We regularly work with contractors including Reds10, Bouygues UK, Willmott Dixon and Watson & Cox on projects across all sectors. Our involvement can be as part of a ‘design and build’ project, but we also join existing projects as part of the Contractor team when they are appointed.
When joining a project in the run up to construction, we review all available acoustic survey and design information to identify any project risks, or indeed anything that may be missing. Without compromising the required acoustic design criteria for a project, we’ll work with our contractor clients to identify and review alternative proposals which may provide cost savings, improved sustainability, and/or cleaner and faster builds. Innovations such as our new service, SoundBx, allow us to demonstrate the effect of different acoustic specifications without overwhelming you with technical jargon.
Examples of the services we provide to contractors includes;
Acoustic design across all sectors.
Discharge of acoustically related planning conditions.
BS5228 construction noise impact assessment and Section 61 (S61) agreements.
Construction site noise, dust and vibration monitoring.
Acoustic commissioning testing to confirm compliance with standards such as BB93 (schools), HTM 08-01 (healthcare), and Approved Document E (residential).
Verification noise surveys to confirm compliance with planning conditions.
dBx Acoustics is UKAS accredited (laboratory number 9473) to carry out sound insulation testing for Building Control compliance.
We hold accreditations with ConstructionLine, CHAS and SSIP, and all of our consultants have CSCS cards to ensure safe site working. We are also accredited to ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 for quality and environmental management.
During 2021, an industrial facility at Trafford Park, Manchester contacted dBx Acoustics to assist them with the investigation and resolution of noise complaints received from residents a new build development who had also involved the Environment Agency.
dBx carried out a night-time noise survey at the affected properties, which were 500 metres away from the client’s premises, to identify and quantify the noise reported by the residents. As our client’s premises was in the middle of a large industrial site with other noise generating operations in the area, our remit was to identify whether (a) the noise was emanating from our client’s site and (b) whether the problematic noise existed prior to the residential development and therefore arguably should have been mitigated for in the residential design.
Our extensive measurements established the source of the noise was a specific item of equipment on the client’s site.
We then carried out a detailed review of the planning documentation associated with the residential development. The documentation included multiple noise assessments by different consultants, with disagreement between them as to the impact of industrial noise on the proposed residential properties and the mitigation measures required. Our review found the planning noise impact assessments had only focused on the impact of noise during the day from a scrapyard adjacent to the residential development and had not included overnight noise measurements to assess more distant industrial noise.
We then analysed historic noise data and together with our own measurements we were able to demonstrate there had been no change in the industrial noise levels affecting the residential development since planning permission was granted. An assessment of the mitigation measures included within the planning noise impact assessments identified that these should be appropriate to control noise affecting residents to within acceptable limits.
The Environment Agency’s permit relating to the industrial site requires activities at the site ‘shall be free from noise and vibration levels likely to cause pollution outside the site’. A BS4142 assessment was carried out based on the noise levels measured by dBx Acoustics which identified the industrial noise would not be expected to adversely affect residential amenity.
The noise levels measured at the residential properties were found to be compliant with the Local Authority’s requirements for noise levels affecting residential amenity.
It was concluded our client was compliant with all relevant permits and legislation, and no further action by the Environment Agency was required.