Zonda - Resource Library

The impacts of noise on occupancy health and wellness must be taken seriously. By understanding the importance of good noise control, learners will be able to understand the link between acoustic control and health, well-being, learning and productivity. This course will describe different scenarios like healthcare facilities, schools and offices.

The course will give you an insight into the different sound absorbing materials that can be used to improve room acoustics. In addition, we will discuss best practices using different solutions such as incorporating Melamine Foam as a sound absorbing material in different scenarios.

It has come to light that loud noise can cause health problems affecting all age groups. Because of this, creating spaces that minimize noise has become necessary in today’s buildings. Here are solutions to common problems that you can easily add to your projects.

Achieving optimal comfort requires focusing on design principles and selecting materials that address acoustics, indoor air quality, daylighting, cleanability and more — everything occupants see, hear, and feel. Some of the most significant contributors to the aesthetics and performance of interior spaces are ceilings and walls. Today’s architectural ceiling and wall solutions are sophisticated products that play an enormous role in occupant comfort. This course will explore how architects and designers can improve occupant health and well-being through the use of acoustic ceiling and wall systems in the built environment (more specifically in offices, classrooms, and healthcare facilities, where people spend a great deal of time).

Schools have unique design needs. In this CEU, you’ll learn the value that glass can bring to educational facilities sparking learning and inspiration, providing a safe haven for children's welfare, and promoting healthy living and physical development of the occupants.  In addition, this course will educate architects and designers on how to specify a glazing unit specific to its needs—enhancing functionality, user experience and energy efficiency.

The COVID-19 pandemic prompted intense review of workplace design considerations and solutions. Amongst the A&D community, there is growing conviction that occupant well-being and engagement must be supported through concern with equity—and applied to real-world needs such as acoustical privacy. To reliably design buildings to function acoustically for their users (e.g., provide adequate speech privacy, freedom from distraction, reduced annoyance, a good night’s sleep, and so on), one needs to establish a known and consistent level of spectrally neutral background sound.

Given today's focus on health and wellness, it seems prudent to revisit our acoustical lexicon with the intention of developing deeper awareness of the differences between background sound and noise, as well as their implications for our experience within facilities. Refining our understanding of 'noise' and 'sound,' as well as terms such as 'silence' and 'quiet,' allows for a more nuanced discussion of occupants’ needs and expectations, and fosters opportunities to improve building design practices.

Based on design trends that have evolved with the uptick in multi-generation living and spending more, as well as longer periods of time in our homes, this paper showcases design elements that are keyed in to making spaces more functional for today’s consumers.