Four university lecture auditoria built in 1961, renovated in 1980, were due for renovation. The auditoria consisted of tiered levels with fixed tables and hinged seating. Users had complained about the acoustics in the spaces; speech intelligibility of students was particularly poor. While there was an adequate square footage of acoustically absorptive and diffusive surface finishes in the spaces, the acoustical treatments were not placed correctly in the room, and they were not effective. The poor acoustics in the spaces were particularly problematic due to the discussion-style teaching employed by several professors who used the spaces. JEAcoustics (JEA) was retained to provide acoustical recommendations for the space including: architectural room acoustics, sound isolation and mechanical noise control. JEA visited the auditoria and conducted observations, performed on-site reverberation decay time (T60) and background noise measurements. Ray Diagram Analysis5 and Classic Sabine Formula Analysis4 were also conducted, back in the office. JEA developed mechanical noise control, sound isolation and architectural room acoustics recommendations. Some recommendations were employed; others were not. After one auditorium was remodeled, JEA returned to the site and re-measured the T60 and background noise in the renovated space. The results of the renovation will be discussed in terms of the following: background noise level, T60, and user satisfaction with the space.
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