Page 21 - PA_Enterprise_May-2023
P. 21
PAE
So do you have an office noise problem?
Noise is best defined as unwanted sound and
can take many forms such as:
Conversational noise
Conversations at a water cooler, breakout
areas, meeting area and colleagues on
the phone….. conversations can be very
distracting. Once you multiply this across a
large open plan office, it’s no longer a quiet
buzz!
Machinery noise
Printers, photocopiers, scanners, pc
boxes, kettles… offices are filled with time-
saving equipment but very few of them are
quiet. Whether it’s the item in operation or
the people and conversations it attracts,
machinery becomes an office distraction.
External noise
Many offices are connected to a workshop
or production area and as a result are
impacted by the working noise. While machine
operators are often protected from the
repetitive & loud noise by ear protectors, the
office based staff rely upon walls to prevent
disturbance… sadly they often don’t.
From distracting conversations to outside
Are you aware that you have an office noise factory noise that prevents you thinking
issue? It may seem strange, but studies have clearly, acoustic disturbance can be stressful,
also revealed that managers/business owners harming both productivity and decision-
are often unaware that they have a noise making. However, if you’re not sure whether
problem. After all, what seems like a busy, you have an acoustic issue it’s simple to find
thriving, office hum to some is a distracting out… ask those working there!
‘din’ to others.
What’s more, we all have different sensitivity How to cut office noise
and tolerance to background noise and, of The good news is that, even if you work in
course, this will vary by the task you are trying an open plan office, there are many ways to
to undertake. tackle this acoustic issue and we have put
May 2023 21
