Case History of Office Privacy with Lightweight Construction

Abstract

The increasing use of lightweight, movable partition systems and ceiling systems in office building construction has led to the conclusion that, in order to achieve adequate speech privacy and freedom from annoyance and distraction between adjacent offices, even more consideration than usual must be given to the actual background sound levels that will exist in the finished offices. A recent case history of such an office privacy situation is discussed, including a summary of the acoustical design analysis, measurements made at a mock-up installation, and some preliminary follow-up measurements in the completed building. A discussion of practical methods for achieving the required background sound levels is included.