How to Eliminate Echo & Improve Privacy in a Glass-Walled Conference Room

IF YOUR STUNNING GLASS CONFERENCE ROOM ECHOES, HERE'S WHAT WE CAN DO

It’s not hard to see why glass-walled conference rooms are popular. They're stylish, sleek, and open up the floor for a collaborative, transparent environment. But there’s one downside to glass rooms that all business owners realize eventually. Glass walls can produce such strong echoes that you might feel like you’re working inside a cave. 

Not only do glass rooms echo, but as your voices bounce off the walls, the rest of the office will hear your conversations. This is not only distracting but may make your staff feel they have little privacy when in the conference room. 

If you recently moved into or built a glass conference room, or if you’re planning to install glass walls, acoustic treatments can go a long way to reduce echo and loud voices. As a commercial AV consultant based in the McKinney, TX area, we’ll share what you should do with a glass office room below. 

SEE ALSO: Making Conference Room AV More User-Friendly

REDUCE REVERB BY ABSORBING SOUND WAVES 

Sound energy contained in a room is called reverberation. Sound waves bounce against walls and hard surfaces repeatedly until they escape, decay, or are absorbed. Reverberation is troublesome for teleconferencing and video calls since it will make your voices sound distant and hard to understand. In situations like this, we use soft absorptive materials to treat echo. 

Many businesses use wall-mounted fiberglass acoustic panels to absorb excess sound. But if you only have one non-glass wall, that won’t be enough. Freestanding acoustic pillars can be placed in corners to trap sound waves and enhance soundproofing. Carpeting, acoustic ceiling tiles, furnishings, and even plants can help absorb unwanted echoes in your workspace. 

SCATTER NOISE WITH DIFFUSION

Another way to improve a meeting room’s acoustics is through diffusion. Diffusion materials don’t absorb sound and instead scatter sound waves, so they spread more evenly across the room. Diffusion installations often take the form of wall panels with geometric or angular shapes. Bookshelves are an excellent way to diffuse sound, too. If you’re building a new office, you can plan diffusion into the architecture with curved walls or uneven surfaces like brick or stone on the non-glass wall. 

INCREASE PRIVACY THROUGH SOUND MASKING 

Another way to contain sound in a glass meeting room is with sound masking. Sound masking speakers play ambient white noise to filter out speech, therefore reducing distractions for the rest of the floor. We recommend installing sound-masking speakers outside the glass conference room to mask conversations inside. That way, everyone can enjoy privacy and get work done while enjoying your beautiful, modern office. 

Are you interested in acoustic treatments for your business in or near McKinney, TX? Contact Texadia Systems here to find the perfect solution for your space. We look forward to assisting you!