Is there a right answer? A cross-laboratory study of concrete slabs

Abstract

Commissioning a new acoustic test lab is a non-standardized process and validating test procedures and conditions is complicated by a lack of test samples with established performance. To aid in validating the results at the Maxxon Acoustics Lab, two concrete slabs were fabricated and tested in a Gage Repeatability and Reproducibility-style test design at Intertek Labs. After shipment from York, PA to Hamel, MN, mounting and edge conditions were established (as previously presented) at the Maxxon Labs, and the Gage R&R-style testing was replicated at the Maxxon Lab. The results indicate sources of variability between labs that can be attributed to the standard test methods, physical differences in reverberation rooms and test chamber design, and sample mounting conditions. In addition to validation of a single lab, the results have lessons for the interpretation of lab test results to improve isolation performance comparison across products and assemblies to inform architectural acoustic design.