It’s May, and beach season is almost here! To humans, swimming in the ocean is a well-deserved vacation, but to marine animals, the ocean is home. Most people know that trash and chemical pollutants can harm ocean wildlife, but did you know that noise pollution is also a problem in the ocean? Read on to learn how animals are affected by ocean noise pollution.
On Sunday, May 1st, 2022, Philadelphia held its 42nd annual Broad Street Run. This 10-mile, point-to-point course runs from North Philadelphia to the Philadelphia Navy Yard on the Delaware River waterfront in South Philadelphia (this year ended on Pattison Ave due to Navy Yard construction)
It is with great joy that Metropolitan Acoustics would like to announce that our very own CEO Felicia Doggett has been awarded the 2022 Lang Award at INCE-USA, which is for Distinguished Noise Control Engineer! This award recognizes individuals who
Sports are an important part of American culture, at both professional and amateur levels of play, but they can present acoustic issues. Residents who live near courts and fields are often disturbed by the sounds of basketballs pounding on the pavement, whistles on the football field, or the crack of a base hit. A new sport, pickleball, is dominating the sports scene in many places across the country, with a two-year growth rate of almost 40% and up to 4.2 million players in 2021. Despite its popularity, it tends to generate many noise complaints from nearby residents. Read on to learn more about this banging sport and what can be done.
We’ve had some exciting promotions here at Metro for our hard working Consultants. We are pleased to announce the following:
Bryan Cranage – Associate Principal
Graham Everhart – Senior Consultant
Alex Aquila – Full Consultant
Jack Johnson – Associate Consultant
Ethan Savage – Associate Consultant
Congratulations Everyone!!!
Felicia was on vacation in Asheville, NC a couple of weeks ago, and had an opportunity to stop by one of our projects there – an outdoor music venue on Coxe Avenue, affectionately named Rabbit Rabbit . Metropolitan Acoustics was involved in creating sound propagation models throughout the surrounding Asheville neighborhoods for the live music that is performed there. More recently, we helped design a permanent stage structure that will be installed soon. If you’re in Asheville this summer, make sure to catch an outdoor concert at Rabbit Rabbit!
Metropolitan Acoustics joined the design team for the auditorium renovations at Ewing High School, located in Ewing, NJ, in mid-2020. We worked closely with FVHD Architects and Planners to improve the acoustical environment while maintaining a desirable and updated aesthetic. Users of the original space experienced harsh reflections and echoes, an unbalanced reverberation time, and an elevated background sound level as a result of the outdated mechanical systems. All of these elements heavily influenced the diverse programming that the space is used for; this includes theatrical performances, band and choral performances, and large assembly speeches. We analyzed the auditorium to address these undesirable acoustical properties, provided recommendations as needed, and monitored the project throughout the construction phases to ensure conformance to our design intent. New acoustical treatments include custom ceiling reflector clouds, absorptive treatment strategically installed throughout the perimeter walls, and duct silencers to reduce mechanical systems noise. The resulting product, which was recently completed in early 2022, meets our expectations and hopefully leaves the end-users satisfied for years to come.
Since 2019, Metropolitan has been working on a very historic and very exciting project; The First Bank of the United States, which will house a museum for the history of the monetary system in the US. This National Historical Landmark was built in 1797 and is located on South Third Street, in the Old City neighborhood of Philadelphia. There have been many new updates on the project, but one of the most exciting is that the First Bank of the United States has been included in the President’s FY 2023 budget proposal to Congress that was made public at the end of March. The First Bank project has been allocated $30.1 million from the Legacy Restoration Fund (LRF), which was created through the Great American Outdoors Act to address deferred maintenance in the National Parks. This funding will help cover the interior and exterior construction costs to fully rehabilitate and reopen the First Bank as a museum! We will keep you updated with our progress as construction moves along.
In the US, local and state noise ordinances have been protecting citizens against sound and vibration disturbances for over 70 years. An ideal noise ordinance would be easy to understand and easy to enforce, but due to the technical jargon contained in these documents and the equipment needed to accurately measure sound levels, this is often not the case. Read on to learn more about the ins and outs of our favorite group of laws.
Metropolitan Acoustics is the acoustical consultant for two absolutely wonderful Middle Schools that are finally up and running! The first is Community Middle School located in the West Windsor-Plainsboro School District in Plainsboro, NJ. The second is Colonial Middle School in the Colonial School District, Plymouth Meeting, PA. In both schools we were lucky enough to work on the auditorium, as well as several other areas throughout the schools. The results turned out beautifully and we are excited to share some completed pictures with you!
Metropolitan Acoustics, LLC is an acoustics and vibration consulting firm based in Philadelphia, PA. We specialize in architectural acoustics and vibration monitoring.