Skagit Valley College, Science & Allied Health
Mt. Vernon, WA
Scope:
We provided support for the architectural and mechanical acoustic elements of the building design. Our services include design review of wall types and mechanical systems for noise and vibration to assure acceptable background noise and sound privacy. This included construction commissioning of background noise levels to quantify the final performance with respect to design criteria and state code.
Challenges:
Some of the initial duct-borne and vibration isolation recommendations were overlooked during early stages of construction. A large multi-fan exhaust system was prepped without vibration isolation curb in specifications and submittals. The HVAC system had some operation and balancing issues that increased the noise in classrooms and corridors.
Solutions:
Through our early site visits we identified these issues prior to final installation and assured the proper installations were completed to assure acceptable noise and vibration performance. During commissioning we discovered noise and vibration issues with the basement transformer and designed mitigation to assure proper performance; we reviewed communications and performance to identify financial responsibility for mitigation. Tested background noise in each classroom and office to assure design criteria and investigated when system balancing issues significantly impacted two classrooms.