Architects and designers are discovering the importance of incorporating sound design in healthcare and educational facilities. Loud sounds and background community noise can both disturb the functioning of both kinds of spaces. Healing and learning happen best in calm and soundproof environments. Acoustic building products like acoustic ceiling tiles and soundproofing walls can create quiet and calm environments for schools and hospitals, to benefit those who work there as well as students and patients.
Noise hampers learning and healing
Loud noises can affect health and learning processes. Continuous exposure to loud sounds can be a health hazard. People who are exposed to sounds over 85 decibels on a regular basis are at risk of losing their hearing. In fact, as many as 26 million people suffer from high frequency hearing loss due to exposure to loud noises. That?s about 15% of all Americans between the ages of 20 to 69 years.
It?s not only loud noises that are a problem. Continuous background noise or community noise can also have a harmful impact on health. Researchers have found that it can cause learning problems and cardiovascular diseases. Exposure to background community noise over the level of 40 decibels can increase the risk of heart disease.
Sound design for schools
Soundproofing and acoustics are important factors in classroom design. Loud or continuous background sounds prevent students from hearing the teacher. This has a cumulative effect, beginning with the student?s withdrawal from class participation. It can affect student learning and academic performance and also their social life in a negative way. Classrooms need acoustic design to ensure that outside sounds are blocked. Acoustics inside the room are equally important, and students should be able to hear the teacher and vice versa.
New materials like acoustic ceiling tiles and sound wall panels are giving architects and designers the tools to design spaces for learning. With sounds insulating walls and acoustic ceiling products, they can eliminate all external sounds to help students and teachers alike focus on the class and its objectives.
Acoustic design in hospitals
As pointed out above, loud sounds can be harmful to health. They can lead to hearing loss and contribute to other illnesses like cardiovascular disease. Conversely, researchers have found that soundproofed spaces create calm and soothing environments that are conducive to healing.
Studies have shown that quiet spaces improve the speed of recovery as well as its quality. New acoustic building materials like acoustic ceiling tiles and wall panels can create sound designs for hospitals and medical facilities.
Acoustic ceiling tiles and other new and innovative building products help architects and designers to create spaces for learning and healing. Making soundproofing and acoustic design part of the building improves their functioning, and the quality of life and work for those who use the spaces.