The main contractor for the MOO project – SPCCC-JV – appointed us to carry out field airborne sound insulation tests (i.e. soundproofing) for compliance testing of the Vox auditoriums at Mall of Oman prior to handover. We carried out the tests at the shell and core stage, i.e. before installation of finishes. The consultant (AECOM) had set the performance criteria for the standardized level difference (DnT or D as per ISO standards or comparatively NIC is ASTM standards) for the auditoriums to other regions as opposed to an apparent sound reduction index (R’ in ISO or comparatively FSTC in ASTM) of the partitions itself.

The level difference correlates directly with the soundproofing “perceived” by the occupants of the rooms. This level difference depends on the partition area, the volumes of the rooms, and the absorption in the two rooms. To realize such high performance (DnTw as high as 76dB) requires careful acoustic design and partition selection from the very beginning of the project. It was a great learning experience testing these auditoriums!

We purchased and employed a NTI DS3 dodecahedron speaker with NTI PA3 noise source and amplifier for this project without which testing such large auditoriums would have been extremely difficult. Even though large cabinet speakers can be used instead for testing, a dodec speaker complies unequivocally with the loudspeaker requirements as per the ISO standards for reverberation time and airborne sound insulation testing.

We submitted our evaluation and test reports in about a week following the testing and the contractor, client and consultant accepted our report without any revisions.