“Noise is the most impertinent of all forms of interruption. It is not only an interruption but also a disruption of thought.”
-Arthur Shopenhauer
Whether you’re an office designer, facility manager, or business owner, it’s important to realize that noise in a workspace isn’t just annoying; it can negatively impact your bottom line.
Why Open Offices Are Louder Than Ever
The way we work has changed. Hybrid workspaces and virtual meetings are here to stay, but so are the noise and distractions that, in many open-plan and co-working spaces, make it harder than ever to focus, with office noise levels regularly exceeding 85 dBA, the limit recommended by the US National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety (NIOSH).
That’s borne out by a 2023 study that found that 58 percent of employees still consider their remote workspace better for focused work. And, although over 90 percent of workers surveyed feel an in-person setting is more conducive to collaboration and a sense of belonging, many still cite noisy environments and an inability to focus as contributing to their reluctance to return to the office.
The problem has to do with how sound travels. Many workspaces are full of hard surfaces that reflect sound and create reverberation, making speech more difficult to understand. Research reveals that noise also increases stress hormones and reduces cognitive performance, which can lead to job dissatisfaction and negatively impact the customer experience.
The Impact
If you’ve ever tried to focus on a task while a co-worker is on a loud sales call or struggled to hear what’s happening in a virtual meeting because of background noise, you know how difficult it is to work effectively when you can’t hear effectively.
That’s particularly problematic in call centres or any environment where workers spend significant time in meetings or on sales calls in close proximity, which forces everyone to raise their voices. The more noise, the more chance workers will miss critical details and the more time spent ensuring those details are understood.
Some studies estimate workers can lose almost a full day per week just trying to stay focused or regain concentration. Beyond being stressful and fatiguing, prolonged noise exposure to 85 dB of continuous noise over eight hours can contribute to significant health issues – from short-term hearing strain to long-term health conditions, including elevated blood pressure, sleep disturbance, stress, noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL), tinnitus, and other negative outcomes.
As spaces strive to accommodate the new hybrid working model with a cleaner aesthetic and workstations that anyone can use for an hour, a day, a week – much of what previously absorbed sound and cut down on noise, even cubicle walls, for example, are no longer there. The more open an environment, the fewer walls, the less separation, and the more noise is added to an already noisy environment.
The solution isn’t changing how we work. The solution is to make where we work less noisy and therefore more comfortable.
Acoustic Treatment for Modern Offices
In any space – large open co-working settings, meeting rooms, or smaller collaboration spaces – the solution is reducing the amount of sound that bounces around the room. Acoustic treatments, whether mounted on walls or ceilings, absorb excess sound energy, decrease echoes and background noise, and create a more comfortable environment, making speech easier to understand, lowering stress levels for employees, enhancing productivity, and improving the overall experience for everyone in the space.
Strategically placed sound-absorbing panels can also be used to create dedicated huddle spaces, areas acoustically treated specifically to accommodate video calls or serve as quiet zones for workers to collaborate without disturbing or being disturbed by others working around them. So, if a discussion does get lively, it doesn’t carry across the room.
The Business Case for Office Acoustics
Acoustic treatment is a small investment with a big return – an investment as important as it is affordable. Consider that lost time mentioned earlier. That adds up to thousands of dollars per employee per year. Factor in high employee turnover and the downstream impacts on customer experience, and the question isn’t so much “How much will it cost?” but “How much will it save?”
Eliminating noise benefits everyone. It helps provide a comfortable work environment and increases productivity and performance, which goes a long way in fostering increased job satisfaction and reducing employee turnover.
The math is simple – Better focus = Increased efficiency and job satisfaction. Less noise and stress = Improved employee retention.
How Primacoustic Helps
At Primacoustic, our goal is to help you make any space sound great. We offer a wide range of acoustic solutions ideal for any space where hearing and being heard are crucial for getting whatever work you do – done well.
As the go-to choice for high-performance listening environments worldwide, Primacoustic has a wealth of experience for you to draw on and a solution to fit your needs, regardless of the size or layout of your workspace.
Our sound control solutions are an easy, cost-effective means to enhance your workspace aesthetically and acoustically without you having to spend time and resources on redesign or reorganization. They include wall- and ceiling-mounted panels, T-bar acoustic tiles, and fully customizable options that allow you to incorporate logos, branding, or virtually anything you can imagine.
We’re with you every step of the way: helping you connect with one of our trusted partners to supply and install your acoustic treatments and providing ongoing support during and after installation.
Highly functional workspaces don’t just look good – they sound good. If yours doesn’t, it’s time for a change.
For more information, visit Primacoustic.com and download our Office Treatment Guide, or contact us directly to find out how we can help improve your workspace today.
