---
_id: '5292'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: 'Many workspaces in open-plan offices suffer from high noise levels and undesired
    transmissions of speech noise between the users. These are leading to increased
    distraction by irrelevant speech information. This acoustical overall situation
    has serious consequences for the working environment: concentration- and performance
    loss as well as impairments of mood and well-being. Surveys on disturbing sounds
    have proven that human language distracts much more than sounds that are generated
    by natural sources or technical devices. Especially in times of changing working
    structures, when flexible spaces promoting interaction gain an increasing importance,
    room acoustics have to ensure that all negative impairments caused by noise and
    speech sound are prevented. Different measures and concepts come into question
    for acoustical optimization: absorption, shielding and sound-masking. Absorption
    can be achieved by means of acoustically-effective ceilings, floorings or furniture
    although these singular measures are often not sufficient. Sophisticated sound-absorbing
    systems are in the market. To reduce disturbing speech information sufficiently,
    advanced sound-shielding measures between the working areas are required. To efficiently
    prevent speech-like noise an adaptive sound-masking system in combination with
    visually adapted shielding elements should be developed, tested and implemented
    for open-plan offices in the presented research. The studies have shown that the
    design of these absorbing and shielding elements is a relevant factor as any conformity
    between spatial design and sound helps to improve the user acceptance. It was
    further verified by tests that permanent movements in the peripheral field of
    vision of the test persons were perceived as distracting and annoying. Thus the
    sound-masking was placed outside the field of vision. In general the user acceptance
    of masking sounds was assessed more positively when combined with a visualisation
    (e.g. covering with „leaves“) compared to the variant without any covering. But
    the whole system has to be further developed.'
author:
- first_name: Uta
  full_name: Pottgiesser, Uta
  id: '27166'
  last_name: Pottgiesser
  orcid: 0000-0002-8594-3168
- first_name: Christoph
  full_name: Kirch, Christoph
  last_name: Kirch
citation:
  ama: 'Pottgiesser U, Kirch C. Improving Room Acoustics in open-plan Offices. Testing
    the Relationship of acoustical and visual Distraction at Workspaces with sound-masking
    Systems. In: <i>Conference: 31st International PLEA ConferenceAt: BolognaVolume:
    Proceedings of PLEA2015 Architecture in (R)Evolution - Book of Abstracts.</i>
    [Bologna] :  [Ass. Building Green Futures]; 2015.'
  apa: 'Pottgiesser, U., &#38; Kirch, C. (2015). Improving Room Acoustics in open-plan
    Offices. Testing the Relationship of acoustical and visual Distraction at Workspaces
    with sound-masking Systems. In <i>Conference: 31st International PLEA ConferenceAt:
    BolognaVolume: Proceedings of PLEA2015 Architecture in (R)Evolution - Book of
    Abstracts.</i> [Bologna] :  [Ass. Building Green Futures].'
  bjps: '<b>Pottgiesser U and Kirch C</b> (2015) Improving Room Acoustics in Open-Plan
    Offices. Testing the Relationship of Acoustical and Visual Distraction at Workspaces
    with Sound-Masking Systems. <i>Conference: 31st International PLEA ConferenceAt:
    BolognaVolume: Proceedings of PLEA2015 Architecture in (R)Evolution - Book of
    Abstracts.</i> [Bologna] :  [Ass. Building Green Futures].'
  chicago: 'Pottgiesser, Uta, and Christoph Kirch. “Improving Room Acoustics in Open-Plan
    Offices. Testing the Relationship of Acoustical and Visual Distraction at Workspaces
    with Sound-Masking Systems.” In <i>Conference: 31st International PLEA ConferenceAt:
    BolognaVolume: Proceedings of PLEA2015 Architecture in (R)Evolution - Book of
    Abstracts.</i> [Bologna] :  [Ass. Building Green Futures], 2015.'
  chicago-de: 'Pottgiesser, Uta und Christoph Kirch. 2015. Improving Room Acoustics
    in open-plan Offices. Testing the Relationship of acoustical and visual Distraction
    at Workspaces with sound-masking Systems. In: <i>Conference: 31st International
    PLEA ConferenceAt: BolognaVolume: Proceedings of PLEA2015 Architecture in (R)Evolution
    - Book of Abstracts.</i> [Bologna] :  [Ass. Building Green Futures].'
  din1505-2-1: '<span style="font-variant:small-caps;">Pottgiesser, Uta</span> ; <span
    style="font-variant:small-caps;">Kirch, Christoph</span>: Improving Room Acoustics
    in open-plan Offices. Testing the Relationship of acoustical and visual Distraction
    at Workspaces with sound-masking Systems. In: <i>Conference: 31st International
    PLEA ConferenceAt: BolognaVolume: Proceedings of PLEA2015 Architecture in (R)Evolution
    - Book of Abstracts.</i>. [Bologna]  :  [Ass. Building Green Futures], 2015'
  havard: 'U. Pottgiesser, C. Kirch, Improving Room Acoustics in open-plan Offices.
    Testing the Relationship of acoustical and visual Distraction at Workspaces with
    sound-masking Systems, in: Conference: 31st International PLEA ConferenceAt: BolognaVolume:
    Proceedings of PLEA2015 Architecture in (R)Evolution - Book of Abstracts.,  [Ass.
    Building Green Futures], [Bologna] , 2015.'
  ieee: 'U. Pottgiesser and C. Kirch, “Improving Room Acoustics in open-plan Offices.
    Testing the Relationship of acoustical and visual Distraction at Workspaces with
    sound-masking Systems,” in <i>Conference: 31st International PLEA ConferenceAt:
    BolognaVolume: Proceedings of PLEA2015 Architecture in (R)Evolution - Book of
    Abstracts.</i>, Bologna, 2015.'
  mla: 'Pottgiesser, Uta, and Christoph Kirch. “Improving Room Acoustics in Open-Plan
    Offices. Testing the Relationship of Acoustical and Visual Distraction at Workspaces
    with Sound-Masking Systems.” <i>Conference: 31st International PLEA ConferenceAt:
    BolognaVolume: Proceedings of PLEA2015 Architecture in (R)Evolution - Book of
    Abstracts.</i>,  [Ass. Building Green Futures], 2015.'
  short: 'U. Pottgiesser, C. Kirch, in: Conference: 31st International PLEA ConferenceAt:
    BolognaVolume: Proceedings of PLEA2015 Architecture in (R)Evolution - Book of
    Abstracts.,  [Ass. Building Green Futures], [Bologna] , 2015.'
  ufg: '<b>Pottgiesser, Uta/Kirch, Christoph (2015)</b>: Improving Room Acoustics
    in open-plan Offices. Testing the Relationship of acoustical and visual Distraction
    at Workspaces with sound-masking Systems, in: <i>Conference: 31st International
    PLEA ConferenceAt: BolognaVolume: Proceedings of PLEA2015 Architecture in (R)Evolution
    - Book of Abstracts.</i>, [Bologna] .'
  van: 'Pottgiesser U, Kirch C. Improving Room Acoustics in open-plan Offices. Testing
    the Relationship of acoustical and visual Distraction at Workspaces with sound-masking
    Systems. In: Conference: 31st International PLEA ConferenceAt: BolognaVolume:
    Proceedings of PLEA2015 Architecture in (R)Evolution - Book of Abstracts. [Bologna]
    :  [Ass. Building Green Futures]; 2015.'
conference:
  end_date: 2015-09-11
  location: Bologna
  name: 31st International PLEA Conference
  start_date: 2015-09-09
date_created: 2021-03-12T07:28:43Z
date_updated: 2023-03-15T13:49:58Z
department:
- _id: DEP1020
- _id: DEP1302
- _id: DEP1055
language:
- iso: eng
place: '[Bologna] '
publication: 'Conference: 31st International PLEA ConferenceAt: BolognaVolume: Proceedings
  of PLEA2015 Architecture in (R)Evolution - Book of Abstracts.'
publication_identifier:
  isbn:
  - 978-88-941163-0-4
publication_status: published
publisher: ' [Ass. Building Green Futures]'
quality_controlled: '1'
status: public
title: Improving Room Acoustics in open-plan Offices. Testing the Relationship of
  acoustical and visual Distraction at Workspaces with sound-masking Systems
type: conference
user_id: '45673'
year: 2015
...