SOUND MATTERS
How to achieve acoustic comfort in the contemporary office
Produced by GSA Public Buildings Service
January 2012
This publication is dedicated to the unknown worker who, in response to a New York Times article, Beyond the Cubicle, by Allison Arieff, July 18, 2011, wrote the following internet comment:
"I currently work in a cubicle – my neighbors are a man in the midst of a divorce, a woman with a problem child, another woman with an elderly parent who should be in a care facility. The only cure for my personal hell would be a quiet room with a door. Perhaps my employer would then get his money’s worth from my workday… did I mention that I am across from the copier?"
This publication aims to show that there is a way out of this worker’s "personal hell"… but without a room, and without a door. As the Federal Government transitions to greater density and less private enclosure for economic and organizational reasons, acoustic performance will need to transition from a "side issue" to a "core issue."