Why acoustics matter

Noise is a pollutant and a hazard to human health and hearing. In fact, it has been described as the most pervasive environmental pollutant.

Noise in the environment or community seriously affects people, interfering with the daily activities at school or work and at home and during leisure time.  Many homeowners suffer from noisy neighbors as their properties are insufficiently sound proofed. For office buildings or workplaces, distractions caused by nearby conversations or other intruding noise impact on concentration and efficiency.

WHO guidelines identify the main health risks of noise:

Pain and hearing fatigue;

Hearing impairment including tinnitus;

Annoyance;

Interferences with social behavior (aggressiveness, protest and helplessness);

Interference with speech communication;

Sleep disturbance and all its consequences on a long and short term basis;

Cardiovascular effects;

Hormonal responses (stress hormones) and their possible consequences on human metabolism (nutrition) and immune system;

Performance at work and/or school decrements.

It is possible to optimize the acoustical environments via design and materials that reduce sound reverberation inside the room, limit transmission of noise from outside the room, and minimize background noise from heating, cooling, and ventilation systems. Read more about how ROCKWOOL stone wool products can help achieve better acoustics.To achieve positive acoustic quality in a room it is important to consider requirements, purpose, regulations and more - read more about how to build and renovate in A sound way.