. He’d left Italy in 2016 to pursue doctoral studies in Newfoundland and relocated to BC with his wife three years later.

While completing is studies here, Giorgio sought employment in line with his career goals. The search led him to BAP Acoustics, which he credits for being “one of the big players in the acoustic consultancy sector in the Metro Vancouver Area.” Following his interview with principals Mark Gaudet and Eric de Santis, Giorgio was hired on a part-time basis, then full-time when he received his PhD in May 2020.

His childhood ambitions—which ranged from practicing medicine to becoming an architect—are at least in part documented. “My grandma still has a ‘technical’ drawing of a house I designed at age 5,” he says. “Definitely things worked out differently, though I get still to work with buildings!”

Giorgio appreciates the easy-going work environment at BAP and the principals’ readiness to share their expertise. “It’s never boring!” he says. “There’s always something new to learn. I can be working on an acoustic compliancy project and the next thing I know, I’m trying to control vibration from light rail trains.”

A nature enthusiast who hikes, climbs, and skis,  Giorgio sees Vancouver as “the perfect playground” regardless of weather. “It doesn’t matter if it’s under the scorching sun, the battering rain or the cold snow,” he says. “I like being active outside.”

When not working or playing outdoors, Giorgio may be found enjoying his favourite:

Music: Sometimes I think I was born in the wrong generation, as I really love iconic 60s and 70s British rock—  bands like Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, The Who, and The Rolling Stones. Really though, I can get carried away with any genre of music. Lately, I’m obsessed with Childish Gambino—who’s not exactly Jimmy Page & Co—but catchy. And I can’t leave out the good old music from my native Italy.

Books: Every—and I mean every—JRR Tolkien book, the whole Game of Thrones series, several Ken Follet books, and the entire Master and Commander series by Patrick O’Brian.

Movies: I really loved the original Star Wars and the Lord of the Rings trilogies. My wife and I are both huge fans of the latter, and we re-watch it often.

Foods: I enjoy lasagna and every type of pasta mostly… and my wife’s pancit! (Blogger confession: My Google search for pancit revealed that it’s a Filipino fried rice noodle dish… and that I’m hungry. I blame the pictures.)

I blame the pictures. This one links to a recipe.

If he could time travel, Giorgio says he’d definitely advise his 10 years-younger self to buy Amazon and Tesla shares. “Other than that, I’m really happy where my life is now!”

When asked if he sings or plays a musical instrument—as anecdotal evidence suggests many engineers do—Giorgio replies “I play piano decently, and especially enjoy playing classical music. I can also strum along with a guitar! Sometimes, I indulge in a little karaoke, though I’m certainly not pitch-perfect!”

Picking up on Giorgio’s love of music and his eclectic taste, I had to ask:

What’s the best concert you’ve ever attended? Did good venue acoustics play a role in your enjoyment?
“The best concert I’ve been to was a 2010 ACDC show in Italy. Maybe they weren’t as energetic as they used to be, but they still kicked it! Since it was outdoors, I can’t say much about acoustics. But I can advise people to avoid standing right beside the stage unless they really appreciate bass!”

Jessica Carolina, MBA, B. Arch.

“I remember visiting Vancouver for the first time in 2012,” Jessica recalls, “and starting to dream of moving here.” Before her dream came true, the Indonesian-born MBA would first spend several years in the US, pursuing her studies in Boise, Idaho before moving to Los Angeles, and finally to Vancouver. Jessica is currently in her second year of the MASc Building Science program at BCIT; her concentration in Building Acoustics brought her to BAP on a practicum basis near the end of 2020.

Jessica found BAP Acoustics through “surfing the internet for best acoustics consultant in town.” Impressed with the company profile and broad range of projects, she decided to get in touch.

With a Bachelor’s degree in Architectural Engineering already under her belt, Jessica applied to the BCIT program, motivated by her interest in green wall design and anticipating specialization in that area. “However, I was wrong,” she reflects, crediting her professor—and I daresay mentor—Dr. Maureen Connelly with the “acoustic genius” that inspired her to rethink career goals.

“Professor Maureen introduced me to the acoustic world,” Jessica says. “She’s often asked to speak at conferences, and she often brought me as a guest. Her presentations always fascinated me.”

These experiences also brought the about realization that acoustic careers could be fun. “I love calculation and modelling,” Jessica says. “I love site visits. This work just seems to meet all my interests. I’m never counting hours until the workday ends, and I think that’s a really good sign!”

Many of us pursue careers far from our “what do you want to be when you grow up” childhood dreams. Not so for Jessica. “I wanted to be an architect,” she says. “I really loved to draw, and even my toys were a good hint. I played with LEGO to create my ‘imaginary house’ and dollhouses too… I really got into organizing the contents of each room.”

“My mom put up a gigantic canvas and taped papers on the wall for me to draw my ideas. I also remember weekend trips to my grandpa’s house… those were the best! He’s an architect. He’d let me sit next to him and draw on his huge drafting table.”

When asked what she enjoys about working with BAP Acoustics, Jessica speaks highly of principals Mark and Eric, as well as fellow team members Denny and Giorgio.

“All of them are very patient and generous with the time they spend training and helping me,” she says. Jessica believes that the people we work with largely determine our level of happiness on the job, while also appreciating how the company’s wide variety of projects allow her skills to continually grow.

As a long-time transplant from the prairies, I never tire of hearing newcomers share their appreciation of West Coast living and all it has to offer. Jessica’s take on Greater Vancouver was no exception:

In addition to the sheer wonder of the “beach and mountain in the same day” potential that many experience, Jessica also appreciates our well-organized infrastructures, especially public transportation. “One of my favourite things to do is just ride Sky Train and take in the city views,” she says.  

Jessica finds Vancouver “very diverse” in ways such as the availability of “many delicious foods”, including Indonesian cuisine ingredients she was unable to find in the US. “I really like the ambience, the architecture and, the people here,” she adds.

Raindrops on roses:
A few of Jessica’s favourite things

Music: I guess it depends on my mood. Generally, I listen to pop songs or chill playlists… nothing too loud. Background music can mask distracting sounds, so it sometimes helps me concentrate on a task.

Books: I like fiction (rom-com and fantasy, mostly) and recipe books! Trying out new recipes is fun for me since I love cooking in my spare time.

Movies: I tend to watch more series than movies. Asian dramas (especially historical ones) and westerns (movies and series) are some of my favourites. “If you asked me to name a favourite character, I’d have to go with Wonder Woman.”

Foods: I love Korean barbecue: I will never get tired of it!

If Jessica could time travel, she’d advise her 10-years-ago self to be confident and pay attention to her own needs. “I used to make my decisions based on other people’s opinions,” she says, “and then end up in places unsuitable for me.”

“As I’ve gained more confidence over the last few years, I’ve found that doing what I feels is right brings me more joy. However, I’m grateful for all my experiences and the places I’ve been. I’ve learned so much. If I’d known what I wanted 10 years ago, I wouldn’t have experienced the things I have, and I wouldn’t have all these good memories.”

Like her colleague Giorgio, Jessica plays piano and has done so for over 12 years. 

Unlike him, Jessica says “Surprisingly, I’ve never really been to a music concert. I saw DIAVOLO— Architecture in Motion and Cirque du Soleil, but I don’t think those count as music concerts. I’d still say those shows and some others mesmerized me both in terms of performance and acoustics quality. But I never really paid that much attention to acoustics until I got into the field in 2020. I’m still a bit of a newborn here!”

Hope you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing!

I want to thank Jessica and Giorgio for so graciously agreeing to be interviewed and for providing such thoughtful answers. As BAP’s content writer, I concur that Mark and Eric foster a work culture in which team members (even the off-site ones) feel supported and inspired to continue learning and growing together. Truth is, I don’t have a scientific background, so research and writing about acoustical consulting and related topics has been—and continues to be—a bit of a learning curve. But two years on, I still enjoy that learning. I also very much appreciate the principals’ trust in my abilities and the carte blanche that comes with it.

Interested in joining the BAP Acoustics team? Visit our Careers page.

Listen up, class! Acoustic tips for your virtual classroom.

Whether you’re a parent, a teacher, or a student of any age, news headlines like the one above spell not only uncertainty, but an exponentially increasing likelihood that you may soon need to—if you haven’t already—set up a virtual classroom in your home.

Here in British Columbia, the BC Teachers Federation (BCTF) has been demanding hybrid and remote options in every school district to help reduce class sizes and school density, as well as to protect students and staff members, or their families, who are more vulnerable because of existing health concerns.

If you’re not a teacher—and even if you are—the concept of a virtual classroom may sound intimidating, and you may even be unclear as to what it is. But get yourself a nice warm beverage, read on, and let us demystify at least some aspects of what’s expected to become a globally acknowledged learning and teaching environment.

What exactly is a virtual classroom anyway?

We’ve been hearing about home offices since long before the global pandemic, so if you’re familiar with working remotely, you’ll find a number of similar principles apply to both home office and virtual classroom settings. In addition to a learning app designed to help professors engage and motivate students in online, blended and face-to-face courses, tophat.com provides online resources including a glossary that defines virtual classroom as follows:

A virtual classroom is a digital learning environment that allows teachers and students to connect in online in real time. Virtual classrooms utilize video conferencing, online whiteboards and screen sharing to allow educators to hold live lectures, virtual office hours, and discussions with students in an interactive setting. Virtual classrooms are meant to replicate the experience of physical classrooms, with the added benefits of file sharing, instant feedback and interaction and are ideal in distance learning situations.

A virtual classroom refers to an online system that allows students and teachers to communicate and collaborate. Virtual classrooms are typically cloud-based learning solutions that are part of larger learning management systems (LMS). They are highly customizable and are accessible to users on a variety of devices, like smartphones, tablets and laptops.

An article titled 6 Questions to Improve Your Virtual Classroom advises teachers to gauge the effectiveness of their online instruction by surveying their students. Two of the suggested questions directly relate to acoustic considerations:

  • Have you encountered any technical issues, such as not being able to hear me or not being able to connect to the internet?
  • Do you feel like your voice is heard?

If you’ve ever reflected on the concept of attention, consider this:

For starters, attention is something that insists on being paid. It requires sustained effort, effort that can prove challenging for many at the best of times. In navigating our present tumultuous reality, even the most academically focused neurotypical students face unprecedented levels of distraction and sources of anxiety. Perhaps we can at least give them a fighting chance of hearing clearly and being heard as they try to learn amidst emotional chaos.

As with collaborative workspaces, classroom environments—the “bricks & mortar” kind as well as the virtual ones—require high levels of speech intelligibility, a term which refers to our comprehension of spoken words.  Excessive background noise can result in poor speech intelligibility and adversely affect the learning process (for ESL, speech-impaired, and neurodiverse students in particular), so it’s important to consider these factors when determining where to set up an interactive study space.

Choosing & optimizing the right room

“Traffic and other sources of exterior noise can be problematic,” BAP Acoustics partner Mark Gaudet says. “If possible, choose a room with minimal exposure to outdoor sounds as well as to interior noise. Spaces adjacent to the kitchen, TV area, or music room often emit disruptive levels of sound, so try to pick something a little further away from those if that’s an option.”

Mark also notes that heavy doors are effective noise barriers, particularly when we apply acoustic seals around their tops, sides, and thresholds.

BAP Acoustics partner Eric DeSantis concurs. As one of several contributors to an article offering expert tips on enhancing home office acoustics, Eric writes “Use weatherstripping to reduce outside noise. One must-have in reducing outside noise during a teleconference is the installation of adhesive perimeter (i.e. weatherstripping) seals around the office door frame. For optimal success, the bottom of the door should be sealed as well. This can be achieved by installing a door bottom shoe or sweep, preferably in combination with a raised threshold. A small fan is also recommended for placement in the home office. The fan will artificially raise the background noise level and will assist in masking the audibility of household noises during a conference call.”

Working with what you’ve got

To control reverberation—the reflection of soundwaves from surfaces—Mark suggests bringing in upholstered furniture, beanbags, or cushions to absorb those soundwaves and thereby attenuate reverberatory noise. Acoustic panels also serve to minimize reverberation.

As the pandemic drags on (and on), many of us must deal with budgetary constraints brought on by a shaky COVID-era economy. Fortunately, DIY acoustic panels can be just as effective as their commercially manufactured counterparts. Homemade sourdough bread failing to provide the satisfaction it did back in early quarantine days? Well, we don’t recommend baking more of it to use as sound absorbent material, but this How To Build Your Own Acoustic Panels tutorial may be worth sacrificing a few hours of Netflix binge.

You can further decrease the disruptive effects of noise from other parts of your home by turning on a small fan in your virtual classroom, as per Eric’s recommendation for home office workers. Though it may seem counterintuitive, sound masking—purposefully generating one sound to drown out others—engenders the perception of a quieter room by subtly raising its ambient noise level.

None of us know how the weeks and months to come will unfold, but if you do need to create a virtual classroom or office at home, we hope you’ve found helpful and actionable ideas here. As always, we welcome your feedback and questions around these and other noise-related challenges, so please don’t hesitate to contact us. Stay safe!

Rock on! Quietly.

If you’re familiar with our work and philosophy, you’ll know that we’re all about planning-stage noise mitigation measures vs/ so-called soundproofing… the latter almost worthy of MythBusters*. You’ll know BAP Acoustics gives no bandwidth to purveyors of noise-cancelling miracle materials and quick-fix solutions with no scientific basis. That said, there are ways—even in older homes—to enjoy noisy hobbies without inciting the wrath of your entire neighbourhood.

*In their 18-season run, the lads did not tackle the veracity of soundproofing, but in a 2013 episode titled Fright Night, they did answer the question "Can certain sound frequencies persuade people that an area is haunted?"

Whether you’re an architect or a budding musician anxiously wondering where to play that drum kit you couldn’t afford not to buy on eBay (ideally a neighbour-friendly electronic one), it’s worth noting that noise exposure—surely not the best way to broaden your neighbours’ horizons—can be reduced by eliminating the source of noise, substituting the source with a quieter one, applying engineering modifications, and using protective equipment.The best way to reduce exposure to noise is to engineer it out at the design stage. (Source: ccohs.ca)

Rock tumbling to tame stay-home tedium? Huh.

This blogger’s post ideas alight from all over the place, including nature and the (varying degrees of) great outdoors. Last summer, music and arts festivals inspired a piece on natural amphitheatres, while summer 2020—with its pandemic-driven dearth of anything resembling an event—brought quieter, simpler pleasures to the fore.

How can I get them to stay this colourful and shiny?

While visiting family in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley (known for its bountiful orchards, world-class vineyards, and spectacular lakes), I rediscovered my lifelong delight in collecting pretty rocks. And, not for the first time, I experienced a tiny bit of that sad trombone (wuh wuh wuhhh) disappointment at the lacklustre effect of hot, dry air on previously wet rocks. Of course, I brought a few home anyway… and got to thinking about rock tumblers. How much do they cost? Where could I buy one? The one thing I recalled hearing about them is that they’re very noisy. I began to wonder, “How noisy, exactly?” What if I could find a relatively quiet one? Where to go from here?

OK, you’re cute, but even sad trombones make noise. Wuh-wuhh.

My first inclination? To do what I usually do before buying any new item worth more than a few bucks:

Homework.

If there’s anything working with BAP Acoustics has taught me, it’s the value of mitigating anticipated noise issues in the planning stages a project. So, I conducted a Google search for the seemingly oxymoronic term “quiet rock tumbler”.

Who’d have thought that this is actually—in the minimalist vernacular of today—”a thing”?

I don’t own a rock tumbler, so if I wanted to tumble my little treasures to their potentially lustrous glory, I’d consider buying one. A rock-collecting friend received one for Christmas some years ago and uses it all the time; it lives in his garage. However, when he’s in the garage with rocks a’tumble he wears industrial grade hearing protection.

This thing is loud. And I assumed all of them were, until my Google search yielded hits that gave me pause. Renowned geologist Hobart King loves rocks so much he launched an impressively comprehensive website dedicated to tumbling ’em. Having spent over 40 years studying the physical properties of rocks and minerals, King strikes me as a trustworthy source of expertise. Over 50 years ago, King’s father noticed his son’s fascination with rocks and gifted the boy his first tumbler one Christmas. King still owns it, and it’s in working condition.

Although RockTumbler.com is an e-commerce site, it does offer enthusiasts a wealth of articles and resources. King’s article How Much Noise Does a Tumbler Make? answers that question in detail. Using a digital sound level meter, King’s team tested several tumblers to measure and compare their noise levels. Their charts below illustrate results:

Key takeaway? Soft rubber barrel tumblers with quality motors are quiet; their inexpensive plastic counterparts tend to be very noisy. (A colleague of King’s tested one in his basement and could hear the noise in his second-floor bedroom.) Although RockTumbler only delivers the products it sells within the US, a decent selection can be found on Amazon.ca.

Although some tumblers do make “enough of a racket to rouse a small animal from the dead” according to one of the resident experts at hobbyhelp.com, “these are certainly the minority, and there are various precautions you can take to ensure your rock tumbling doesn’t anger your nearest and dearest.”

But I just picked one up at a yard sale!

Or maybe you’ve just remembered that childhood rock tumbler, still tucked away somewhere in your parents’ garage. In any case, what—if anything—can be done to shush an unacceptably noisy bucket of rocks?

I spent some time browsing through member posts on rock hobbyist forums and discovered that the question of how to silence a noisy rock tumbler arises often. Some of the advice offered seems worth exploring; people often suggest some variation on building a box or other enclosed structure and lining it with an insulative material. It quickly became apparent how complex an engineering task this could be, given that rock tumblers are motor-run, and motors tend to get hot… No need to add that kind of spark to an otherwise relaxing hobby.

A few people shared their own DIY stories of success in building tumbler homes allowing for both sound attenuation and heat ventilation. Whether or not any of these should come with the warning “Don’t try this at home” is the question I respectfully leave entirely to you, gentle reader. To paraphrase a retro sci-fi spaceship doctor, “Dammit, folks! I’m a blogger, not an HVAC engineer.”

In this members forum thread on rocktumblinghobby.com, the original poster comments “I have just sold my home and will soon be moving to an apartment (haven’t chosen it yet, but am leaning towards a particular one). Any advice on the ins and outs of tumbling in an apartment?” Four years later, the same poster—having presumably settled into his flat—appears ready to house a potentially noisy unit of fun. We hope one (or a hybrid) of your fellow enthusiasts’ suggestions in the thread worked out for you, dscratch!

How noisy are your hobbies? We’d love to hear (about) them on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn!

If you’re dealing with a noisy neighbour—or worried that you might be a noisy neighbour—please contact us directly to discuss your situation; we’d be happy to help.

Let’s hear it for her too!

Women’s innovative contributions to acoustics (Part II)

In Have you heard about her? Women’s innovative contributions to acoustics (Part I), we started off with a historical perspective, acknowledging Hedy Lamarr’s ground-breaking work in developing the frequency hopping spread spectrum, a technology still used in underwater acoustic communication and recognized as the foundation of WiFi, GPS and Bluetooth.

We also introduced distinguished acoustics researcher Bridget Shield, best known for her studies on the effects of noise on children, and Dame Ann Dowling, a British mechanical engineer lauded for her research in combustion, acoustics and vibration. While Shield retired in 2014 and Dowling last year, the women no doubt served as inspiring role models for younger generations. Here then, are six women currently at the peak of their careers.

Lily Wang

Professor & Associate Dean at the University of Nebraska College of Engineering, Lily Wang also served as president of the Acoustical Society of America (ASA). She specializes in room acoustics and noise control and loves encouraging young people to explore acoustics as a career.

Her substantial body of research includes a number of articles on variations in restaurant soundscapes. Chris Berdik’s January 2020 Popular Science article It’s not just you: Restaurants have gotten too loud. But there are some fixes addresses, among other issues, the problems inherent in restaurants that merge dining rooms with open kitchens and bar areas. “Architects aren’t trained to think about sound; they’re trained to think visually and spatially,” Wang states in the article. She is currently working with the ASA to establish guidelines for restaurants.

Mariana Lopez

Lopez is a Senior Lecturer in Sound Production and Post Production at University of York. A former Vice-chair of the Audio Engineering Society (UK Section), she passionately advocates for accessibility and gender equality within the acoustic industries.

An important link exists between accessibility and design practice, Lopez explains in her recent article Fostering inclusivity: The power of assistive music technology. “The concept of Universal Design stems from a desire to create products and environments free of usability barriers—treating accessibility as integral to their proper functioning.” she writes. “Universal Design champions the idea that products and environments designed to be accessible for people with disabilities will end up benefiting everyone. For example, a ramp might be initially designed to provide access to people using wheelchairs, but they can also benefit those carrying suitcases.”

Susan Witterick

In addition to her role as Director of dBx Acoustics, Witterick serves as an Ambassador with STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). both an acronym and a UK-based organization in which volunteers encourage and inspire students interested in STEM career paths. These students are still predominantly male.

Witterick graduated in 1998 with a BSc (Hons) in Audio Technology, one of only three women in her year. She explores at length in a thought-provoking Medium article possible explanations for “why women still aren’t routinely considering STEM as a career path, and what can do —all of us—to change this.”

Poppy Szkiler

Szkiler’s grandfather, John Connell, founded the non-profit Noise Abatement Society in the UK, so it’s fair to say she came naturally by her interest In the Pursuit of Silence, also the title of an award-winning documentary film she co-produced.

Szkiler also runs Quiet Mark™, which awards “the International mark of approval for low-noise technology, services and solutions launched by the Noise Abatement Society in 2012 to create a stress-free aural environment in the home, at work and in public spaces.”

Quiet Mark™ achieves this through the following objectives:

  • Encourage manufacturers to factor in low-noise at design stage and provide them with a unique selling platform
  • Give consumers more informed purchasing choices
  • Raise awareness about the positive health and well-being implications of a low-noise, stress-free living and working environment

Johanna Bengtsson Ryberg

Relied-upon noise expert for Swedish media and at Arbetsmiljöverket (the Swedish Work Environment Authority), Bengtsson Ryberg holds a doctorate in Environmental Medicine and specializes in traffic noise. She writes about environmental noise in both English and Swedish.

“Community noise is a widespread environmental problem in Sweden, affecting children as well as adults.” she writes in her article A national project to evaluate and reduce high sound pressure levels from music. “Based on the findings of a national environmental health questionnaire, the noise sources that produced most annoyance in children were noise from other children and loud music.”

Have you heard about her?

Women’s innovative contributions to acoustics

Q:  What do Turner’s Classics and the world of acoustic inventions have in common?

A:  They both owe a debt of gratitude to this heroine, right here.

Hedy Lamarr juxtaposed with her influential work.

Although Hedy Lamarr wasn’t an acoustician per sé, the frequency hopping spread spectrum technique she developed with avant-garde composer George Antheil was a milestone invention in the field of information technology, one still used in underwater acoustic communication owing to its anti-interference and anti-fading properties. These same properties explain why the two friends are widely credited with paving the way for later, more complex inventions including WiFi, GPS and Bluetooth.

Best known as a shining star of golden era Hollywood, Austrian-born Lamarr personified the beauty and brains combo.

Picture it: 1941.

Lamarr’s fame soars as Hitler’s forces ravage. Not content to sit by photogenically as wanton destruction prevails, Lamarr draws on military engineering knowledge quietly gleaned during her brief marriage to a Viennese arms tycoon closely associated with both Mussolini and Hitler. Having fled from her domineering first husband a few years earlier, she enlists Antheil’s help to devise a means by which radio signals can guide torpedoes without detection or interception by “hopping” among numerous frequencies.

Sadly, military elite dismissed the technology, and it wasn’t employed during WWII. More sadly still, Lamarr and Antheil’s patent had long expired by the time frequency hopping was used during the Cuban missile crisis. Lamarr received no monetary compensation and lived to become an old and reclusive woman before due recognition came her way.

It seems probable, however, that Lamarr inspired and served as a role model for generations of women that followed… women like Bridget Shield and Dame Ann Dowling.

“Every engineering project is about making something that someone wants. It is very creative.”
— Dame Ann Dowling

Bridget Shield

A preeminent acoustics researcher nominated first female president of the Institute of Acoustics in 2012, Bridget Shield earned her academic credentials at Birmingham University in the UK, going on to serve as Professor of Acoustics at London South Bank University from 1986 until her 2014 retirement. Perhaps best known for her findings regarding the effects of noise on children and their learning abilities, the award-winning engineer expressed concerns that British architects were excessively focused on aesthetics—while overlooking factors necessary for healthy learning environments—in their designs of much-needed new schools.

“The spacious, light-filled palaces going up under the government’s multi-billion pound school building bonanza […] look wonderful,” Shield writes, “and, with their lack of dark corners, make pupils feel safe. But how well can pupils hear inside these educational glasshouses?”

New as well as older schools often feature overly reverberant and/or noisy classrooms in which children struggle to hear while teachers struggle to be heard. Current architectural trends (if you’ll pardon the word choice) amplify the problem, incorporating as they do large, open spaces as well as hard reflective surfaces like glass and steel. “These are precisely the types of material that make for echoing, noisy spaces,” Shield explains, noting detrimental effects including compromised working memory (and consequently, scholastic performance) in children, as well as voice and throat problems among teachers.

The techniques for reducing reverberation and noise in schools are well known, Shield states in a 2008 article. They include:

  • Careful choice of the site, layout and design of school buildings to ensure noise sensitive rooms such as classrooms are not adjacent to busy roads or railways.
  • Adequate sound insulation to reduce the transmission of noise from outside to inside, and between classrooms.
  • Adequate amount of acoustic absorption on ceilings and corridors, and carpets or other resilient floor coverings to reduce reverberation.
  • Use of quiet building services such as ventilation, heating and lighting.

Dame Ann Dowling

A prominent British mechanical engineer, Dame Ann Patricia Dowling OM DBE FRS FREng is renowned for her research in combustion, acoustics and vibration, particularly with regard to her focus on efficient, low-emission combustion and reduced road vehicle and aircraft noise.

Dowling chaired the 2013 Global Grand Challenges Summit, and in an Engineering and Technology Magazine interview around that time expressed her concerns about the critical shortage of British engineers in general and female engineers in particular:

Despite the enormity and importance of these [energy efficiency and noise mitigation] projects, the shortfall in British engineers is huge. Dowling often gives talks in schools, but the message is still not getting across. In particular, it’s not getting across to her own sex.

The feedstock of girls reading engineering at university is around 17 per cent, Dowling thinks. Why? The perceived lack of social relevance and flexible working hours perhaps? “Nothing could be further from the truth,” protests Dowling. “Every engineering project is about making something that someone wants. It is very creative.”

However, Dowling says her department has a higher percentage of female engineers than elsewhere. Could this have something to do with herself as figurehead? “I don’t think I can claim that.” Instead, she puts it down to offering a broad strand of engineering. However, later on she concedes that it’s always useful to see someone active in your field and doing well. 

We encourage you to read Part II of our tribute to women in acoustics.