Ceilings Make the Grade

The LEED certification program recognizes best-in-class building strategies and practices and focuses on everything from products to building systems, not the least of which is acoustics. And for good reason. Studies have shown that built-in acoustics have a profound effect on the learning that happens in the classroom. Consider the fact that as much as 60 percent of all classroom activities involve spoken communication and listening.

Excessive background noise and reverberation impede learning by interfering with such communication. Students who sit in acoustically poor rooms often hear background noise more clearly than the speaker. For these students, learning is justifiably difficult. Students who sit in so-called “acoustic black holes” struggle to hear the teacher. On the other hand, students in acoustically sound rooms are able to hear the speaker and have every opportunity to get the information they need.

A variety of elements are known to affect acoustics — signal-to-noise ratio, sound absorption, reverberation time, the quality of installed HVAC systems — and the first line of defense is often the use of acoustic ceiling panels. Knowing this, MKSD Architects specified more than 100,000 square feet of Symphony® m and VOC-compliant Symphony® f, and an additional 10,000 square feet mix of Rx Symphony®, Theatre® Black and School Board® ceiling panels. The entire job was installed with a CertainTeed Suspension System. 

The panels, all manufactured by CertainTeed Ceilings and used throughout the campus, were chosen for their exceptional acoustical properties and clean, contemporary aesthetic.

Symphony m and Rx Symphony offer a noise reduction coefficient (NRC) of .70 and VOC-compliant Symphony f has near perfect sound absorption with an NRC of .95. These materials met LEED v4 Building Design and Construction for Schools guidelines that stipulate ceiling panels in schools offer a minimum NRC of .70 for 100 percent of the ceiling area, minus lights and other essential elements. In addition, the low-VOC formulation, resilient Overtone® finish and high recycled content of the panels further contributed to the sustainable environment the college required, while keeping with the sleek, modern look of the campus.

Hoffman says the CertainTeed ceiling panels were essential for controlling or enhancing the acoustics in each classroom. The panels also offer high light reflectance to aid in the even distribution of lighting across desks. In addition, the panels’ environmental properties bode well for versatile rooms like the new state-of-the-art library and the food court that are multi-purpose in nature. While one person may use the library for personal study, many others use it as a collaborative workspace. Similarly, the food court must be flexibly designed so it can moonlight as a lecture hall or other public purpose. Rooms built with sound-absorbing materials will more easily adjust to the varied uses of the space.

A great example of acoustic ceiling panels at work is the campus’ 72-seat lecture hall, where a CertainTeed VOC-compliant Symphony® f fiberglass ceiling was installed. Built-in acoustics for this sort of spacious room can be tricky, but by incorporating acoustic ceiling panels patterned in a cloud-inspired design, the architects got it right.

“We were concerned with the acoustics in this room, but the design has been successful. You can hear the instructor even when sitting in the back row. It feels quiet, clean and crisp when someone is lecturing; even if you’re sitting next to people, you’re not getting the background noise,” said Hoffman.