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Earcon Acoustics Limited, Level 26, PWC Tower - 188 Quay St - Auckland www.earcon.co.nz 09 443 6410 [email protected]

Acoustic Assessment

INZIDE Flooring Systems on Concrete Intertenancy Floor

Date: 7th February 2020 Prepared for: INZIDE Prepared by: Earcon Acoustics Limited Reference: J003781


Document Control

INZIDE

J003781

Contact Issue Date Rev

Alex Jacob

[email protected]

021 572 518

For Internal Review 07/02/2020 A

Fadia Sami

[email protected]

021 437 893

For Client Review 07/02/2020 A

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]


Table of Contents 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 1

2 Site Tests .................................................................................................................................. 1

2.1 Test Conditions ................................................................................................................ 2

2.2 Tested Flooring Samples ................................................................................................. 3

3 Field Measurements ................................................................................................................ 3

3.1 Field measurement of airborne sound insulation (FSTC) ................................................ 3

3.1.1 STC Definition (Sound Transmission Class) .............................................................. 3

3.1.2 Verification Method G6/VM1 for Airborne Sound Insulation Field Tests ................ 3

3.2 Field measurement of impact sound insulation (FIIC) ..................................................... 4

3.2.1 IIC Definition (Impact Insulation Class) .................................................................... 4

3.2.2 Verification Method G6/VM1 for Impact Sound Insulation Field Tests ................... 4

4 Compliance Criteria – NZ Building Code .................................................................................. 4

5 Methodology ........................................................................................................................... 5

5.1 Standards ........................................................................................................................ 5

5.2 Requirement ................................................................................................................... 5

5.2.1 Airborne Sound Insulation ....................................................................................... 5

5.2.2 Impact Sound Insulation .......................................................................................... 5

5.3 Equipment ....................................................................................................................... 6

5.4 Measurements ................................................................................................................ 6

6 Results - Building Construction ................................................................................................ 7

6.1 Airborne Sound Insulation – Bare Concrete Floor ........................................................... 7

6.2 Impact Insulation – Bare Concrete Floor ......................................................................... 8

7 Results - Flooring Systems ....................................................................................................... 9

7.1 Interface CushionBac Carpet Tile – Stand alone ............................................................. 9

7.2 Interface Carpet Tile on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay.................................................... 10

7.3 Tessera Carpet Tile on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay ...................................................... 11

7.4 Sphera Sheet Vinyl on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay ...................................................... 12

7.5 Eternal Sheet Vinyl on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay ...................................................... 13

7.6 Marmoleum Sheet on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay ...................................................... 14


7.7 Interface LVT on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay ............................................................... 15

7.8 Surestep Safety Vinyl on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay................................................... 16

7.9 Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay .......................................................................................... 17

7.10 Forbo Allura Vinyl Tile ................................................................................................... 18

7.11 Interface Vinyl Tile ......................................................................................................... 19

8 Summary ................................................................................................................................ 20

9 Conclusions ............................................................................................................................ 21

www.earcon.co.nz Page 1 of 26

1 Introduction INZIDE Commercial is an established, NZ based provider of flooring systems to the construction

industry. As part of INZIDE’s commitment to the quality of flooring systems, an acoustic assessment

was commissioned to assess the effectiveness of different flooring systems in attenuating impact

noise, when installed on a typical concrete intertenancy floor in a multi-storey building. This report

details the tests, results and analysis pertaining to the assessment of the acoustic qualities of the

systems in this report.

The brand names of the systems, are reported in this report as advised by INZIDE. Associated

copyrights or trademarks are the responsibility of INZIDE.

2 Site Tests Tests were performed in-situ, within a multi-storey concrete apartment building currently under

construction, to simulate commonplace apartment building structures used in New Zealand.

Tests were conducted on the 14th of January 2020, within the building under construction at 19 Dunn

Road, in Panmure, Auckland. The building was in the latter stages of construction, and the rooms where

testing was undertaken on the 4th and 3rd floor, were complete with internal 10mm Plasterboard Wall

lining and 13mm Plasterboard ceiling lining, and with internal and external doors and glazing installed.

The internal lining however still had unsealed penetrations as shown in the figure below from the

receiver room 308.

Figure 1 – Test Receiver Room 308.


2.1 Test Conditions

The building was an active construction site, and while all efforts were made to minimise noise

intrusion, the tests were nonetheless in-situ and not to be interpreted as laboratory tests. It would be

reasonable to expect the same tests, if conducted under a more acoustically sterile laboratory, would

result in higher performance measures. Based on this, we note that the results in this report are

representative of real-world performance of the subject flooring systems tested in combination with

the construction of the building. The same flooring systems are likely to exhibit different impact

insulation characteristics when installed on a floor/ceiling of different construction.

The floors of the subject apartments were bare concrete, and the systems tested were installed on a

designated part of the living rooms of apartments 408 and 405, and sound insulation was then

measured to the corresponding living rooms of apartments 308 and 305 directly below the installed

flooring systems. The samples installed were at least 2mx2m at the upper floor apartments.

Subsequent tests involved the removal of one flooring system and installation of another. Installations

were performed by INZIDE specialists in a manner representative of actual installations. An example

of an installation is shown below:

Figure 2 – Sample Installation


2.2 Tested Flooring Samples

Baseline reference tests were also conducted with the bare concrete floor:

1. Airborne Sound Insulation of floor construction with bare concrete floor.

2. Impact Sound Insulation on bare concrete

Acoustic tests were conducted on the following flooring trade references:

1. Interface CushionBac carpet tile – Stand alone

2. Interface carpet tile on Sarlibase acoustic underlay

3. Tessera carpet tile on Sarlibase acoustic underlay

4. Sphera Sheet Vinyl on Sarlibase acoustic underlay

5. Eternal Sheet Vinyl on Sarlibase acoustic underlay

6. Marmoleum Sheet on Sarlibase acoustic underlay

7. Interface LVT on Sarlibase acoustic underlay

8. Surestep Safety Vinyl on Sarlibase acoustic underlay

9. Sarlibase acoustic underlay

10. Forbo Allura Vinyl Tile

11. Interface Vinyl Tile

3 Field Measurements

3.1 Field measurement of airborne sound insulation (FSTC)

3.1.1 STC Definition (Sound Transmission Class)

A single number derived from measured values of transmission loss in accordance with classification

ASTM E 413. The STC rating is given by the value of the contour at 500 Hz.

3.1.2 Verification Method G6/VM1 for Airborne Sound Insulation Field Tests

The performance for airborne sound insulation may be verified using the procedures detailed in ASTM

E 336, and the field sound transmission class may be verified using the method described in ASTM E

413. Field test results shall be within 5dB of the performance requirement.

• Noise source: Loudspeakers radiating broadband random noise.

• Sound level meter: Calibrated B&K 2270 Type 1 integrating sound level meter with 1/3 octave

band real-time analyser.

• Test method: ISO 140-4.


• Test procedure: pink noise was generated in the source room using an amplifier and speaker,

then the sound level was measured in both the source and receiving room in 1/3 octave

bands. We also measured the reverberation time and background noise levels in the receiving

room.

• Rating method: ASTM E 413 and ISO 717-1.

3.2 Field measurement of impact sound insulation (FIIC)

3.2.1 IIC Definition (Impact Insulation Class)

A single number derived from measured values of transmission loss in accordance with classification

ASTM E989-89. The STC rating is given by the value of the contour at 500 Hz.

3.2.2 Verification Method G6/VM1 for Impact Sound Insulation Field Tests

The performance for impact sound insulation may be verified using the procedures detailed in ISO 140:

Part VII, and the field impact insulation class may be verified using the method described in ASTM E

989. Field test results shall be within 5dB of the performance requirement.

• Noise source: Tapping Machine.

• Sound level meter: Calibrated B&K 2270 Type 1 integrating sound level meter with 1/3 octave

band real-time analyser.

• Test method: ISO 140-4: Part VII.

• Test procedure: the noise was generated in the source room using a tapping machine, then

the sound level was measured in both the source and receiving room in 1/3 octave bands. We

also measured the reverberation time and background noise levels in the receiving room.

• Rating method: ASTM E989-89 and ISO 717-2.

4 Compliance Criteria – NZ Building Code STC (Sound Transmission Class) 55 and IIC (Impact Insulation Class) 55 ratings are required between

the inter-tenancy floors and walls to prevent undue noise transmission from other occupancies or

common spaces to the habitable spaces of the household units. The STC and IIC ratings are required

for common walls and floors of different tenancies. The code allows 5dB for field situation; i.e., FSTC

50 and FIIC 50 in situ, where the letter “F” in the designation refers to “Field”


5 Methodology

5.1 Standards

The following details the testing methodology for the calculation of insulation of airborne sound

through external facades. The levels of insulation are represented by the calculated Weighted

Apparent Sound Reduction Index R’w / Field Sound Transmission Class (FSTC) in accordance with

• ISO 16283-1:2014 - Acoustics -- Field measurement of sound insulation in buildings and of building elements -- Part 1: Airborne sound insulation

• ISO 16283-2:2015 - Acoustics -- Field measurement of sound insulation in buildings and of building elements -- Part 2: Impact sound insulation

• ISO 140-5:1998(E) - Measurement of sound insulation in buildings and of building elements -- Part 4: Field measurements of airborne sound insulation between rooms

• ISO 140-7:1998 - Acoustics -- Measurement of sound insulation in buildings and of building elements -- Part 7: Field measurements of impact sound insulation of floors

• ISO 3382-2:2008: Acoustics -- Measurement of room acoustic parameters -- Part 2: Reverberation time in ordinary rooms

5.2 Requirement

5.2.1 Airborne Sound Insulation

The procedures in the ISO standards above are used in determining the airborne sound insulation of a

floor or wall using sound pressure measurements. These procedures are intended for room volumes

in the range from 10 m3 to 250 m3 in the frequency range from 50 Hz to 5000 Hz. The measured

airborne sound insulation is frequency-dependent and can be converted into a single number quantity

to characterize the acoustic performance using the rating procedures in ISO 717-1.

5.2.2 Impact Sound Insulation

The procedures in the ISO standards above are used in determining the impact sound insulation of a

floor using sound pressure measurements. These procedures are intended for room volumes in the

range from 10 m3 to 250 m3 in the frequency range from 50 Hz to 5000 Hz. The measured impact

sound insulation is frequency-dependent and can be converted into a single number quantity to

characterize the acoustic performance using the rating procedures in ISO 717-2


5.3 Equipment

The following equipment was used in the measurements required for the calculation of R’w / Field

Sound Transmission Class (FSTC) and Field Impact Insulation Class (FIIC)

• Sound Level Meter: Type 1 B&K 2270 - 1/3 octaves from 50Hz to 5kHz.

• Tapping Machine: B&K Type 3207 Impact Sound Generator

• Speaker: B&K OmniSource Type 4295

• Amplifier: B&K Type 2734

Calibration certificates are attached in Appendix I

5.4 Measurements

For the calculation of FSTC / FIIC through a floor, the following measurements are taken:

• Receiving Room Background Measurements (B2): Background measurements are made in

the receiving room and are used to correct the receiving levels for the background noise.

Several B2 measurements should be taken at different locations in the receiving room. These

measurements are taken around the same time of the receiving levels measurements.

Measurements are taken with no sound from the speakers or the tapping machine, and for

10 seconds each reading. These readings are repeated 3 times at different points in the

receiving room.

• Reverberation Time (T2): This is the decay time for sound in a room after an excitation stops.

It is defined as the time for a 60dB drop in level. It can however be evaluated over a 20dB or

30dB drop using regression lines. This measurement is repeated several times in the

receiving room and at different locations in the room. This is to allow for spatial variations in

the room.

• Source Level Measurements (L1): This measurement is taken within the sound source area

and with the sound source generating the required Pink noise or impact noise. Several

measurements are taken with the sound level meter in different locations depending on the

shape and contents of the area. Pink Noise is generated by the B&K 2734 Amplifier through

the B&K 4295 Speaker. Impact noise is generated by the B&K Type 3207 tapping machine.

• Receiving Room Level Measurements (L2): This measurement is taken in the receiving room

and with the sound source generating the required Pink noise or Impact noise. Several

measurements are taken with the sound level meter in different locations depending on the

shape and contents of the area.


6 Results - Building Construction

6.1 Airborne Sound Insulation – Bare Concrete Floor

The following graph shows the 1/3 Octave sound reduction for airborne noise, which yielded:

Result: FSTC 62

Figure 3 – Sound Reduction Graph - FSTC


6.2 Impact Insulation – Bare Concrete Floor

Result: FIIC 30


7 Results - Flooring Systems The following graphs represent the 1/3 Octave sound reduction for impact noise, for each of the tested

systems.

7.1 Interface CushionBac Carpet Tile – Stand alone

Result: FIIC 66

Figure 4 - Sound Reduction by Frequency - Test Reference #1


7.2 Interface Carpet Tile on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay

Result: FIIC 64



7.3 Tessera Carpet Tile on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay

Result: FIIC 65



7.4 Sphera Sheet Vinyl on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay

Result: FIIC 58



7.5 Eternal Sheet Vinyl on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay

Result: FIIC 57



7.6 Marmoleum Sheet on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay

Result: FIIC 58



7.7 Interface LVT on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay

Result: FIIC 57



7.8 Surestep Safety Vinyl on Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay

Result: FIIC 59



7.9 Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay

Result: FIIC 56



7.10 Forbo Allura Vinyl Tile

Result: FIIC 55



7.11 Interface Vinyl Tile

Result: FIIC 55



8 Summary The following table is a summary of FSTC and FIIC values for the different combinations of flooring:

Type Configuration Result Building

Code Status

Airborne Bare Concrete Floor FSTC 62 FSTC 50 Pass

Impact Bare Concrete Floor FIIC 30 FIIC 50 N/A

Impact Interface CushionBac carpet tile – Stand alone FIIC 66 FIIC 50 Pass

Impact Interface carpet tile on Sarlibase acoustic underlay FIIC 64 FIIC 50 Pass

Impact Tessera carpet tile on Sarlibase acoustic underlay FIIC 65 FIIC 50 Pass

Impact Sphera Sheet Vinyl on Sarlibase acoustic underlay FIIC 58 FIIC 50 Pass

Impact Eternal Sheet Vinyl on Sarlibase acoustic underlay FIIC 57 FIIC 50 Pass

Impact Marmoleum Sheet on Sarlibase acoustic underlay FIIC 58 FIIC 50 Pass

Impact Interface LVT on Sarlibase acoustic underlay FIIC 57 FIIC 50 Pass

Impact Surestep Safety Vinyl on Sarlibase acoustic underlay FIIC 59 FIIC 50 Pass

Impact Sarlibase acoustic underlay FIIC 56 FIIC 50 Pass

Impact Forbo Allura Vinyl Tile FIIC 55 FIIC 50 Pass

Impact Interface Vinyl Tile FIIC 55 FIIC 50 Pass


9 Conclusions The tests conducted on the INZIDE flooring systems on a concrete floor are representative of field

based (in-situ) results and not intended as laboratory based design performance tests. This is in

consideration of the fact the site was active with presence of background noises, in addition to

presence of open penetrations in the internal linings of the walls and ceiling in the sample

apartments where tests were conducted.

The following is concluded from the results:

• The concrete structure of the building is effective in insulation airborne noise, as would be

expected, with a measured FSTC 62. This collates with measurements conducted within

similar buildings.

• The buildings concrete structure is susceptible to impact noise transfer, as would be

expected, resulting in a low performance for the bare concrete floor of FIIC 30. This collates

with measurements conducted within similar buildings.

• The Sarlibase Acoustic Underlay is noted to be effective on its own in insulting impact noise

with an impact insulation performance measured at FIIC 56 for the underlay alone.

• With the effectiveness of the underlay taken into account, the different flooring systems atop

the underlay also performed effectively with results all above FIIC 57

• Carpets are generally expected to be more effective than solid surfaces in insulating impact

noise. This is supported in the results with all carpets tested yielding insulation levels above

FIIC 60.

We note the following:

• The results are only representative of the performance of the combination of ceiling lining,

intertenancy floor construction, and the different flooring systems. A timber floor for example

would likely exhibit different performance results to those stated here.

• For reference; subtracting the FIIC value of one system from the FIIC value of another cannot

be used to infer the performance of one part of the system present on one test and absent in

another. Each test result is only indicative of the overall combination of materials and

construction elements constituting the whole path between the source of impact on the

upper floor and the receiver on the lower floor.

• The analysis of the mechanics of noise and vibration transmission in the different

combinations of flooring, and assessment of the performance of the flooring systems on

other floor constructions are outside the scope of this report.


Appendix I – Calibration Certificates

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