ACOUSTIC WALL

SOUND CONTROL IN BUILDINGS

WALLS FOR PRODUCTION STAGE AT FILM STUDIO

SASANI STUDIOS
Sasani Studios, a one-stop film television and multimedia postproduction company of international repute, appointed dhk Architects to design and build their production facilities in Cape Town. The soundproofing and structural requirements had to conform to the highest standards.

The dynamic, young firm of architects turned an existing warehouse at the Cape Town Waterfront into a highly successful Sasani Studios with three production stages - 1143 m, 840 m and 425 m - meeting all required international standards. The main structure consisted of two skins of sound-absorbent walling - an external wall and an internal wall. Party walls were also specially designed to be soundproof. With the experience and advice of the Concrete Manufacturers Association, modular, fluted, split-face 90 mm blocks were used in two back-to back leaves to form a 190mm party wall up to 12,4 metres high. The structure of these tall walls was designed by consulting engineers Henry Fagan & Partners. They chose 400 x 400mm pilaster blocks to form the reinforcing columns. The pilaster block is specially designed to intersect with the masonry infill panels and provide sufficient core cavity for reinforcement and concrete. The choice of absorbent and sound-reducing concrete masonry manufactured by Columbia DCM was based on previous experience with this product, which was researched and developed by the University of Cape Town Acoustic Department. Readily available material and simple masonry construction provided a quick solution within a tight timetable. The internal wall was constructed with modular 140mm fluted, splitface concrete blocks up to a height of 2,6 metres. Above this, extending to the ceiling, was a sound-absorbent panel - a dry-wall partition to which a sound-absorbent polyester blanket was fixed with chicken wire mesh.

The criteria The studios were designed to meet these requirements:

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Airborne sound reduction from 80dBA to below 30dBA Reverberation time: 1,5 seconds Dead space internally - NR25 - requiring cavity walling Limiting noise penetration and leakage areas particularly from the roof structure Appointed architects: dhk Achitects, Cape Town Tel: (021) 461 8151 An internal 2,6 metre base wall, and above it, a soundabsorbent polyester blanket fitted against the dry wall which extends to the ceiling.

SASANI STUDIOS

a filmset in one of the studios The cavity between the ceiling and the roof sheets was filled with a mineral wool layer with another layer on the underside. All penetration points in the roof sheeting and ceiling were carefully sealed airtight in order to prevent air-borne sound transmission from outside. These high roof-loading requirements were met by strengthening the members and connections of the existing trusses as well as supporting the trusses at mid-span on steel girders, spanning the length of the production stages and inserted between the apex and bottom truss chords.

While the stages were soundproofed, the existing steel roof structure had to be upgraded to support the increased load requirements, which were:
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45kg/m2 for soundproofing materials 80kg/m2 for the lighting requirements of the filmsets Dead loads of a new gantry walkway system as well as associated live loads. The walkways comprise a main or central walkway extending over the length of the production stages with secondary gantries branching off towards the sides. Dead load of a grid of steel scaffold pipes for supporting lights. Steel I-beams fixed to the lower truss chords acting as tracks for 1 tonne chain blocks.

The offices with a communal meeting area in the foreground

CAPE TECHNIKON CAMPUS DEVELOPMENT

Harris & Harris Architects Tel: (021) 426 1731 Consulting engineers: KFD Wilkinson (Pty) Ltd Tel: (021) 425 1610 and Liebenberg & Stander Tel: (021) 421 2430

The former consortium of Colyn & Meiring/Interplan, now Harris & Harris Architects, Cape Town, investigated concrete masonry single-leaf M140 split-face for all internal walls of the Cape Technikon. The University of Cape Town Acoustic Department, under Prof. AT Semmelink in co-operation with Columbia DCM, conducted intensive research to find optimum masonry performance in respect of airborne sound absorption and sound reverberation for classrooms. Many alternative mix designs and density tests were carried out to achieve desired standards of performance. The outcome was to provide excellent acoustic performances with unrendered facing blocks in standard classrooms and large and small lecture theatres for 140 and 250 students. The photographs illustrate some of the applications and workmanship.

HOLIDAY INN GARDEN COURT

In the early 1980s the nine-storey Cape Town headquarters of Shell Africa was to be converted into a centrally situated hotel. The investigating engineers considered that the additional loading of the structure with extensive internal walls was critical. They required maximum sound reduction with minimum mass and cost. Plastered concrete masonry was thought to be the solution. However, little reliable information was available on the acoustic performance of modular 90mm masonry units. The University of Cape Town, under the leadership of Prof. AT Semmelink in cooperation with Columbia DCM, conducted research on behalf of the client. Progressive tests were conducted on each of the following unplastered, one-sided plastered, two-sided 12mm plastered and, finally, two-sided plastered and painted walls. The results were most effective, exceeding the minimum sound reduction requirements for party walls in the hotel environment. The photograph shows the extensive size of the hotel.

Consulting engineers: Liebenberg & Stander Tel: (021) 421 2430 Contractors: WBHO Construction (Pty) Ltd Tel: (021) 794 1300

CONCRETE MASONRY FOR SOUND INSULATION AND SOUND REDUCTION

The National Building Regulations do not deal with acoustic performance criteria for buildings. While noise control of airborne sound (external or internal) in buildings is dependent on a host of variables, it can be said that dense concrete masonry for external walling and party walls have generally been accepted as highly suitable material. Resistance to sound transmission increases not only with wall thickness but more so with increasing mass of a masonry wall. In single-leaf walling, density of the masonry unit and surface texture most certainly effect the sound absorption and/or sound transmission through a wall. "Diaphragm walls, however, because of the large internal void, possess better prospects for both sound and thermal insulation." (Structural Masonry Design Manual by WG Curtain page 263). Most available literature leans heavily on British codes and regulations such as Bs 2750: 1956, which provides tables of performance standards against which a construction can be tested. During 1972 a leading British manufacturer, Fortecrete DCM, had tests carried out by the research organisation AIRO in accordance with BS 2750:56. The results are shown in our table for various thicknesses of masonry blocks.

Typical home sound levels This chart shows the decibles of sound radiated by many of the typical noise sources in the modern world and how much reduction in decibels is necessary to bring about tolerable, quiet conditions suitable for a home environment.

Sound level in decibels

CONCRETE MASONRY FOR SOUND INSULATION AND SOUND REDUCTION

The frequency range (Hz) 100 to 3150 was used in the tests and is reflected for three basic widths of dense concrete masonry (ie. M90mm, M140mm and M190mm). For good reasons, the masonry manuals, engineering literature and design guides deal only in general terms with the subject. Specific applications and requirements need to be tested separately against the masonry available in a region. In the examples shown in this publication, designers all investigated the specific performance of the masonry available. Density, surface texture, porosity and specific material grading all affect the acoustic value of the masonry and cannot be generalised. For example, detailed material composition research was carried out for the Cape Technikon's extensive internal walling. Finally, six different masonry-mix designs were tested and one eventually turned out to provide optimum performance for sound insulation and reverberation of fairface, unrendered, large-scale masonry application. The aesthetic appearance of the masonry illustrated in this publication was not compromised. Acknowledgements to Gunter Koch, now acting as CMA Regional Representetive of the Western Cape, for his contribution to acoustic wall research.

CONCRETE MASONRY FOR SOUND INSULATION AND SOUND REDUCTION

Concrete Manufacturers Association - Membership List (Masonry) 2001/2002 Cape Brick Concor Technicrete (Pty) Ltd * Corobrik (Pty) Ltd* Head Office PO Box 168 Halfway House 1685 Tel: +27118056742 Fax: +27113154683 Email: cma@cis.co.za Website:http://www.cma.org.za Western Cape Regional Office: GR Koch PO Box 7231, Roggebaai, Cape Town 8012 Tel:/Fax: +27214612511 Cell: 0824547657 Email: imes@mweb.co.za Columbia DBL (Pty) Ltd* Deranco Blocks (Pty) Ltd* False Bay Bricks (Cape)* Inca Masonry Products (Pty) Ltd* Infraset* Lategans Cement Works* (021)5112006 (011)4952200 (031)5603911 (021)9051665 (041)4633338 (021)9041620 (043)7451215 (012)6520000 (021)8731154 *Companies which hold the SABS mark Morula Brick & Sand (Pty) Ltd* Neat Contech cc* Precast Concrete Industries (Namibia) Stanger Brick & Tile (Pty) Ltd* Watson Concrete* Western Granite Bricks (Pty) Ltd* White River Cement Bricks (012)5491727 (046)6481359 (09264)612804103 (032)4570237 (011)7400910 (011)8733949 (021)9041620 (013)7501271