Acoustic design
We provide our architectural acoustic design and expert and noise and vibration reduction services to general designers, architects, interior designers, general contractors and our residential customers with a valid chamber license.
Acoustic design tasks now affect almost all investments.
About acoustic design in brief – for architects
For which buildings is it necessary to involve an acoustic designer?
It is recommended to use an acoustic designer when designing almost all buildings, because OTÉK (253/1997. (XII.20.) Government regulation No 55. § 2) de facto stipulates compliance with the building standards as a way of meeting the basic requirements of the construction works, which is regulated by the professional regulation (266/2013. (VII. 11.) Government regulation) acoustic equipment licensed by the Chamber can be scaled and verified. Involvement in the architectural-technical design process in an acoustic design capacity is required. An expert may be used in case of participation in the condition assessment and in the post evaluation of the plans. The part of the noise and vibration protection (environmental protection plan chapter) can be carried out by a noise expert. Architectural acoustics and noisy chapters can be provided by a designer if you have both chamber licenses.
Is it necessary to prepare an expert opinion or a design plan?
In case of preparing design plans, an acoustic designer is required, and in case of a condition assessment, an expert opinion is required. However, it is common for an expert opinion to be drawn up at the design stage instead of real design plans for reasons such as cost savings. In such cases, the expert opinion usually does not ensure the suitability of the plan package, because its general requirements can be used by other actors of the investment, they are not tailored to the project, so they are often incorrect or inaccurate. In a typical general design task – whether greenfield or brownfield – an acoustic plan is required in most cases. Contrary to the expert opinion, the design plans also include designer responsibility and the necessary involvement and quality assurance. It is advisable to involve the acoustic designer early in the sketch design phase in order to contribute to the placement of the rooms, the determination and protection of noise conditions, and the determination of the main geometry of the main rooms. There is also frequent involvement in the authorisation plan. In the case of fit-out projects, the acoustic designer is connected to the construction plans.
What permits should an acoustic designer or expert have?
Acoustic design in Hungary can only be carried out with the permission of the chamber. For the preparation of architectural acoustic design plans, the permission of the Hungarian Chamber of Engineers numbered “A” is required, for the preparation of an expert opinion, the license numbered “SZÉS13” is required, and for the preparation of the design chapter of noise and vibration protection, the license of “SZKV-1.4” is required, and these do not overlap with the permit, each area can be carried out exclusively with its own permission. Information about licensed designers and experts can be found in the chamber directory .
About the acoustic consultation in brief – for our residential customers
When is it appropriate to turn to an acoustic designer?
In our living environment, noise complaints caused by acoustic problems, sounds and vibrations can be of various origins. A noisy neighbor, a noisy heat pump, noise problems at night, noise from internal engineering, ringing living spaces, a home theater or music room, a practice room or rehearsal room, questions about replacing doors and windows can be a multifaceted acoustic task. It is advisable to contact us if you need advice on sound insulation, noise reduction or acoustic comfort, either in the case of an existing problem or in the case of the design or future takeover of your new apartment or house.
What does Entel’s acoustic consulting service offer?
Since there is no general recipe for solving acoustic problems, we would like to get to know the nature of your problem within the framework of our consultancy service, with the dedicated attention of our experts, and to give suggestions for moving forward, with technical and, if necessary, legal support. The consultation service allows us to form an independent opinion. The consultation is unlikely to provide a direct solution to the problem, but it can help you decide what next step to take to achieve your goal. In the case of noise complaints, it is not excluded that there is a good technical solution, but there have been times when the result of a medical examination or a move has brought the desired answer. In the course of our acoustic design work, we have already collaborated on many small and large projects, so in addition to preparing the appropriate technical plans, we can also offer professional construction partners. We also undertake measurements and reports, which are also preceded by a consultation service. When it comes to checking plans or helping you take over your new home, we can review the main features in the consultation – simply just bring the plans with you.
Design and expert advice
Building acoustic design, expertise
- building acoustic condition assessment, on-site air noise control and step sound insulation measurement, noise conditions assessment
- determination of sound insulation and noise requirements
- sound attenuation, sound insulation measurement and design
- acoustic sizing of individual separation structures (walls, slabs, doors and windows, glazing)
Room acoustic design, expertise
- room acoustic measurements, precision survey
- objective and subjective testing
- room acoustic numerical modeling
- determining the geometry and shape of the room
- acoustic sizing of individual covers (porous, resonant, perforated, microperforated), design of diffusers
- room acoustic optimization (room shapes, geometry, covers), sound absorption scaling
- design of speech purpose rooms
- design of spaces for performing arts and music
Noise and vibration protection design and expertise
- conducting noise and vibration measurements
- sizing of noise and vibration reduction solutions
- outdoor and indoor noise propagation modeling
- modeling of the noise load on the facade
- reduction of building vibration
- designing custom noise reduction solutions
Mechanical acoustic design, expertise
- mechanical noise measurements
- design of airborne noise reduction according to international standards (ASHRAE)
- sizing of machine bases, modeling of complex vibrating systems
- building engineering noise and vibration reduction
- design of wall and slab breakthroughs
Electroacoustic design, expertise
- speech intelligibility measurements
- electroacoustic modeling and design, speech intelligibility design
- building sound system, sizing of sound systems for speech and music purposes
- acoustic design of passenger information systems
Technical advice and documentation
- preparation of the noise design chapter of the environmental technical description
- preparation of architectural acoustic technical description
- preparation of acoustic expert opinion and concept plan
- preparing impact assessments and action plans
- commenting and review of acoustic design plans
- preparation of acoustic design documentation at the level of authorization, request for quotation and execution plan, closing acoustic consignments and itemized tenders
- acoustic consultation, expert advice, project support
- acoustic operation support for music facilities
- preparation of acoustic implementation and operational documentation
- consulting on technical regulatory issues and standardization
We provide our services in Hungarian or English, but we can also provide professional translation in other foreign languages upon request.
Acoustic standards, recommendations and rating systems
Among our services, in addition to individual design, design practices in accordance with domestic and international standards play a prominent role, depending on the location of the project and the customer’s needs. In Hungary, both the room acoustics and the electroacoustic standards were established at the initiative of our company, but we are also involved in international standard-setting work. Our main design activities according to the relevant standards and recommendations:
- Room acoustic design according to the MSZ 2080 national standard
- Electroacoustic and speech intelligibility design according to the MSZ 2082 national standard
- Acoustic design of open-air offices according to the MSZ ISO 22955
- Building acoustic design according to the MSZ 15601 national standard
- Design according to the DIN 18041 room acoustic standard
- Design according to ISO 23591 standard for music rehearsal rooms
- designing according to national standards of other nations as required by its customers or, in the case of office buildings, often its main tenants (e.g. German DIN 18041, Norwegian NS 8175, etc.)
- Ensuring compliance with BREEAM, LEED, and WELL SYSTEMS
- fitting into workflows required by BIM-related standards, connection with CDE systems
Development and engineering services
Focusing on areas related to digital signal processing, we provide services on the following topics:
- room acoustic survey, evaluation and consultation, orchestral rehearsals
- room acoustic pavement development according to individual performance
- acoustic hardware and software development, signal processing, design of digital signal processing algorithms
- high resolution, precision and multi-channel measurements
- advice on next-generation audio systems