Acoustical Solutions, the industry leader in noise control and soundproofing, recently worked with one of the US's most visited historical sites. Williamsburg was the former capital of Virginia during the crucial formative years of the American Colonies for 81 years, from 1699 to 1780. It was in this town that the fundamental concepts of the US Government were formed under the leadership of those such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, George Mason, and Peyton Randolph.
Today, the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation is a private, not-for-profit educational institution, which receives no regular state or federal funding and sponsors the countless attractions at this historical site. More than 100 million visitors have enjoyed the Colonial Williamsburg experience since 1932, including US presidents Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton.
One of Colonial Williamsburg's most notable attractions and a favorite of visitors is the lodge. Accommodations include fine dining in their Lodge Restaurant, where patrons and dining staff noticed something not so fine. The kitchen area opens into the dining room, which is an enjoyable experience for guests and chefs, or it would have been, except that any noise made in the kitchen seemed to be amplified out into the dining area.
The Williamsburg Lodge contacted Gary Hudson at Acoustical Solutions, which found the source of the problem. "Kitchens have a lot of reflective surfaces, so all the noise being made in that area is reflected around, amplified and shot out into the only unblocked space - the dining room," said Hudson.
Hudson recommended that the ceiling tiles should be replaced with acoustical ceiling tiles and acoustical wall panels should be installed. AlphaEnviro PVC Wall Panels were installed strategically along the perimeter of the kitchen, and 2in thick AlphaEnviro PVC Ceiling Tiles were used to replace the existing ceiling. The client chose white panels and tiles, so they would blend in with the existing walls and ceiling. AlphaEnviro Acoustical Wall Panels and Ceiling Tiles have a noise reduction coefficient (NRC) rating of up to 1.15, meaning that the PVC encapsulated Ecose fiberglass filling absorbs virtually all noise that reaches them, keeping sounds from reflecting back toward the source.
The filling is also environmentally-friendly, containing a minimum of 30% post-consumer recycled bottle glass, and is 100% recyclable. Another consideration is that the products are easy to clean. The PVC casing only requires a cloth and water for regularly cleaning, an important consideration in a kitchen.
After the acoustical products were installed, echo and reverberation decreased in the kitchen, allowing for increased speech intelligibility and a more pleasant working environment for those preparing meals. More importantly, patrons seated in the dining room no longer heard every clatter and bang made in the kitchen.
"The kitchen turned out really well," said Lee Anderson of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. "We received many compliments from the first day it was up."
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