When leading window, door and façade systems supplier Schüco needed help to improve the sound quality within its UK showroom in Milton Keynes, OWA UK was the first to hear the call and has provided the perfect solution with an array of stylish acoustic ceiling rafts and canopies.
The showroom is ideally suited to hosting events and displaying the Schüco product range, but there was a concern that echoes within the large space were making it hard for visitors to clearly hear those who were speaking. The solution was to introduce sound absorption through the use of four of OWA UK’s attractive acoustic canopy and raft systems, resulting in greater speech intelligibility and enhancing the overall experience of those using the showroom.
Commenting on the transformation, Schüco UK marketing director Helen Gemmell said: “We have an impressive showroom and events space which is housed within an area of the building with a warehouse structure. This resulted in a lot of sound problems due to the structure of the building and so OWA worked with Schüco to provide a tailored solution to resolve the sound challenges experienced when hosting events”.
“The result of the acoustic ceiling canopy has made a vast improvement to the acoustics of the building, removing the echo from the space and improving the clarity of sound. The solution is also in keeping with the design and high-end interior of the showroom thanks to the aesthetically pleasing industrial look to the canopy.”
Andrew Smith, managing director of OWA UK added: “We are delighted that we have been able to enhance what was already visually a stunning showroom space by working with Schüco to design and install a high-performance acoustic ceiling package. We are looking forward to attending more events at the showroom and also inviting our own customers to see our products in action and experience the comfortable acoustic environment first hand.”
OWA UK installed a variety of acoustic canopy and raft systems in different areas of the showroom in order to create the perfect balance between acoustic performance and aesthetic appeal.
Over the main conference space, large, monolithic rafts were created with OWA RAW, a natural and industrial-looking surface that mimics the look of concrete while offering high sound absorption. Three rafts of up to a hundred square metres were installed using OWA suspension system S7, without interfering with the existing services. As practically any size and shape can be designed, the perimeter was finished with a black metal profile to frame each giant raft. The large format mineral boards are easily fixed with colour-matching screws from below, in a similar way to a regular plasterboard suspension system.
Above the mezzanine level, three further raft and canopy solutions are on show. Four newly developed OWAtecta S80 demountable perforated rafts were supplied, including black acoustic fleece and class A acoustic pads. The rafts were designed to fit around the existing lighting rig, with each individual panel simply hooking onto a hidden frame and abutting one another to form the final assembly. In adjacent areas, the new OWAtecta S14 Selecta ‘one piece’ perforated metal canopies with black acoustic fleece and class A acoustic pads were installed to offer a practical smaller canopy solution which can be specified in any colour. Finally, above the bar area, OWAconsult Corpus cuboid shapes were installed, showcasing a three-dimensional design, and enabling freedom to locate each square or rectangular acoustic box to create individual layouts.
For more information, please email enquiries@owa-ceilings.co.uk and to view the full range of products please visit www.owa-ceilings.co.uk
For more information about Schüco and its Milton Keynes showroom, please visit www.schueco.com/uk/uk-showrooms
