Background
This project involves the amalgamation of the Astors (106-112 Ebury Street) and Belgravia (102-104 Ebury Street) hotels in London, including internal reconfiguration and refurbishment of six buildings.
What we did
We were commissioned by Ebury 106 Ltd to undertake a baseline noise survey and provide a noise impact assessment report to support the detailed planning application for the development.
We reviewed the acoustic design issues relevant to inform planning and our unattended noise surveys established the exposure of the building envelope to environmental noise and the background noise levels to determine allowable plant noise emissions.
- Acoustic Design Criteria
Internal Ambient Noise in Guestrooms
Other than noise from adjacent spaces we advised that the ambient noise experienced within the hotel will be a combination of external environmental noise, such as traffic, and building services.
We recommended indoor ambient noise levels based on guidance given in BS8233 Guidance on sound insulation and noise reduction for buildings and CIBSE Guide A: Environmental Design 2015.
Plant Noise Emissions
Noise emissions from building services plant are typically subject to Westminster City Council’s planning noise criteria so our assessment considered the maximum allowed noise emission levels of proposed plant as outlined in their Environmental Supplementary Planning Document. Daytime and night-time noise limits were set to meet these requirements.
We also advised on the design of the rooftop plant enclosure and mitigation to the Level 2 roof kitchen extract fan.
- External Building Fabric Assessment
The results of this assessment provided performance specifications for the external building fabric elements to ensure appropriate internal ambient noise levels could be achieved within guest rooms.
We concluded that the front facade was subject to the highest level of ambient noise on site due to noise from the road so it will be important to ensure the glazing system on this part can meet the sound insulation performance requirements we proposed.
The area of glazing and method of ventilation in any particular room, along with the room size and room acoustic conditions, affect the degree of reduction in noise transmission from outside to inside so advice given was made on a number of design and construction assumptions.
Advice on minimum acoustic performance requirements for guestroom windows has been provided to meet suitable internal noise levels for resting and sleeping.
