Sound Insulation Laboratory

Measuring airborne and impact sound insulation along with flanking transmission

Sound Reduction Index (SRI)

Sound insulation testing is an important part of the development and research of building materials. Design engineers and consultants want to see accurate SRI results when designing a building project.

SRI test results can also be used to check the sound performance of construction elements ensuring they meet the requirements of the building contract or national regulations.

Failures at the pre-completion testing stage and the rectifications needed, can be expensive and occur at the worst time. These issues can be avoided by using accurate laboratory test data at the design stage.

Our transmission suites are specifically designed for easy access when installing samples. Whether you’re testing walls and windows at ground floor level or floors and roofs at first floor level our facilities are designed for economical installation.

For SRI testing of heavy roofing or flooring systems, our facilities incorporate an in-built hoist to allow lifting sections into place.

SRL are fully UKAS accredited for large and small sample sound insulation testing which is the only acceptable accreditation on the majority of building projects.

Airborne and Impact Sound Insulation

SRL can offer impact sound insulation tests on all types of building construction materials including walls, floors, ceilings, roofs, curtain walling, doors, windows and more.

Our bespoke laboratory facilities provide the ability to test higher performing materials in a range of spaces with different apertures to suit a huge array of building elements.

We have various test aperture sizes, in both horizontal and vertical configurations to allow testing for all types of building materials. This includes a 140mm thick concrete floor permanently installed for impact improvement testing by floor coverings on concrete floors.

Flanking Sound Transmission

Sound is not always direct and can often often flank via different routes, possibly reducing any acoustic potential a design may have achieved. Flanking sound transmission can be routed via wall or floor junctions as well as, raised access floors or false ceilings which span walls, mullions and transoms which form integral parts of a buildings structure.

The possibility of flanking transmission is often overlooked and can be catastrophic to a project if a weakness is found at a later stage meaning accurate testing for flanking sound transmission can be crucial.

SRL offer bespoke rigs within our transmission suites to simulate the potential flanking paths of mullions and transoms where they meet external cladding/facades or internal walls and floors.

FAQs

Q.

What is acoustic insulation testing?

A.

It measures how well building materials block sound transmission, crucial for noise control.

Q.

What types of sound insulation tests do you offer?

A.

We conduct airborne and impact tests, including sound flanking assessments.

Q.

What is an airborne sound insulation test?

A.

It measures how well walls, doors or windows block airborne noise like speech or music.

Q.

What is impact sound insulation testing?

A.

It evaluates how flooring or ceilings reduce noise from impacts like footsteps which is especially helpful for floor noise created in multi-storey buildings.

Q.

What is flanking sound transmission?

A.

Flanking transmission occurs when sound travels via alternative routes, like walls or floor junctions, affecting a building’s acoustic performance.

Q.

What does sound insulation testing involve?

A.

We measure sound transmission through a material, product or system to assess its insulation properties, evaluating how efficiently a product prevents sound from transferring through it.

We are UKAS accredited for: 

  • BS EN ISO 10140-2 :2021
  • BS EN ISO 10140-3 :2021
  • BS EN 10848-2 :2017
  • BS EN ISO 20140-9 :1994
  • BS EN ISO 140-3 :1995
  • BS EN ISO 140-4 :1998
  • BS EN ISO 140-7 :1998

Thanks for all your help over the last 3 days. Please extend my thanks to the wider team too, not least for sorting out the additional plasterboard so quickly! My time with SRL has been really positive.

Andrew MacDonnell, IndiNature

The Bigger Picture

Whether it’s consultancy, research, testing, implementation or monitoring – or a comprehensive project involving all of these – our consultants will always deliver the optimum solutions.

The Bigger Picture

Whether it’s consultancy, research, testing, implementation or monitoring – or a comprehensive project involving all of these – our consultants will always deliver the optimum solutions.

Get in touch… call us on 01787 247595 or make an enquiry here