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I'm
an administrator in a large company and I'm also the move coordinator for my directorate.
A group of employees has asked to move because their location is so noisy. I'd like to
accommodate them, but I just don't have any quieter cubes to move them to, and I probably
won't for some time. My boss (and theirs) has said that they'll just have to wait, but
they will all bug me about it at every opportunity because I'm the move coordinator. Is
there any equipment that we could get for them to help them block out the noise and
concentrate? We can't really do anything about the surrounding noise because those are
people from another department, plus noise from the cafeteria, etc.
Signed,
Seeking Quiet
Dear Seeking
Quiet:
There is a whole industry dedicated to eliminating noise in the workplace. Unfortunately, these acoustic engineers usually focus on reducing consistent noise from machinery sources. Often this is done by installing devices that produce mirror-image sound waves which "cancel" the noise from the source. Your problem, that is noise from variable sources, such as people talking, a copy machine, or cafeteria noise must be controlled through less scientific means.
Cubicles lend themselves to intrusive noise even though many are designed to dampen sound to some degree with padded walls. One option is to add architectural barriers to absorb the noise but this may be outside your budgetary constraints. From your boss' "let 'em wait" response to the problem, I infer that he would be unwilling to make structural modifications or additions to the environment.
One option would be to add some more pleasant noise to the cubes to drown out the intrusive noise. Would it be feasible for the employees to wear headphones and listen to music or relaxing soundscapes (water, forest, or other natural phenomenon) while working? Perhaps the device you could install, instead of eliminating the noise, could allow workers to use headphones to listen to whatever they choose. Let me explain. If your workers cannot wear headphones because they need to hear their phones ringing, you could install a device that flashes a light rather than ringing a bell to alert a phone call. In other words turn the audio cues into visual cues. Devices such as these might be available at your local electronics store.
If you can't move everyone at this time, another option might be to find just a single room where people from this work group can retreat to in order to perform tasks that can be performed away from their desks (such as sorting papers, working on a laptop, or reading reports). The workers could share the room and use it as necessary. Even if they only use the room for a few minutes here and there during the day it can give them a break from the noise and make their daily noise intake quotient more tolerable.
WEGO knows the costs of lost concentration.
--Dan West
Here are some sources you might consult for product information:
Scamp Sound Masking Systems - Designed for office environments to help people concentrate.
Architectural Acoustics - Decibel Consultants - A design firm specializing in eliminating environmental noise.
Noise Cancellation Technologies - Makers of the NoiseBuster phone headset.
Owens Corning - Makers of noise reduction technologies for home and office.