Posts Tagged cloudscape
Sonora® & Sonora® Lite – together in Michigan
Posted by Acoustics First in Absorption, Customer Feedback, Product Applications, Products, Worship Facilities on November 30, 2022
Here are a couple of fresh install photos – courtesy of SLS Productions in Michigan. For this fellowship hall at Kalamazoo Missionary Church, a mix of standard Sonora® Panels and Sonora® Lite PVC encapsulated panels were used. The Steel Grey Sonora® Panels, installed on the wall, are the standard 6-7# density panels that have become ubiquitous in so many churches and schools throughout the country for improving speech clarity and taming harsh reverb times.
For the ceiling of the room, Sonora® Lite Panels were used. Notice how the white PVC covering and clear washer plates help the panels blend aesthetically into the ceiling. These lower density (1.65#) PVC encapsulated panels could be thought of as a ‘direct mount’ cousin of our Cloudscape® baffles and are an excellent budget friendly choice when treating ceilings. The final results turned out great and all were pleased.
Taming the Cube with Cloudscape®
Posted by Acoustics First in Absorption, Classrooms, Customer Feedback, Manufacturing, Media Room, Product Applications, School & Educational Facilities, Teaching Rooms, Universities on October 21, 2022
When the University of the Pacific reached out to help tame the acoustics of their makerspace called “The Cube”, many different concerns were underlined about the space, its uses, and the problems they faced.
These concerns covered more than just the room dimensions – size, height, HVAC, glass walls, etc…. there were functional requirements for collaboration, classes, and workshops. The overwhelming acoustic problems involved the near constant noises generated by the vast array of equipment in this space – sewing machines, large format printers, plotting cutters, 3D printers, scanners, and every other modern tool for allowing the creative minds at their school to create. It was a cacophony of stepper motors, fans, and moving parts – which made collaboration very difficult.
The other parameter that needed to be maintained was the ability to reconfigure the layout of the equipment without affecting the acoustic treatment in the space. This removed almost all of the walls in the space as possible locations for treatment. This left the ceiling as the only viable space left for treatment, but with an array of lights and exposed HVAC systems, there were few treatments that would be easy to implement and still be effective.
The decision was made to creatively weave Cloudscape® Baffles into all the spaces available in the ceiling. Dodging duct-work and suspended lighting rails was made possible with careful planning and execution – and the results were immediately notable. (Also noticeable was that the baffles had very little impact on the lighting which is vital in any makerspace.)
“…The sound baffles you recommended finally got installed in my makerspace about two weeks ago and I wanted to send a quick thank you since they’ve made a very noticeable acoustic difference to the room, and it’s a lot more pleasant in here now. “
Chris Crawford – Innovation Spaces Manager (University of the Pacific)
Case Study: Swim RVA! Competition Natatorium (POOL!)
Posted by Acoustics First in Absorption, Fitness, Gymnasium, Product Applications, Products, Uncategorized on May 12, 2021
Athletic facilities, including indoor pools, can often tolerate longer reverberation times when compared to other large spaces, like event halls and theaters. However, sound absorptive treatment is often needed to improve PA announcer intelligibility, reduce ambient noise levels and facilitate clear communication between coaches and participants.
Swim RVA enlisted the help of RTW Media and Acoustics First® to improve the listening conditions of their large Natatorium which contains an Olympic sized pool. The massive volume (approx. 800,000 cubic feet) and abundant hard surfaces contribute to excessive reverberation and noise buildup. Water is an extremely sound-reflective surface, akin to polished concrete; which exacerbates these issues.
To address these problems, over 200 4’x10’ Cloudscape® Banners were installed throughout the ceiling. Cloudscape® Banners provide the most “bang for the buck” in reducing excessive reverberation and noise buildup. When festooned, they provide additional low-frequency absorption, which is needed in these mostly concrete-block facilities.
In the end, the client was extremely satisfied with the end results, both acoustically and aesthetically!
Is your indoor athletics facility too noisy? Contact Acoustics First® today for a consultation!
Boys & Girls Club is (Cloudscape®) Baffled!
Posted by Acoustics First in Absorption, Customer Feedback, Fitness, Gymnasium, Multipurpose Rooms, Product Applications, Products on February 3, 2021
The Boys & Girls Club is enjoying their improved acoustics! (Photo by: Rennie Fish)
A large gymnasium/basketball court made of concrete blocks and metal is not an acoustically tame place. Add dozens of active boys and girls and the cacophony of sound can be a little overwhelming. This is exactly the reason why the Boys & Girls club reached out to Acoustics First®.
After a quick consultation, it was decided that the most efficient and cost effective option was installing Cloudscape® baffles to tame the overall reverb and sound pressure levels in the gym. Because the baffles are hanging with all of the sides are exposed, this increases their effective surface area and, in turn, improves their ability to absorb noise. This efficiency, ease of installation, and their relatively low cost is why they were the perfect option for this space.
Acoustics First @ The Kentucky Center for African American Heritage
Posted by Acoustics First in Absorption, Multipurpose Rooms, Museums, Press Release, Products on June 27, 2019
When Acoustics First® was approached with the ideas for the Main Hall of the Kentucky Center for African American Heritage (KCAAH), they needed acoustic materials that would not only work to acoustically tame the large space, but to have some be the focal point for attention – while others needed to blend in.
The Brown Forman Great Hall at KCAAH, showing the Silent Pictures®/Sonora® baffle portraits and quotes on the left, and the gray Cloudscape® baffles above.
Aukram Burton of KCAAH wanted to have large portraits of civil rights icons, not only nationally, but paying particular attention to leaders with a connection to Kentucky. He also wanted to have large panels with quotes from these figures. These would be a custom printed Silent Pictures®/Sonora® Baffle Hybrid – with a 1″ Custom printed Silent Pictures® panel on one side, and a grey fabric wrapped Sonora® Baffle on the back. These would maximize sound absorption due to all of the surfaces being exposed to sound – while being aesthetically significant to the space. Their sheer size presented some technical challenges – with the portraits being 4′ x 8′ and the quotes being 4′ x 10′ – creating custom artwork on this scale required many technical consultations, as many photographs were not easily scaled to this size.
The impact of the portraits in the hall can only be described as ‘impressive.’
They did not want the other treatments to distract from the portraits, so they chose to install large Cloudscape® Baffles in a gray material that closely matched the gray color scheme of the support beams, trusses, and HVAC elements that are exposed and prevalent in the hall. This allowed the large 4′ x 8′ baffles to blend into the background, while still taming the acoustics of the large hall. The acoustics make the hall feel like a much more intimate venue than its imposing size suggests.
Randy Lambert, Designer (Left), Jim DeGrandis (Center), and Aukram Burton of KCAAH (Right)
To get the full effect of the visual impact of the space, Aukram sent over a video tour of the facility.
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