Green Acoustics at green.sacnc.com Stewart Acoustical Consultants

We are proud to announce that we are providing training and education in green acoustics and LEED, with emphasis on LEED for Schools and LEED for Healthcare.  We are doing this through USGBC North Carolina – Triangle Chapter (www.triangleusgbc.org)  and the North Carolina chapter of the Acoustical Society of America, NC-ASA (www.nc-asa.org).

AN EXCELLENT BROCHURE IS AVAILABLE HERE

This is of interest to architects, HVAC designers, LEED AP’s, owners and facilities planners involved in green (sustainable) building design and planning and the LEED rating system, and for acoustics professionals wanting to get informed on acoustics requirements, concerns and opportunities green building design and in the LEED rating system.  The seminar will be held on September 17^th with a morning and afternoon session and will have exhibits of acoustical services and products with a green building focus.  It can be attended live or via online webinar.  The material will be presented by leading green acoustics professionals including Ken Roy (Armstrong World Industries), Joseph F. Bridger and Noral Stewart of Stewart Acoustical Consultants, Raleigh, NC and possibly others, and will include other panelists from well respected acoustical consulting firms with expertise in acoustics in sustainable buildings still to be determined.

The following day, September 18^th, the chapter will hold its traditional annual fall program with a session devoted to green acoustics and will include presentations from Ken Roy, chief scientist at Armstrong World Industries and Bob Thompson (EPA) (prerecorded specially for this event) – chair of the Indoor Environmental Quality subcommittee (which includes acoustics) for the USGBC LEED program.

Both the seminar and meeting will be held at the Hampton Inn and Suites located just off I-40 in Raleigh on NC-54. For location and reservation information, call 919-233-1798 or visit their website at http://www.hamptoninn.com/en/hp/hotels/index.jhtml?ctyhocn=RDUCYHX.

Pricing structure and schedule information about Thursday is shown below

Friday Presenters (September 18th Green Acoustics Presentations)

Here is an older (March 2008) but still good article titled “Acoustic Design for Green Buildings” that describes the challenges of green acoustics pretty well – from the viewpoint of the main acoustics ‘guru’ at Armstrong – Ken Roy.  The article can be found here.  I have placed some useful text excerpts here to give you the gist:

More green building design objectives need to include provisions for good acoustic performance…To attain [LEED] certification, the buildings must demonstrate they are environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy places to live and work. Included in these criteria is the expectation that the interior environment will foster the productivity of its occupants. In many cases, however, acoustic performance is overlooked in the design of these facilities. And, since acoustics are currently not specifically addressed in most green rating systems, the question arises: “How well are green buildings functioning in regard to acoustic performance or reduced noise distraction and annoyance?”….. University of California at Berkeley’s Center for the Built Environment (CBE)…has administered post-occupancy surveys..about indoor environmental quality…. 10 percent of the buildings were either LEED certified or “self-nominated” green buildings. …LEED buildings were found to be…slightly lower performing on acoustics, possibly because LEED did not directly address this issue until recently….Moreover, in all buildings surveyed, the level of acoustic satisfaction was the lowest performance factor of all the interior environmental factors surveyed. …

Ken goes on to discuss acoustical issues with exposed structures, underfloor air delivery (UFAD) systems, and the need for acoustics credits.  LEED is making efforts to add acoustics, such as in LEED for schools and LEED for Healthcare, but awareness is still an issue.