Category: Top Articles

A large, empty theater with red seats and a stage, viewed from the audience area. The ceiling features an array of lights and acoustic panels.

Best of 2019: 9 acoustic services questions answered

Ever wondered what acoustic engineering consultants are typically asked to do when they’re… consulted? Maybe you have an acoustics-related problem of your own but aren’t sure what questions to ask? First of all, please don’t hesitate to contact us and express your concerns, because at BAP Acoustics, we believe there are no wrong questions, especially not when they elicit sound advice. Secondly, we hear certain types of questions so frequently we feel they warrant their own blog post, so please read on. You may see your own question—or one relevant to it—addressed below.

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A construction site with heavy machinery. A worker in a reflective vest and hard hat uses a tablet while another worker operates equipment in the background. Buildings are visible behind the site.

Choosing an acoustical consultant: It’s all about due diligence

In crafting this opening paragraph, the most salient observation I’m inclined to share is that—just as anyone can call themselves a writer—anyone can call themselves an acoustical consultant. That doesn’t mean highly qualified acoustical consultants aren’t out there, but it does suggest you’ll need to take some time and care to find the right one for you. Hint: While anyone can indeed call themselves an acoustical consultant, acoustical engineers earn their titles through rigorous academic study and credentials.

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Modern open-plan office with several workstations equipped with computers, indoor plants hanging from the ceiling, and a few people walking and conversing in the background.

I Can Hear What You’re Thinking: Open-Plan Office Acoustics Demystified

Graced with a temperate climate the rest of Canada might envy, we who inhabit the BC Lower Mainland can grow all sorts of goodies. The one thing we can’t grow, however, is more land … least of all in our most densely populated cities where, increasingly, white collar workers spend their shifts in open plan offices. The job market, career opportunities, and workplaces of today often differ from that of 10+ years ago. Many business people, particularly young entrepreneurs, are strapped for capital and on the lookout for more affordable alternatives to traditional office design, so open plans are becoming more and more popular.

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A person wearing a high-visibility vest holds a long microphone boom pole, aiming it towards a building in the background.

6 reasons to hire acoustic consultants for your project … at an early stage in its progress

You trust your well-trained, compassionate family doctor. But would you be comfortable with a diagnostic hint of “It’s probably acid reflux, but it might be throat cancer”? Chances are, you’d be as unlikely to accept a “might be” as she would to let you leave her examining room before referring you to a specialist. At the very least, she’d send you off to a lab with blood test requisition in hand.

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A cozy reading nook with two grey chairs and a wooden tray on the floor holding an open book, a French press coffee maker, and a cup. The floor features a herringbone pattern.

The Sound of Floors

BAP Acoustics has performed hundreds of impact insulation class (IIC) tests across Western Canada. For these test, we utilize a “tapping machine” which you can see in the video below.

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A cozy room with a leather couch, a round wooden coffee table with a laptop, a vintage refrigerator, bar stools, a zigzag rug, vinyl records, and industrial-style decor.

The Truth about Soundproofing

I was flipping through TV channels the other day and as I tuned in to a home improvement related show the show host pointed up to the underside of a ceiling in an old Vancouver home and cried out that “there was no soundproofing in there”. What did he mean by that I wondered? Was the ceiling cavity uninsulated? Was the ceiling put in without resilient channels? Would viewers think that, if those elements were put in, the room would be “soundproof”? Within the context of typical construction, I find the use of the words “soundproofing” or, more accurately, “soundproof” to be misleading.

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Open office at Facebook

Office Acoustics: Speech Privacy and Security

Speech privacy is critical aspect of office acoustics, particularly as it relates to boardrooms and meeting rooms. Many office discussions are best conducted behind closed doors, but how can you know if an eavesdropper is able to listen to your discussions? To provide guidance on this acoustics engineering issue, ASTM International Standard E2638-10 defines five levels of speech privacy/security for enclosed meeting rooms and offices (see table).

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