Pipe Down: Noise Reduction Options from UPLIFT Desk!

Silence is golden. And very much like gold, it’s kind of rare in the workplace. There’s always shuffling of papers, phone calls, Janet in the next cube over who likes to believe her personal conversations are so super important, among other distracting noises and sounds. While we would love to be able to put you in a bubble of silence and calm, alas, we cannot. What we can do, however, is give you the tools you need to dampen the noise and reclaim a little bit of quiet in your environment of loud.

It turns out that when buildings are constructed, offices especially, an often overlooked feature of the space is the acoustics. This is due to various reasons, but commonly people seem to think that if they’re not constructing a concert hall then the acoustics don’t really matter. This is a misconception. Sound can have a pretty heavy impact on productivity. Loud continuous sounds can stress people out and make a room unbearable to inhabit, even for short periods. Likewise, when all of the sound in a room is muffled it can also cause stress, making people feel almost as if they’re stuck in a padded room. The trick is actually finding a balance between the two extremes and we have a few suggestions for products that can help with that through the use of absorption and diffusion, which are the reduction of sound and distribution of sound, respectively.

Our first step down the rabbit hole of acoustic privacy is the Acoustic Privacy Panel by UPLIFT Desk. These guys attach to desk surfaces through either the use of clamps or a  Desktop Acoustic Privacy Panel Holder, the latter of which just sits on the desktop. The Acoustic Privacy Panel itself is made of a sturdy lightweight polyester fiberboard and measures .6” thick. There are four different sizes available to accommodate desks of varying sizes and three colors to match pretty much any décor. Its main function is blocking sound but you can also use it as a tack board.

Two other great options are the  3D Tube Acoustic Wall Panel and 3D Wave Acoustic Wall Panel, which serve the same basic function as the Acoustic Privacy Panels but hang on the wall and have a more ornate design. They only have two color options but you can use either one or many to create a custom wall space. As for the sound blocking abilities, the 3D panels have a .8 Noise Reduction Coefficient. If that number makes you curious, as well it should, the Noise Reduction Coefficient is a numeric representation of sound ranging from 0 to 1, and is used to measure the effectiveness of things like ceiling tiles. 80% of noise that comes into contact with the panels is absorbed. That's a lot of noise reduction!

There’s also a fairly adventurous piece called the 3D Acoustic Waffle Cloud , which is made from the same polyester fiberboard as all of the panels and comes in the same color options as the acoustic wall panels. The name is pretty apt as it hangs from the ceiling and is vaguely cloud shaped. It sort of looks like someone tried to get artsy with a waffle fry. It’s easy to assemble and will dampen noise in your work area from overhead.

You can buy these items individually or use them together to create a more appealing sound level in your workspace. Or you can get them just to spice up your ornamentation. Regardless of your reasons, our customer service reps are available at 800-531-3746 to help you with any questions or needs you may have!