Solving Noise Problems with Immersive Illumination
Cooledge luminous ceiling products not only provide illumination that brings the feeling of the outdoors to open plan spaces. Unlike any other lighting products available today, their exceptional sound absorbing properties and - most importantly - superior size, also deliver an inherent advantage over traditional lighting approaches for reducing noise in open designs where sound pollution is a significant source of dissatisfaction for occupants and users.
A Nightmare of Noise
What’s the Problem?
Many studies of workplaces have found that excessive noise is at or near the top of the things about their environment that occupants would like to fix. Compounding the problem is the movement toward using more open spaces where the stone or tile flooring favored by designers is often highly sound reflective, and where walls are spaced far apart, made of glass, or virtually non-existent.
All of these features contributes to increased noise pollution that can only be addressed by ceiling elements.
A Battle Between Lighting and Acoustics
What’s the Problem? Part 2
The traditional approach to increasing acoustic comfort and ensuring there is still some light to see by has been to incorporate passive acoustic baffles or clouds designed and supplied separately from the lighting. In most cases, the result was a compromise that delivered poor quality illumination or limited noise reduction...or both...
Acoustic Lighting Can Help
Combining Acoustics & Lighting in One Solution
When floors and walls do nothing except reflect sound back into an open space, the only surface left that can contribute to meaningful noise reduction is the ceiling. In open concept designs the ceiling is often filled with ducts, beams, and other materials that are poor sound absorbers. This is where acoustic lighting can make a huge difference to the acoustic environment.
The ability to absorb sound relies on two factors: the sound absorption properties of the surfaces AND the area exposed to the sound waves that are the cause of noise.
Total Sound Absorption = Sound Absorption Coefficient x Absorbing Area
The Cooledge Advantage is found in the combination of both factors that is not possible with alternatives. The inherent advantage of incorporating Cooledge’s luminous ceiling products becomes of obvious when comparing the Total Sound Absorption capability other acoustic lighting options.
2x4 Acoustic Ceiling Tile
Acoustical Island suspended 10'x4'. (3mx1.2m)
Acoustic Linear Pendant luminaire
FABRILum & Single FABRICore spaced
FABRILum cloud (2 by 2)
Acoustic Solution
Average Sabin* (sqft)
6.40
34.0
11.0
15.3
58.1
Average Sabin* (m2)
0.58
3.1
1.0
1.4
5.4
Typical luminous flux (lm)
0
0
2,443 lm
10,000 lm
40,000 lm
Beam spread at 10' (3m) height (FWHM)
0
0
16'x13' (5mx4m)
26'x26' (8mx8m)
33'x33' (10m x 10m)
Light level straight under the luminaire at 10' (3m)
0
0
10.2 fc (110 lx)
38.9 fc (419 lx)
106.4 fc (1.145 lx)
* Using the NRC as an average.
At Cooledge, we say "It's all about the Sabins"
Luminaires... Not Fuzzy Boxes
Did That Luminaire Grow a Beard?
Whereas some approaches to combining light and acoustics embed small scale luminaires in large passive sound absorbers, others rely on increasing the external area of small scale points and lines and covering them with sound absorbing material. In both cases, the result tends to be a lot of fuzzy boxes cluttering the ceiling as well as potentially higher costs.
Cooledge luminous ceiling products a total solution that combines immersive illumination and meaningful acoustic performance while bringing the expansive feeling of natural light to open plan spaces with a luminous aesthetic appeal.
FABRILum RSB luminaires deliver immersive illumination and sound absorption without the extra expense of additional passive acoustic panels or baffles.
Eliminate Extra Costs...and Clutter
Two Design Challenges > One Solution & One Price
With a limited budget, architects are often faced with a choice: good sound control vs. good lighting. Cooledge acoustic luminaires eliminate the competition between the need to pay for acoustic materials OR quality illumination by providing BOTH for a single, budget friendly price.
As a bonus, Cooledge acoustic luminaires also eliminate the competition for space in open ceilings that often results in compromises and clutter.
Acoustic baffles compete with light fixtures for space and their own piece of the budget resulting in compromises and clutter.
FABRILum RSB luminaires combine meaningful acoustic performance and exceptional illumination for a single, budget-friendly price and a clean, efficient design aesthetic.
What’s Important?
What Did You Say?
Our ability to hear is centered around the level and frequencies of human speech which encompasses a range rather than discreet values. Acoustic ratings are often provided using average metrics such as the Noise Reduction Coefficient (NRC) or Sound Absorption Coefficient (αw) which work well to compare average performance of materials.
However, to really understand the impact of a material or object acoustic experts look at the sound absorption performance across the range of frequencies corresponding to human speech.
Using this data for the materials and objects in a space, the experts then calculate the reverberation time that indicates how well sound is absorbed and how easily we can distinguish speech – a property known as "speech intelligibility."
Keep Your Voice Down!!
Reverberation & Speech Intelligibility
Cooledge acoustic lighting can substantially improve the ability to hear what you need to hear by reducing the impact of ambient noise and reducing reverberation time.
In the demonstration below, you can hear the impact of adding FABRICore luminaires on speech intelligibility – not forgetting that they are also delivering approximately 1000 lux (100fc) of illumination!
Sound Experience | No Acoustic Lighting
Sound Experience | FABRICore Only
Sound Experience | FABRICore & FABRIQuiet
A Simple Way to Find Out How Much Cooledge Acoustic Lighting Will Help
Our Acoustic Calculator Will Let You Know
Cooledge has developed a simple calculator that allows you to know how much sound absorption our products will provide for your space.
Simply enter a few pieces of information about the size and architectural finishes of your space and find out just how significant the impact of Cooledge Luminous Ceiling products can be.
All of this science is great but to understand the truly impressive performance of Cooledge’s acoustic lighting products we offer the following examples.
Here you will see that not only do Cooledge luminous ceiling products deliver substantial levels of high quality, low glare illumination; they also contribute to significant noise reduction as measured by shorter reverberation times resulting from large increases in acoustic absorption area (sabins).
Download Case Study #1
Download Case Study #2
Download Case Study #3
Download Case Study #4
Download Case Study #5
Cooledge Delivers Everything You Need to Design Lighting AND Acoustics
Detailed Test Reports
As you would expect from a lighting company, Cooledge provides all of the details you need to generate a successful lighting design.
In addition, as a leader in acoustic lighting, Cooledge also provides the detailed reports you will need to determine the level of sound absorption our products will provide.
Wallace Sabine
Test reports for Cooledge’s LumiScapes by Cooledge products were generated at Alion’s Riverbank Acoustical LaboratoriesTM founded by Wallace Sabine in 1918 and “recognized worldwide as a source of valid acoustical data in numerous commercial, civilian, and military specifications”.
Sabine is recognized as the founder of the science of architectural acoustics.
The Sabin unit of measurement is named in his honor.
Download Cooledge Acoustic Test Report
Download
Cooledge Luminous Ceilings Make a Difference
Create Comfortable Spaces for People
An innovative combination of exceptional quality illumination and meaningful noise reduction will deliver better spaces for people.
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Sound Experience | No Acoustic Lighting
