Bank of America in Jacksonville, Florida was renovating one of their banking and customer service locations when the General Contractor contacted Commercial Acoustics to provide a bid for sound masking systems within the space.
Like many banks and financial institutions, BOA determined that speech privacy in the space was critical to maintain confidentiality of financial records and transactions. Along with speech privacy, sound masking can also decrease the amount of distractions for employees by raising the ambient noise level in a space. This works to mask disturbances such as pesky background conversation, and allows workers keep up their productivity.
Bank of America chose to implement our fully-integrated Lencore i.Net system. This allows their team to control the speaker sound output digitally through a web interface or tablet. It is also fully integrated into their other building control systems to make real time adjustments without the need for rewiring or added installation time.
Speaker Installation
After the demolition was complete, ceiling grid was installed and Cat 5 cable run to the “smarts and parts” sound masking speakers. Powder-actuated fasteners attached the J-hooks and brackets to the concrete ceilings, allowing efficient hanging of the speakers themselves.
Once installed, the speakers were then tuned and balanced, allowing for an even, ideal sound masking spectrum across the space with dBA levels from 45-46 at ear height.
When installing sound masking systems, you need to make sure that no one would be able to pinpoint the exact location of a speaker in the ceiling. So, one thing you need to avoid when installing sound masking is the presence of “hot spots”. Hot spots occur when the speaker sound is noticeably more intense in the spots directly below the speaker. This can be irritating for anyone sitting or standing directly below a speaker, but these hot spots can be avoided with proper speaker placement and tuning.
Sound Masking for Banks – Noise Annoyance Metrics
Sound Masking systems continue to grow in importance for banks and financial institutions. While tens of millions are invested in cyber security, it is the simple slip of information from an unsuspecting employee to a nearby customer that can be easily prevented by the implementation of white noise.
It has been well-documented that tasks requiring intensive concentration are more susceptible to distraction from noise. On the other hand, routine tasks may filter out background noises that may otherwise be distracting.
Noise annoyance measures have been developed that show that 95% of bank employees are annoyed or dissatisfied by annoying background noises. While the signal-to-noise ratio is not excessively high in these spaces, the increased mental focus required for tasks makes the background noise particularly disturbing.
