Norcross firm develops way to muffle office noise

Atlanta Business Chronicle July 17-23 1998
Norcross firm develops way to muffle office noise
By Jeff Silver

Open office designs- work environments with partitions rather than full walls-have beenaround since the 1960s. But the workplace has changed dramatically, and now open work environments produce a big problem.... noise.

Workstations, or cubicles, are smaller than they were three decades ago, so workers are closer together. Teamwork and collaboration are encouraged. So groups of people gather amid the open cubicles. Computers hum, faxes beep, phones ring, speakerphones blare and everyone is expected to be more productive because of leaner staffing.

How can anyone concentrate?

Several studies show that's an issue. The Data Entry Management Association found that lack of acoustical privacy cuts productivity up to 40 percent, and data entry errors increase 27 percent. A Heriot-Watt University study found that background speech can reduce productivity by more than 10 percent.

Norcross-based Dynasound Inc. introduces more sound to the environment to cover up distractions, using a process called sound-masking. The system works the same way whirring air conditioner muffles speech or other noises. By using technology the company developed as audio surveillance countermeasures for the military and the defence industry. Dynasound claims it can increase an individual's audio privacy in an office setting by 30 percent.

Speakers are mounted above the ceiling and pointed upward: the speakers output projects through the ceiling tiles. Audio equalizers are used to tune the sound to the specific characteristics of the office. the background sound adjusts automatically throughout the day. The level of sound is lower during non-peak hours than during periods of greater activity.

"Cocktail party effect"

The result is that extraneous conversations are detectable but unintelligible.

Thomas A.Koening, president of Dynasound, calls it a "coctail party effect." Conversations taking place 15 feet away are perceived as if they were 45 feet away. koening said that with owners investing $400 to $600 per square foot on construction and build-outs, the $1 to $1.25 per square foot cost of sound-masking quickly pays for itself in higher productivity.

Dynasound, which was founded in Boulder,Colo., in 1975 and moved to Atlanta in 1983, has 17 employees who assemble the sound-masking systems at the company's facility in Norcross.

The system is used at the Home Depot Inc.'s headquarters complex in Smyrna and has also been used in Kaiser Permanente to protect client confidentiality by decreasing cross-talk between medical examination rooms. Other clients include Delta Air Lines Inc., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Bell South Corp., United Parcel Service of America Inc., and The Hewlett-Packard Co.

Koenig said Dynasound's business has grown more than 43% annuallym he would not give sales figures. The total market is estimated at $100 million.

To illustrate the origins of commercial sound-masking, Koenig cited work done for the U.S. naval Intelligence Agency in Maryland. In addition to sound-masking, the Navy required a CD player capable of randomly shuffling music selections from 25 different disks, plus an additional signal bringing in conversations of "misinformation" in case electronic eavesdropping were able to break through the first two audio layers.

To control acoustics, several steps are necessary. The first two steps absorb and block sound waves so they do not travel as far. This accomplished through ceiling and carpet treatments and furniture systems. The last element covers noise through sound masking.

The ABC's of sound control (absorb, block, and cover) must all be part of the effort, according to experts. Executing two out of the three steps will only be 50% effective, said Fred Folsom. manager of marketing for Armstron World Industries office building ceiling business.

Materials used in ceiling, either mineral fibers or fiberglass,, have not changed for many years. However, Folsom said new processes have been deveoped to reach a balance between good acoustical performance, which requires softer, more acoustically absorbent characteristics, and durability, which requires harder, stronger qualities to stand up to handling for access to pipes and wiring.

Armstrong's global sales figures for suspended acoustical ceiling, both residential and commercial, is $750 million. The worldwide market is estimated at more than $1 billion.

Armstrong worked with Dynasound two years ago, along with Miliken & Co. and Steelcase Inc. on the study for the American Society of Interior Designs (ASID). The study examined the relationship between increased productivity and noise reduction strategies. By coordinating carpeting, furniture systems, ceiling material and sound masking, th study concluded that worker satisfaction increased 300 percent and sales increased 20 percent after acoustic design changes were implemented in one company's telemarketing center.

Armstrong has produced an audio CD to demonstrate the difference between noise levels in a standard office and the levels in an office with acoustic control design elements.