Grand Canyon Quiet Again
Stuck with 105 dB noise from an air intake head, Grand Canyon National Park
service personnel were truly in a bind. Massive amounts of air must flow, so
the intake could not have a restrictive housing.
Simple solution: Four Acoustiblok
All Weather Sound Panels™ Easily installed and preserving ease of access,
the AWSP solution provides an amazing 30 db noise reduction! "Works very well... can
not be distinguished from ambient noise of surrounding equipment." - Dave Welborn
A
revolutionary sound proofing * material is set to make a
major impact on noise abatement issues after winning an
innovation and technology award endorsed by the Department
for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Acoustiblok, which is only three millimeters thick yet
offers a sound reduction index (SRI) of 26 decibels – six
decibels more effective than lead- has won the John Connell-Defra
Award organized by the Noise Abatement Society.
Mr Ervine, Managing Director of Acoustiblok UK, collected
the prestigious award from Defra minister, Lord Whitty of
Camberwell at a House of Commons ceremony on Wednesday, October
29.
The material, widely used in the US, was hailed by award
judges as a revolutionary step in noise abatement for both
the workplace and at home.
It was introduced to the UK by Mr Ervine, who impressed
NAS judges for his exceptional spirit of enterprise and creativity.
Acoustiblok, which can be applied to existing buildings as
well as new build projects, was also judged for its feasibility
and environmental impact.
Lord Whitty said: It is a real pleasure for me to present
this year’s John Connell Award for Technology
to Acoustiblok UK for its insulating material Acoustiblok,
which manages to be both very thin and effective at
blocking
sound. I believe it could make an important contribution
to controlling noise and, in so doing, improving life
for many people.
“Tackling noise pollution is a priority for government,
and also for the public. I believe that we should do
all we can to encourage and reward innovative approaches,
such
as this one, to better control noise.”
Mr Ervine added: “What makes Acoustiblok stand alone
from other sound reduction materials is that it has such
tremendous density and mass and yet takes up such minimal
space- a crucial factor in the design and construction
industry.
“Most people I speak to with noise problems would
like to greatly reduce the decibel levels but cannot either
afford the amount of room needed to insulate adequately using
other sound proofing * methods or indeed bear the financial
costs associated with noise abatement. Now I’m glad
to say, Acoustiblok offers them a competitive solution
on both cost and space, and with regards to decibel issues
it
is unrivalled.”
Acoustiblok is made from reinforced, flexible mineral filled
material that has a density and mass of 1lb per square foot.
It contains no lead or asbestos and will not mildew, is impervious
to
water
or moisture, is highly flexible, is non-corrosive and UV
resistant.
Editor’s note: John Connell, a charismatic businessman
who wrote regularly to The Daily Telegraph at a time
when it published many complaints about noise, received letters
from across the country from people whose lives had
been
blighted by noise. This lead to the formation of the
NAS in 1959.
For further information regarding Acoustiblok,
please contact Michael Ervine, telephone 01622 840289, mobile
07801 420760.
For further press information, please contact
Michael or Debra Ervine tel: 01622 840289
e-mail mike@acoustiblokuk.com
Some of us are trying to sleep ...
Dogs, music, rows - or all three. Check noise levels before you buy, advises Nick Kettles
Sunday February 27, 2005
The Observer
If obnoxious boom-box boy-racers, whining dogs, or a couple incessantly arguing regularly disturb your idyll, take a leaf out of the book of the Ropers of Farley, Staffordshire. After living 100 yards from Alton Towers - and its hundreds of screaming roller coaster riders - for 25 years, last year Stephen and Suzanne Roper successfully challenged the park's owners, Tussaud's Theme Parks Ltd, to reduce the noise.
But should they have moved there in the first place? Well, 35 years ago, when they arrived, Alton Towers was better known for its gardens than for the Oblivion or Black Hole rides.
In our crowded island noise is fast becoming a major source of concern, as both an environmental pollutant, and a cause of illness. Peter Wakeham, director of the Noise Abatement Society, claims one woman even tried to commit suicide as a result of sleep deprivation from high-pitch train horns. 'There are torture weapons of noise that are quieter,' he says.
Potential sources of noise should not be ignored when researching a prospective property, to live or let. Home Information Packs should, from 2007, include any noise abatement notices issued on the property or immediate neighbours, but critics say this may simply lead to a decrease in complaints by homeowners fearful of devaluing their property.
In the meantime, Peter Bolton King of the National Association of Estate Agents suggests: 'Brief your solicitor to ask the seller formally, then if there is a problem you have got something in writing.'
But don't be shy of doing the detective work yourself - you may uncover grounds for renegotiating the price. Visit the property at different times in the day to assess ambient noise levels from neighbouring streets. You should also check a good Ordnance Survey map for proximity to railways, substations, and even hospitals.
Londoners can currently make use of the country's first web-based noise map, which may subsequently go nationwide.
Roger Tompsett from map creator Atkins Global says: 'At present the map only indicates road traffic noise at day and night but will indicate if a garden is quieter. In the future it will help you identify air traffic, railways, and industrial noise, although not, unfortunately, noisy neighbours.'
The map will introduce you to the world of decibels, which are calculated logarithmically. This means the intensity of noise increases exponentially. The front row of a Smashing Pumpkins concert is, at 110 decibels, about 100,000 times as loud as ordinary conversation, at 60.
Noise intensity is absolute; nuisance, however, is subjective. Quieter but persistent sounds can be equally grating. Russell Jervis, managing director of estate agent Haart says: 'The annoying electrical humming sound overhead cables make can be a real turn-off for buyers, pushing down the price of some houses by 10-15 per cent.'
This is also how local councils must view complaints about noise, because there is nothing in law to define an acceptable level. Moreover, for an abatement order to be served on a neighbour, the sound must be 'witnessed' and recorded with specialist equipment by the noise pollution officer.
Some innovative councils, such as Doncaster, require the noisemaker to listen to a recording of their noise as part of a mediation process.
Solutions for sounds from outside should focus on secondary glazing, while those heard through party walls can be limited by some sort of additional insulation, such as Acoustiblok. Made from reinforced, loaded vinyl, Acoustiblok is only 3mm thick, yet reduces sound by at least 19 decibels.
In the garden, ETS's Green Barrier - a sandwich of living green willow and rock wool - can reduce sound by at least 10 decibels. Used successfully at Gleneagles Hotel in Perthshire, it both shields and absorbs sound to avoid it being deflected elsewhere. But at £140 a sq m, it may be better suited to serious property developers, especially those responding to 'sale prevention orders' based on noise.
The Roman poet Juvenal complained about noise - 'How much sleep, I ask you, can one get in lodging here. The wagons thundering past, the shouts of draymen caught in traffic' - and it's clear human tolerance to noise is not improving. Let's just hope our concern for others is.
www.noiseabatementsociety.com
www.londonnoisemap.com
Keep it down
Sound levels in decibels
130 Threshold of pain
125 Train horn
100 Pneumatic drill at 5 metres
90 Heavy goods vehicles from pavement
70 Vacuum cleaner at three metres
40 Refrigerator humming at two metres
0 Threshold of hearing
How to complain
Approach your neighbour before your blood pressure rises. If they persist, keep a diary about the noise before contacting the local environmental health department. Recordings will help persuade the council to help, but can't be used in evidence. If the council doesn't agree that the noise is unacceptable, civil action is still possible.
