NOISE CONTROL

CASE STUDIES

1230 3rd Avenue

Price Provides Complete Acoustic Solution for Luxury Building in Manhattans Upper East Side

ew York City is filled with mixeduse developments that require a

constructed in 1962. To accommodate this additional capacity, the aging rooftop cooling tower was replaced with a higher output dry cooler. However, while the new 80 ton dry cooler allowed for increased capacity with minimal system changes, it also resulted in increased exterior noise levels, which threatened to impact surrounding residential tenants.

Project Summary
PRICE PRODUCTS Rectangular Silencers & Acoustic Panels PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS Location: New York, NY Project Type: Mixed Use Project Cost: $2 Million Year Completed: 2012 Square Footage: 14,564 ft2 DESIGN TEAM Architect: Spector Group MEP Engineer: Robert Derector Associates Structural: Dubinsky Consulting Engineers Acoustical Consultant: Cerami & Associates Owners Representative: Interni, LLC Price Representative: Mechanical Technologies

careful balance of utility and comfort. This 34-story luxury building in Manhattans Upper East Side was no different. While the majority of the real-estate is dedicated to residential apartment space, the building also houses commercial space on the ground floor along bustling Third Avenue. A new commercial tenants energy requirements resulted in the need for extra capacity that was not originally envisioned when the building was

The Challenge
Noisy Dry Cooler
With complaints from the nearby residential tenants, the project team moved quickly to determine a solution that would reduce equipment noise output to previous levels, yet not impact dry cooler performance. The buildings location provided a variety of additional challenges. The 1st floor roof setback offered limited access, existing roof dunnage needed to be utilized, building load constraints required a thorough analysis, and surrounding rooftop equipment could not be disturbed.

The Solution
Acoustic Enclosure
Cerami & Associates, an acoustical consulting firm in New York City, performed a site survey of the existing installation and provided a report outlining noise findings and recommendations. Based on the report, Price worked with the design team to create and build a custom acoustic enclosure that included intake and discharge silencer banks. Price visited the job site during the design process to verify enclosure measurements with the design team. Once these measurements were complete, Price shipped silencers, acoustic panels, and other enclosure components to the site where they were quickly assembled. The integral intake and discharge silencer banks were designed to preserve dry cooler performance. To ensure adequate durability against the elements, the team

included bolt together structural support for the discharge silencer banks and roof panels. Price also provided over 1,000 ft2 of STC-rated 4 inch thick acoustic paneling. The flexibility of these panels allowed the design team to build an enclosure that was specific to the needs of the project. Seamless corner panels were used on all exterior vertical corners to minimize leakage, flashing and installation complexity. All nearby surrounding rooftop equipment was enclosed with the acoustic panels or carefully built around to ensure sufficient clearance and access as required. Finally, an acoustic access door was installed to satisfy maintenance requirements. When construction was complete, the project team measured the resulting dry cooler noise levels to conrm they were at or below the requirements outlined in the design specications. Rooftop noise levels measured 35ft from the dry cooler during full load conditions are depicted at the bottom right graph and decreased by approximately 10 dB. For reference, a decrease of 10 dB is typically perceived as being half as loud.

The acoustic enclosure provided a realistic solution to a very delicate and complicated situation. Not only were the building residents able to upgrade the commercial spaces, they also enjoyed lower noise levels than before the project began. - Brendan McHeffey,
Project Architect, Spector Group

The Result
Happy Neighbors
The incredible breadth of Prices noise control line from standard absorptive silencers to custom acoustic panels allowed Price to optimize the dry coolers performance and accessibility, while reducing operating noise. Ultimately, the design team provided a thorough, carefully implemented solution with Price as the single supplier for the project.

Acoustic Panel Features:

80 70
Tongue and groove design. Available options:
High performance acoustic doors. H-Chanel design for heavy gauges. 2, 4, and 6 inch depths.

Dry Cooler Noise, dB

60 50 40 30 20 Original Condition (68 dBA) With Acoustic Enclosure (59 dBA) 63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000

Provided with required openings and construction characteristics. No screws through panel joints to reduce installation cost and air/noise/moisture leakage. High quality and flexible system to provide strength and airtight construction. Self-aligning with minimal installation time. Customized to suit each application.

Acoustic Enclosure Side Elevation

Frequency, Hz
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1230 Third Ave

2013

Existing rooftop support penetrating acoustic enclosure.

Design Team Prole

Architect: Spector Group
For over 40 years, Spector Groups global expertise in architecture, interiors and master planning has impacted the world with sustainable environments that exude energy and a sense of presence. The work is based on both a physical and spiritual contextual sensitivity, supported by evocative and economic design solutions. The result: spaces and moments that maximize the pleasures of life, scintillating the senses, establishing aesthetic wonder through functionality.
Exploded 3D view of acoustic enclosure

Acoustical Consultant: Cerami & Associates

Cerami & Associates was founded as an acoustical consulting firm in 1965, and the company quickly developed a well-deserved reputation for finding practical, innovative, and cost-effective solutions to real life design problems. During its first two decades, Cerami & Associates helped advance many design and construction practices now commonly used for noise and vibration control in modern commercial and residential buildings.

Case Study

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