Just recently, we had the pleasure of considering some plans for re-modelling a new house. The architect presented ideas for a new kitchen and dining area following the now ubiquitous ‘family room’ concept with an open plan kitchen, dining area and play space for the kids. Lovely, I thought … but what if I want a bit of peace and quiet from the den building, cartwheel practice, show tunes and Topsy and Tim (not to mention the all too frequent squabble)?. In an open plan setting, by the end of a day, my head can be ringing and I can start to find it difficult to finish my err … sentences!. Secretly, I expect I’m not alone in this experience and it turns out that the same is also true of the office environment. Today’s predominant work space layout is open plan. The Leesman Index reports that 75% people work in open plan conditions. However, noise remains the strongest indicator of perceived poor personal productivity and only 29% of people are satisfied with the level of noise in their work spaces. Generally we consider noise as an occasional irritation or distraction in the work place, but long term it can affect the productivity, health and well-being of employees. Research shows that noise has an adverse effect on accuracy, recall, willingness to work in teams and the ability to process information mentally. Banbury and Berry showed that productivity in noisy offices can drop by up to two thirds. Evidence also suggests that stress and fatigue are also higher in open plan offices. So what can we do to improve the noise scape in offices without losing the collaborative and social benefits of open plan?. First monitor it and understand its impact on your employees. This needs careful mapping as different teams or tasks require different levels of noise management. Then consider ways of improving their experience of noise – this might be about reducing worker density, introducing sound masking or acoustic absorption to dampen reverberation and reflection of sound. These are all aspects that we’re exploring in our Whole Life Performance project, which looks at the effect of Indoor Environmental Quality on staff productivity and identifies ways of optimising their experience. Now all I need to do is consider how to sound proof my kids every now and then!.   The LCMB team can improve the performance and productivity of your buildings and estates to increase your organisations return on investment and competitiveness. For further information contact: John O’Brien, Managing Director on t: 01295 722823 or by email.