The boom in life science development and its impacts on community noise

Abstract

There is a boom in life science research and laboratory development in many areas of the country. And the speed of that development has accelerated since the COVID-19 pandemic. A life science facility may look like a traditional office building, but the sound emitted from the rooftop mechanical equipment associated with spaces occupied by pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies is distinct. A sound study was prepared for permitting the reconstruction of a major mixed-use redevelopment in an urbanized area of greater Boston. The redevelopment included retail, office, laboratory, residential and hotel uses amongst multiple buildings that would occur over several years. The complexity of the project required the collaboration of the developer, architectural and mechanical design teams, and acoustical consultants, to ensure that the cumulative sound impacts from all the buildings' future rooftop mechanical equipment did not exceed the local noise ordinance once the redevelopment was completed. The sound study also allowed the buildings to later be customized for future life science tenants. This paper will present the framework developed for each design team to allow the project to demonstrate compliance by establishing a noise budget.