Distracting noise has a measurable negative impact on business. It increases employee stress and decreases employee satisfaction. Industry surveys have found that 81% of knowledge workers could be more productive if distracting noise was reduced.

Our workplace noise and privacy solutions can help you address the following challenges:

• Frustration and annoyance with office noise.
• Lack of privacy in cubicle environments.
• Decreases in productivity due to distracting noise.

Learn more:
What is the difference between noise and distracting noise?
How can I reduce noise and create privacy?
What solutions can be incorporated into new construction?
What solutions can be incorporated into existing offices solution?
How does a privacy solution affect the bottom line?
Is privacy really necessary?
How much do you hear from the next cubicle or office?

Noise vs. Distracting Noise
Distracting noise is not as much a function of decibels as it is a function of speech intelligibility. Simply, it’s not the volume of a conversation in the next cubicle; it’s how much of the conversation you understand that is distracting. The Privacy Index (PI) measures distracting noise based on a calculation of speech intelligibility. The worst level of privacy occurs when you can hear clearly most sentences of conversations around you.

Privacy/Sound Masking Solutions
You do not need to invest in private offices for all employees to get a reduction in noise and a high level of privacy. Doors and walls do not guarantee speech privacy. Privacy is a technology issue. Privacy solutions are designed to provide noise reduction and privacy of conversations in open floor plans, open spaces, and closed wall offices.

Masking may be applied in open areas or in private offices. If you can hear a conversation through a common wall or door, the private office is not so private.

New Office Construction
A combination of acoustical ceilings, noise blocking furniture systems, and sound masking systems provide privacy regardless of the floor plan. These technologies work to absorb, block, and cover sound as it floats throughout the open area.

Existing Offices
You do not need a complete renovation to deploy a privacy solution. Sound masking systems may be deployed in existing ceiling structures with sound masking speaker components residing above the existing ceiling. The speakers broadcast discreet contoured pink noise that is barely discernable. This sound significantly reduces the intelligibility of conversations, reducing the “distraction factor” in office noise.

How does a privacy solution affect the bottom line?
Case studies by Armstrong World Industries in a number of large corporations have shown measurable results with the addition of high performance ceilings and a sound masking system:

• Employee satisfaction increased 174%
• Productivity increased 13%
• Sales increased 20%

Is privacy really necessary?
Privacy concerns have been at the forefront of the technology debate for several years. Legislation has made “privacy” a concern for the health care, insurance, legal, and financial industries. Privacy in the age of the open floor plan is not restricted to file security on the network. The standards in the Health Insurance Portability Act (HIPAA) refer to electronic, paper, and oral communication.

Corporate network and building security measures work to prevent access to sensitive information. Human resource professionals are impacted by the need to provide the privacy of records and conversations. Web sites go to great lengths to ensure our comfort with their level of security. In the privacy debate the one question that often goes unasked is, “How much do you hear from the next cubicle or office?”

Make the Ceiling Work!
A state of the art example of masking technology is the i-ceilings™ sound system from Armstrong World Industries. The i-ceilings system combines electronics with an invisible speaker that looks like the other acoustical ceiling tiles installed around it. This allows the ceiling to provide its traditional role of sound absorption along with the active delivery of sound masking, paging, evacuation announcements, and background music.

Privacy solutions using sound masking technologies are another way for organizations to optimize performance by aligning technology with business goals and yield positive, measurable business results.

Learn more about our workplace noise and privacy solutions. Contact Us for a free consultation.