Fieldhouse – Colgate (EFP)

Eckel Acoustics — Fri, 11 Jan 2019 14:17:32 +0000

Colgate University is nestled in a pastoral setting in Hamilton, NY. Dating back to 1819, the school, first started as a Baptist Seminary, is now a liberal arts college with nearly 3,000 students. The school’s campus comprises 88 buildings in a 575-acre tract. Among those buildings is the Charles H. Sanford Fieldhouse.The fieldhouse is an athletic facility that houses four tennis courts, softball batting cages, an indoor track, and areas for other gymnastic activities. With dimensions of 301 ft. in length, 186 ft. in width and a ceiling height of 38 ft., the fieldhouse is, without exaggeration, a cavernous space.

Besides athletic events, the facility is used as a venue for graduation, concerts and as a hall for keynote speeches by visiting global academics and dignitaries. However, having not been designed for these purposes, the acoustics of the facility were not very good.The audible echoes reduced the quality of the sound in the facility, distracted attendees and even confused speakers as they were delivering their speeches. Walls in the facility are made of concrete, the cathedral ceiling is made of suspended mineral tile and the floor is Astroturf; all surfaces that reflect sound and thereby create reverberant noise.

“We had noticed the echo for many years, and finally decided to look into solving the problem,” according to Joseph M. Inman, Project Manager, Planning, Design and Construction at Colgate.The Colgate Engineering Club was then tasked with analyzing the acoustics of the space and coming up with a solution.

The Club’s analysis revealed a reverberation time of 3.3 sec., clearly demonstrating that there was indeed an acoustic problem in the facility. Reverberation time in a space is the key parameter in determining the ability of people within the space to clearly hear speech and music.

Typically, a reverberation time of about 1.9 sec. provides that clarity. The Club then recommended contacting an acoustic consultant to formulate a solution. In late Spring 2017, Inman contacted Glen LaVallee, of Oshex Associates, Inc. (Baldwinsville, NY; www.oshex.com), who had done acoustic remediation for some of Colgate’s other facilities.After reviewing the facility and the test results, Lavalee recommended the use of Eckel Eckoustic Functional Panels (EFPs) to solve the problem. Eckel’s engineering team created an acoustic model of the facility and came up with a predicted reverberation time that was very close to the Engineering Club’s measured reverberation time.

To achieve the 1.9 sec. reverberation time goal, the Eckel team recommended the installation of 540 EFPs in the following layout: 366 30 in. x 10 ft. panels on the ceiling, and 174 panels on the side and back walls in a variety of sizes ranging from 30 in. x 10 ft. down to 24 in. x 9 ft. to accommodate structural aspects of the building. Colgate wanted to complete the project so that it could hold graduation exercises in the facility on May 20, 2018.The order was placed, and the panels shipped in February 2018. Installation of EFPs is very simple.They install with four brackets that are attached to an existing surface with four bolts.The installation was completed well in time for graduation.

The results were excellent. According to Inman, “The acoustic panels have really improved our ability to utilize the Fieldhouse as more than just an athletic facility.The acoustics during Commencement as well during our Spring Concert improved drastically, allowing the speaker and attendees to hear and understand the presentations and the music more clearly.We should have done this sooner!”

Alex Eckel, President of Eckel Noise Control Technologies adds, “The Colgate Fieldhouse project demonstrates how schools and universities can turn an existing athletic facility into a more productive multi-use environment for conferences, concerts and other events by simply improving the acoustics within the space.”

Eckel Acoustic Panels can be fabricated to custom sizes up to 10 ft. in length and painted to match any room décor.They are available in steel, galvanized steel and aluminum, and install quickly and easily.

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Natatorium – Freemont Ross (EFP)

Eckel Acoustics — Tue, 30 Oct 2018 14:20:46 +0000

When you combine loud activity and a raucous crowd in a space surrounded by hard surfaces, you get an acoustic nightmare. Sound bounces and reverberates in ways that are unintelligible, distracting and unpleasant. This is exactly the scenario encountered in buildings with indoor pools, also known as natatoriums, and it’s a problem that Fremont Ross High School in Fremont, OH needed to solve. Eckel Industries Eckel Functional Panels provided the remedy, transforming the school’s natatorium into a space acoustically suited for every intended purpose.

The high school hired design/build contractor Janotta & Kerner, Inc. of Monroeville, OH to devise and construct its natatorium. The contractor alerted administrators to the potential acoustic problems in such a space, especially given that the school wanted to accommodate swimming practice and instruction, swimming competitions and programs that combined music and aquatics. Recognizing the need to address these concerns in the initial design phase, Fremont Ross High School enlisted the services of the acoustical engineering firm DH Kaiser Co., based in Canton, OH.

“Natatoriums are notorious for presenting difficult acoustic challenges. With the typical moisture- and chlorine-resilient construction materials used, and given the large volume of these spaces, poor acoustics that make the spoken word hard to understand and give rise to excessive noise from even the simplest activities are commonplace,” said DH Kaiser President and Chief Consultant Bill Hannon. “My challenge and goal was to create an environment where speech communication would be clear and multiple activities could occur simultaneously without deterioration of sound or enjoyment.”

Since the natatorium had not yet been constructed, acoustic testing had to be accomplished via computer modeling based on architectural specs. The results indicated a reverberation time of more than 11 seconds at 500 Hz, far exceeding the ideal at this center-of-speech frequency. Armed with this information, Hannon began designing a solution that would meet the school’s needs and gel with the building plans.

Eckel Functional Panels (EFPs) from Eckel Industries were the clear choice to resolve the acoustic challenges involved. Eckel EFPs are available
in moisture-resistant coated aluminum, perfect for a damp, chlorinated environment. They also are easily-adjustable in the installation process and highly-durable over time. And because they offer superior sound absorption, requiring less than 25 to 30 percent of the reflective surface to be covered, they are a more practical and cost-effective choice. For these reasons, both school officials and the contractor team supported the choice of Eckel EFPs.

Upon completion of construction and installation of the Eckel EFPs, Fremont Ross High School had a state-of-the-art natatorium suited for every intended purpose. Post-installation testing revealed a reverb time of 1.63 seconds at 500 Hz. This is a huge difference from the computer model predictions of the space without acoustic panels, and one that everyone at the school as well as visitors to the facility are able to discern and appreciate immediately. Not only is the school able to safely and effectively conduct its own swimming practices and instruction, it is successfully hosting competitions and travel meets, as well as community-based aquatic programs, to everyone’s delight.

Email sales@eckelacoustics.com for more information.

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Fieldhouse – Colgate (EFP)

Natatorium – Freemont Ross (EFP)