Public spaces are designed to promote human contact and social activities. They should be safe, welcoming, and accommodating for all users, with design and architectural features that are visually interesting. Examples of public spaces include libraries, cultural centres, churches, and community centres.
In a public space it’s normal to be surrounded by people laughing and talking, children shouting, music blaring, vehicle and machinery noise, and phones ringing. But while it may be 'normal', it’s not necessarily enjoyable.
Most of us don't expect silence, but we do expect to be able to converse easily and enjoy ourselves when in a public space.
We don't like having to shout to our companions over the noise from other people. We don't like not hearing a phone call or an announcement because there's too much music. And we don't want to leave a venue with our ears pounding and heads aching, desperate for quiet.
Excess noise levels cause stress and increased risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, and obesity. To prevent these non-auditory health impacts, a person’s daily average noise exposure should be less than 55 decibels.
Avenue Interior Systems' acoustic solutions are ideal for excessively noisy public places. With their absorptive qualities they help to reduce reverberated noise and echo, and quieten an area to ensure user satisfaction.
The church is often one of the oldest communal gathering spaces in use today. And while church design was historically acoustically effective, today’s technological advances and the way the space is now used have impacted the effectiveness of church acoustics.
Similarly to a recreation centre, a community centre is a communal space designed to be used for various purposes. That means a community centre’s acoustics need to be optimal for various different activities and groups.
Gone are the days when you would simply see wall-to-wall books when visiting the library. Today, you will have an immersive experience that includes books, DVDs, CDs, and other digital media. But without a vast number of books absorbing some of the soundwaves, library acoustics have also changed.
As large open spaces used for various activities, recreation centres are often the heart of a community. Yet their characteristic combination of open space, hard surfaces, and a variety of activities presents an acoustic nightmare if not managed correctly.
