Case Study: Laboratory and Field Measurements for Evaluating the Weighted Reduction in Impact Noise Associated with Floor Coverings

In order that impact sound insulation in buildings complies with national regulations, the use of floor coverings needs to be considered, either at the design stage, or as a corrective measure. The improvement of impact sound insulation for floor coverings shown in marketing literature, comes from laboratory tests, expressed as the difference between the values of bare and covered floor noise insulation indices, calculated in accordance with what is prescribed in standard EN ISO 717/2. However, the values of the improvement for the same product are sometimes very different from laboratory to on-site conditions. This problem is more acute for buildings with non-homogenous floors such as beam-block. This case study presents some tests performed on identical horizontal beam-block slabs, in the laboratory and on site, using the same floor coverings. Discrepancies in the values obtained for the characterisation of each floor covering are observed. Assuming that part of the problem could be linked to the type of index used, a comparison is made using the following metrics: ΔdB(A); ΔL_n,w(or ΔL³_n,w– when on site); and the difference of Loudness Level.