Offices
Reception Acoustic Design for Offices
Find the noise source and its route through the space. Treat sound leaking between rooms differently from echo inside one room.
Explore the ideas
Plan in this order
- List sources of speech, equipment and impact noise at the busiest time.
- Put quiet work away from busy edges where possible. Check doors, gaps and service penetrations before adding finishes.
- Use absorption for excessive echo. Ask an acoustic specialist where speech privacy or isolation is essential.
Worked example
A hard-finished foyer amplifies door closings and makes conversations audible in the adjacent lounge.
Add absorption at the ceiling or on a wall away from the door, then improve the door’s soft-close behavior. Recreate an ordinary arrival and listen from the lounge seating.
How to test it
Recreate the noisier activity and listen from adjoining seats and rooms with doors both open and closed.
Apply it to this space
- Layout
- Place the desk in direct sight of the entrance, with waiting seats beside it and a clear path onward.
- Detail
- Use a durable counter face and a warm, even light on the visitor side; keep the sign visible from the door.
- Trade-off
- A dramatic desk can make a strong first impression but consume space needed for circulation.
- Test the entry sightline from outside
- Walk a visitor route without crossing desk queues
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