In educational environments such as schools and child care centres noise is a major nuisance. FurnX -a part of Højer Møbler A/S - developed various types of work surfaces to help reduce noise levels.

FurnX A/S is a subcontractor of furniture company Højer Møbler A/S. Among other items, it produces desks used by students in educational institutions. These desks are available with work surfaces in various finishes and materials whose noise emission levels were found to be subjectively different. Noise is emitted when a hard object is placed or dropped on the desks.

FurnX asked FORCE Technology to verify the differences in noise emission from four of their work surface materials using objective noise emission measurements. FORCE Technology used two methods of measurement to evaluate the noise. The results showed a significant difference in the noise emitted by the various types of work surface.

Noise is a major nuisance in educational environments, such as schools and child care centres. For this reason, FurnX has developed desks for students that can help to reduce noise levels in classrooms. Subjectively, FurnX was able to discern differences in the sound produced by drumming on the various types of work surface, but they lacked objective measurements to verify the changing noise levels.

Measuring the noise 

FurnX and Højer Møbler can use the objective noise emission measurement to demonstrate that their desks' work surfaces can help reduce noise in classrooms. It is important that schools choose the right desk surfaces, so as to avoid spending additional resources to reduce noise levels while classes are in session.

The noise produced in a space when (e.g.) a hard object is thrown against or falls onto a tabletop is known as an "impact noise". This term is commonly used in discussions of the noise produced by walking on a floor. A standardised impact-producing machine is used to measure the impact noise from floors.

There is no standardised method of measuring impact noise from tabletops. For this reason, FORCE Technology chose to use two measurement methods to measure impact noise from the four desk surfaces: one measurement was taken with the standardised impact machine; the other was taken using a method devised for the occasion, involving a falling weight.

The measurements were performed in an acoustically dampened room with measurement microphones placed 1 m from the desk being tested. Both measurement methods showed significant differences in the noise emitted by the four desk surfaces.

Customer: FurnX

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