'Thanks to our glass systems, noise pollution is no longer an issue'

The BREEAM-NL and WELL standards endorse the importance of healthy buildings. This not only focuses on air quality and daylight levels, but also on thermal and acoustic comfort. Interior Glassolutions B.V.'s all-glass walls and doors make an important contribution to this. By eliminating noise pollution, employees can work in a peaceful environment and their comfort, productivity and job satisfaction are increased.

Working in an open-plan office apparently has many advantages: maximum daylight flows in, employees can easily and quickly make contact with colleagues and square meters are optimally utilized. Yet there is also a downside, says Geurt Roelofsen, director of Interior Glassolutions B.V. "There is often (too) much noise in open-plan offices. For example, research by PanelWizard among 1,000 respondents has shown that two-thirds of employees in an open-plan office are distracted several times a day by ambient noise. Especially calling (75%) and talking colleagues (72%), ringing phones (66%) and noise from playing videos (54%) are perceived as disturbing. The consequences are difficulty concentrating (51%), feeling restless (34%) and fatigue (27%). Our glass systems combat this. Thanks to our all-glass walls and doors, daylighting, optimal sightlines and mutual interaction are maintained, while noise pollution is no longer an issue. Importantly, our systems also contribute to a healthy, (corona)safe and hygienic working environment."

Single glass frame door with 38 dB sound insulation

Interior Glassolutions B.V.'s latest development in this area is a slim frame door with a double seal, which will soon be tested in Peutz's independent acoustics laboratory. "With the door, we hope to achieve a sound insulation of 38 dB; a unique achievement for a frame door with single glazing," Roelofsen said. "Thanks to this development, sound insulation is within reach for every project and every wallet. We therefore expect many requests for office and conference rooms, but also for hospitals and other buildings in which specific noise requirements apply. During ARCHITECT@WORK, last September 14 and 15 in Rotterdam Ahoy, the door was shown to the general (architects') public for the first time."

Flush doors with sound insulation up to 50 dB

Another eye-catcher at this show was the full-glass flush doors from Interior Glassolutions B.V. which allow sound isolations of 43, 46 and 50 dB. "The 50 dB flush doors were initially developed for the new Booking.com building in Amsterdam, where they will be combined with 56 and 60 dB glass walls," said Roelofsen. "This puts us at the maximum of what is currently technically feasible. And we are enormously proud of that!"