The client must interpret the needs of the user

It is important that the client understands the activities of the building’s users and the acoustic needs that should be prioritised.

• What will the users do in the building?
• How will they use it?
• How do they teach at this particular school?
• Are the students young or old?
• Do they employ a problem-based approach to teaching that involves discussions, group work and individual work? This can have a major impact on the choice of room acoustics strategy and solutions.
• Do the office workers communicate more or do they mostly carry out work that requires concentration?
• Is it important that the patients are guaranteed privacy and that confidential conversations cannot be overheard.

Depending on what goes on in the rooms, room acoustic properties such as sound level, reverberation time or speech clarity may need to be prioritised differently. This also affects which room acoustic descriptors should be used to ensure an appropriate assessment of the room acoustics.

Remember:

• It is important that the client understands the activities of the building’s users and the acoustic needs that should be prioritised

• Depending on what goes on in the rooms, room acoustic properties such as sound level, reverberation time or speech clarity may need to be prioritised differently, and this affects which room acoustic descriptors should be used