There is a certain amount of noise that should be expected when working from home during the day – which most of us are doing at least part of the time during the pandemic. But hearing your neighbor’s conference call while you are trying to have a Teams meeting is not acceptable.  It also can have privacy ramifications. Cerami’s Site Assessments team is on the case helping to measure ambient noise levels, evaluate airborne sound insulation, identify prominent sound leaks and investigate invisible and visible factors exacerbating acoustical privacy issues between two spaces.  There are often simple solutions between walls before you are driven up one. Cerami’s Site Assessment team works with Building Managers to quickly mitigate noise and privacy issues before the escalate.

Signature Solution: Cerami’s Site Assessments group develops and recommends acoustical performance criteria for the tested assemblies based off our field observations and the intended usage of spaces. We also review any existing design/construction documents to determine if measured sound insulation levels are typical of similar constructions, listening for everything before developing noise control measures to improve sound insulation levels between spaces.  When we identify the weak spots, we’ll suggest exactly what you need to curtail the noise- soundproof curtains, sealing doors and windows, or floor coverings. Dampening methods and sound masking are options, too, with every situation different and often easily fixable.

 

Soaring at 168 meters high, Kula Belgrade is a 40-story tower and is the new centerpiece of the Belgrade Waterfront. It combines residential, commercial, hotel and entertainment programs that create a new urban space for the surrounding community. It features 220 luxurious St. Regis branded residences and an observation deck at the top of the tower, offering panoramic views of Belgrade. Cerami helped redefine luxury lifestyle with resilient and progressive technology that offers confidence and exceptional elegance.

Signature Solution: Our team worked closely with the client to design a truly flexible technology infrastructure that allows any space, whether residential, hotel or presidential suite, connections to a multitude of available technology services. The IT Infrastructure provides Voice, Data, and Cable TV service, along with superior Wi-Fi coverage and capacity for common areas, hotel and condominium units. Audiovisual systems support state-of-the-art collaboration, meeting, guest and residential experiences.

Cerami was retained as the acoustical consultant for a new multifamily development located in the heart of the NoMa District in Washington, D.C. 300 M Street is a 400-unit residential building, approximately 400,000 square feet, offering high-end amenity programs including a rooftop garden, pool, club room, fitness center, 12,000 square feet of retail wrapped around the ground floor, and below grade parking.

Signature Solution: One of the major concerns for this development was the potential noise generated by the surrounding vehicular traffic. To ensure minimal impact to the building structure, our acoustics team conducted extensive environmental studies and provided recommendations for the façade and windows to minimize exterior noise transmission.

Acoustical criteria were established for the noise levels within the residences and specific noise and vibration control measures were implemented to isolate the units from the internal HVAC equipment, elevators, and roof top equipment. Floor finish and underlayment specifications together with special slab and decking isolation details were developed. Attention to these design elements helped to further ensure maximum acoustical privacy and comfort for the residents, and to better isolate the rooftop swimming pool and dog park decking from the top floor residences.

Acoustical privacy is a priority at 53 West 53, the stunning 1,050-foot-tall spire, designed by Pritzker Prize-laureate Jean Nouvel, located adjacent to the Museum of Modern Art.  Discerning owners, some paying upwards of $70 million for their apartments, want to gaze out their windows at Central Park and New York City and not hear a thing.  Cerami’s design of triple-glazed, floor-to-ceiling windows minimizes exterior noise and temperature variations, with horizontal and vertical soundproofing providing maximum acoustic privacy. We were inspired by international architect Theirry Despont, who also approached the design of 53 West 53 as if it were a home commission.

Elegant, refined acoustics in all the amenity spaces at 53 West 53, including the wellness center, pool area, double-height private dining room, and private state-of-the art theater create the 21^st century vision of gracious urban living for which New York is celebrated.

Signature Solution: As the acousticians for the adjacent MoMA, we were able to bring that signature sound to the lower three floors of 53 W 53, designated as 36,000 square-feet of new exhibition space for the museum.

During construction, special attention was paid to the potential acoustical effect that noise would have on MoMA exhibitions.

To that end, Cerami provided acoustical consulting services for the mid-rise MEP floor, all mechanical systems, made recommendations on achieving required noise reduction to decrease excessive noise transmission to neighboring properties, and defined partition types and construction details to establish acoustical design criteria for all occupied spaces.