Acoustic Louvre Enclosure – Hotel – Central London

Overview

A hotel in Central London required acoustic mitigation for some air handling units in a courtyard following a Noise Impact Assessment by an acoustic consultant. Due to airflow requirements the chosen solution was a design including an acoustic louvre enclosure. 

AGS were tasked with designing, manufacturing and installing this noise control measure that mitigated the noise whilst allowing for sufficient airflow from the plant. Chosen to reduce environmental noise emissions from AHU and condenser units located in the courtyard.

Construction

300mm deep acoustic louvres comprised of polyester powder coated steel blades and internal vermin guard. Our site installation engineers installed the louvres and condenser enclosure. These louvres met the required insertion losses and the project was an absolute success.

The building walls were lined with acoustic absorption panels to decrease reverberation time and avoid unwanted reflections within the enclosure. The plant room area was accessible by one of our acoustic louvre doors including acoustic compression seals.

Furthermore, 50mm thick acoustic panels were used to construct the roof of the condenser & AHU enclosure. The outer face was a polyester powder coated face with a perforated, plain galvanised steel inner face.

This is one of many projects that AGS has assisted with delivering acoustic solutions for environmental noise control. Often at hotels, leisure centre or schools which are located in built up places and minimising noise breakout is critical. AGS can supply and install acoustic louvres of varying depth, common thicknesses include 150mm & 300mm. In addition, depending on the project, single or double banked/chevron louvres can be supplied.

The enclosure reached the required specification of set noise regulations UK specialist solutions. Ductwork penetrations fitted to the end of the enclosure. AGS considered future routine maintenance by adding acoustically sealed access hatches within the design. 

What is an acoustic louvre?

These banks of louvres are designed to reduce noise breakout from plant equipment, buildings or a noisy space. They come in both single and double banked design and varying thicknesses. Typically constructed from metal, the blades are angled to minimise noise breakout whilst allowing for airflow through. They can be integrated into existing spaces or built new.

The difference between a normal ‘weather’ louvre and acoustic louvre is often the depth of the blades and the density of the blade infill material. As well as increasing the length the air has to travel. Together these characteristics improve the acoustic performance and these factors can be tweaked to achieve required insertion losses.

Continuous line louvres, as the name suggests, extend continuously often used on the facades or roofs of buildings. Often made from galvanised steel or aluminium and tested rigorously.

Other Applications

As decarbonisation projects continue to push to the forefront of UK market these sort of louvred screen solutions are becoming more and more critical. Whether it’s Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHPs), Water Source Heat Pumps (WSHPs), condensers or other external plant that needs attenuation, AGS are here to help! Get in touch with our team today, we work with end users, contractors, manufacturers, and more.