Acoustics

Our Acoustics team are our sensory experts. Whether it’s noise and vibration enhancement, reduction, measurement or control, our Acoustics team provides specialists, integrated and forward-thinking Acoustics Services on all project types. With a global network of more than 60 Acoustics experts, we provide innovative solutions to all aspects of acoustics, noise and vibration.

Sound Advice

NDY’s acoustics team provide detailed acoustic advice tailored to a project’s needs. This process begins by gaining a clear understanding of your acoustic expectations, whether this be the level of privacy between offices, a desired background noise level in an apartment bedroom or a particular reverberation time within an auditorium.

Our team has extensive experience in the construction industry, providing acoustic design input from the earliest town planning stages, through to completion and handover of constructed buildings. Our in depth knowledge of acoustic legislation and policy, enables us to provide practical, accurate and timely advice to developers and town planners alike.

Our Acoustics Services

Acoustics is the applied science of sound and its effects on the quality, health and safety of our environment. High quality acoustic design adds value by optimising material use and ensuring user comfort, privacy and functionality. Our team focuses on all aspects of acoustics including architectural and specialised spaces, environmental noise studies, and physical noise and vibration measurements.

What We Do

Building Acoustics
  • Room acoustics including RTs and absorption coefficients (Reverberation Time RT, absorption coefficient Noise Reduction Coefficient NRC, impedance tube, Sabines, Room Constant R, Shultz, Kuttruff, Schroeder)
  • Sound isolation including STC, FSTC, IIC, FIIC, Rw, R’w, Dntw, Lntw, Transmission coefficient T
  • Speech privacy including level difference, sound masking, background noise levels, BS 8233. Dw, Noise reduction NR
  • Design for confidentiality and voice security
  • Building services noise control to AS/NZS 2107, ASHRAE etc, NC, NR, PNC, NCB, dBA, dB
  • Noise report submissions for local authority / development approval
  • Sustainability initiatives to internationally recognised ratings and certification standards including GreenStar, WELL & LEED
  • Façade design to minimise external noise intrusion from traffic, aircraft and rail and other traffic and environmental noise
  • Whole building vibration isolation to reduce structure-borne noise and vibration intrusion including ISO 2631, Human health and comfort, weighting curves, Acceleration, frequency weighted root mean square (r.m.s), vibration dose (VDV)
  • Specialist vibration design for sensitive equipment (rms vibration velocity µm/s, Vibration Criteria Curves VC)
  • Vibration control from building services and occupant activities
  • Emergency Warning and Intercommunications Systems (EWIS) to AS1670.4, AS 60849, Speech intelligibility (SI), Speech Transmission Index (STI) measurements and assessments
  • Sound and impact insulation testing for compliance purposes (FSTC, FIIC, R’, Dw, L’nTw, DnTw + Ctr, Outdoor/Indoor Transmission Class OITC, Transmission Loss TL, ASTM E90, E423, ISO 10140, ASTM E336, E1007)
  • Testing of office partitions and doors to determine acoustic ratings
Environmental Acoustics
  • Road, Rail, Air transportation noise and vibration (Day and Night Sound Level Ldn, LA10, L90, Leq, dB, Lden, Lmax,  Community Noise Equivalent Level CNEL, Background Noise Level, Impulse Noise, Peak Particle Velocity PPV, Statistical Noise Levels Ln, Sound Power Level Lw)
  • Peer reviews
  • Community noise reports and studies
  • Construction noise management plans
  • Marine and underwater noise impacts (Acoustical threshold, adaptation, hydrophone, array elements, echo signature, echolocation, ecology, acoustic curtain, sonobuoy, ultrasound, vertical migration, dBSea)
  • Noise and vibration from blasting (DIN 4150, BS 7385structural damage, mm/s, Peak Wall Vibration Velocity, blast overpressure, dBLin, Maximum instantaneous charge MIC)
  • Noise from demolition and construction
  • Permanent noise and vibration monitoring and system design
  • Submissions to authorities
  • Noise Control for compliance with environmental protection policies
  • Traffic, aircraft and rail traffic noise and vibration control and modelling (SoundPLAN, CADNA, noise mapping, LimA)
  • Major infrastructure planning
  • Sound Attenuation Policy noise report submissions
  • Plant and machinery noise
  • Occupant generated vibration
  • Occupational noise risk management (Occupational Safety and Health, exposure, 85 decibels and 8 hour time weighted average, health effects, controls and mitigation, Dose, hearing loss)
  • Planning policy noise report submissions
  • Industrial noise reports
  • Long term noise and vibration monitoring and analysis
  • Demolition and construction noise and vibration monitoring
  • AS2377, Vehicle Type Testing
  • Advancement noise source measurement, identification and control
  • Air Quality, Light and Odour Assessments (Air quality index, Carbon monoxide, coarse and fine particles µm, HEPA, Particulate matter PM, sulphur oxides, screening distances, concentration mg/m3, EN 16841, flow rate m3/s, dynamic olfactometer, odour detection threshold, sensitive receptors)
Vibration & Structural Acoustics
  • Vibration measurements of mechanical equipment, road traffic, rail movements, floor mobility and damping (Amplitude, damping, dynamic stiffness, fast fourier transform FFT, Finite Element Analysis or Modelling, Frequency, Frequency response, Hamonic, Hertz, impact testing, natural frequency, Peak to Peak Pk-PK, Peak Particle Velocty PPV, Peak Vector Sum, Resounance, RMS Velocity, Spectrum)
  • Road and rail noise and vibration controls
  • Whole building vibration isolation to reduce structure-borne noise and vibration intrusion
  • Specialist vibration design for sensitive equipment
  • Vibration control from building services and occupant activities
EcoAcoustics
  • Underwater acoustic studies
  • Aquatic and terrestrial animal species acoustic impact assessments
  • (Acoustical threshold, adaptation, hydrophone, array elements, echo signature, echolocation, ecology, acoustic curtain, sonobuoy, ultrasound, vertical migration, dBSea, bat acoustics, wildlife acoustics, ultrasonic noise loggers)
Technical Investigations
  • Product design support and advice
  • Software development and training
  • Proficient in the use of a variety of noise, vibration, odour, air quality, underwater acoustic modelling software and hardware
Electro-Acoustics
  • Studio and Theatre consultancy
  • Sound system design and technical specification
  • Stage management system design and technical specification
  • Sports and e-sporting Arenas

Download Our Capability Statement

Get in touch with our team

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Victoria Rastelli
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Cameron Walbran
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William McCulloch
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Thomas Warren

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