Download - Speech Privacy System
Speech Privacy System
Scott LaubackVP Sales and Marketing
Cambridge Sound Management, LLC
Mark SzwejczewskiSound Masking Service
Topics
• Cambridge Sound Management
• What is speech privacy and why are people concerned about it?
• How does Oasis improve acoustics in office environments
• Oasis Speech Privacy System
Cambridge Sound Management• Developers of Qt Quiet technology
TM
• Decades of experience built into our products
– Product spin-off from “the fathers of workplace acoustics” Acentech / BBN / CSM since 1999
– Our acousticians invented and developed all three previous generations of sound masking technology
• Headquartered in Cambridge, MA
• Worldwide network of Premier Resellers
Qt Quiet technology™ is a trademark of Cambridge Sound Management, LLC
In the USA, a 10 year research project was conducted to determine the breakdown
of the cost of an employee in an office, as shown below. The results also definitively
confirmed that an office environment with more privacy and less distractions, had a
positive impact on worker efficiency and reduced office operating cost.
BETTER PRIVACY = BETTER EFFICIENCY = LOWER COST
Economics of Privacy
82% 18%Employees work cost
Salary, insurance, education, social fund
Operating cost
Work stands, energy, dailyused materials, media, cleaning
- What is speech privacy and why
are people concerned about it?
- Why is there a demand for speech
privacy solutions?
- Why is there a problem?
Construction TrendsCubicles & Open Plan
• Trends:
– Lower partition height
– Lower ceilings
– Smaller cubicles
– Increased density
– Less sound absorption
Fiber Glasstile
152 – 182cm
3 x 3 = 9m2
YESTERDAY TODAY
Mineral Fiber tiles
122 – 137cm
1,8 x 2,4 = 4,3m2
• Result:
– Reduced cost
– Increased distractions
– Reduced productivity
Construction TrendsPrivate Offices
• Trends:
– Poor sound proofing
– Reduced plenum barriers
YESTERDAY
• Result:
– Reduced cost
– Decreased privacy
TODAY
Who Benefits from Sound Masking?
Many industries: - Healthcare HIPAA) - Finance (GLBA) - Insurance
- Legal
• Any size office
• New Construction
• Build-outs and re-designs
• Existing facilities
Many Applications:
- Waiting rooms
- Office Environments - Call centers - Executive/HR offices
1) Reduce distractions in open plan offices
• Solution:
- Sound masking needs to be added throughout the open office area
• Benefit:
- Conversations will be less intelligible and therefore less distracting
Cubicle Area
Employees don’t want to be distracted by the conversations
of others
CEO’s Office Hallway & Cubicles Area
2) Provide privacy for an executive’s office
• Solution: - Sound masking needs
to be added in the hallway and cubicle area
• Benefit: - People outside of the
office won’t be able to hear confidential information
The executive doesn’t want people outside of her office to hear her
private conversations
REMEMBER: Sound Masking is for the benefit of the listener, not the talker!
3) Provide privacy in a waiting area outside of a doctor’s office
• Solution: - Sound masking
needs to be added in the waiting room
• Benefit: - People outside of the
office won’t be able to hear the confidential conversations
Psychiatrist’s
Office
Waiting Room
The psychiatrist doesn’t want people in the waiting area to hear her private conversations
REMEMBER: Sound Masking is for the benefit of the listener, not the talker!
4) Provide privacy between private offices
• Solution: - Sound masking
needs to be added to both offices
• Benefit: - Neither party will be
able to overhear confidential conversations
Bill’s Office Paul’s Office
Neither Bill nor Paul want the other to overhear their confidential conversations
What is Sound Masking?
• Adding sound to eliminate sound
• Counterintuitive… but it works!
Demand is Exploding…
- Reduce Distractions!
- Improve Productivity!
- Increase Privacy!
Demand Drivers• Productivity
– Increase focus, decrease distraction
• Privacy– Healthcare & financial industries mandate protection of
client information (HIPAA, GLBA)
– All industries must protect confidential conversations
• Construction trends – Creating a need for sound masking systems
Will Any Sound Do?
• Any sound can cover speech- sort of!– Rain, music, HVAC, etc.
– Needs to be too loud to be effective (floodlight to cover the flashlight)
– Hot spots can’t be avoided
• Sound Masking uses a specific sound to effectively mask speech - with better results
The Sound Masking Sound
• Same sound spectrum as human speech in order to be effective at masking speech
• As quiet as possible for the applications
• Pleasant and unobtrusive
• Uniform with no hot spots
The Practical
and
Technical Considerations
In Open Offices, Sound Travels FAR !
150 Very Intelligible
Talkers
200 Moderately Intelligible Talkers
Example A: Open Office with ‘No Partitions’
OR Panels lower than < 120cm
Distractions travel 25 Meters
Example B: Open Office with 150cm Panels
OR Open Office with partitions 120cm + Sound Masking
30 Very Intelligible
Talkers
40 Moderately
Intelligible Talkers
1.5m Panel Systems Definitely Help
Example C: Open Office with:
150cm partitions and Sound Masking
5 Moderately
Intelligible Talkers
Adding Oasis is the Best Solution
Good Workplace AcousticsThe ABCs
• Absorb: with sound-absorbent building materials
• Block: with walls to the deck and high cubicle partitions
• Cover: with sound masking
Sound Masking has the most impact
and is the most cost effective solution!
What is a Speech Privacy System?
An Electro-Acoustic Architectural System
that
Increases Privacy and Reduces Costs.
• Proven to be the most cost effective tool available today for increasing privacy
• Works synergistically with walls, barriers & panels and ceiling tiles
• Allows informed trade offs between:
design / performance / cost
Oasis Qt™ Sound Masking System
• Control Module:
– GREEN: Very low power
– Pre-programmed sound
– Up to 2’800m2 per control module
• Emitters: – Miniaturized, omni-directional
– Typically installed in ceiling tile
– Housing options for all ceiling types
• Cables & Connectors– Pre-terminated CAT 3 cables
– RJ-45 connectors and jacks
• Paging/Music Module– Adds paging and/or music
– Uses same speaker network
Oasis QtTM
The Qt Quiet technologyTM
Difference
Oasis Qt ™ and Qt Quiet technology ™ are trademarks of Cambridge Sound Management, LLC
• Direct Field– for a uniquely uniform sound. No “hot spots”
• Pre-programmed sound– for a remarkably unobtrusive experience
• Plug & Play– for the simplest specification and installation
• Flexible– for installation in any environment
• Adapted to paging and music distribution – for fewer system components
Ceiling
Omni-directional speakers radiate directly into office space below
Roof deck
Central Generator
Direct Field Sound Masking: Generating Sound Where You Need It
Installed Emitters
Speakers
Typical dropped ceiling installation
Custom installation on existing structure
Enclosure for wooden beams
Enclosure for steel trusses
How is Oasis Different
from
the Competition
Theirs: In-Plenum Systems
• Unpredictable, non-uniform sound
• “Hot spots” & “spill” can’t be avoided
• Complicated specification & installation
• Extensive post-installation tuning
Ours: Direct - Field System
Oasis Qt ™ is a trademark of Cambridge Sound Management, LLC
• Consistent, uniform sound
• No “hot” spots
• Simple specification & installation
• No Tuning Required!
Primary Oasis Qt™ Benefits over The Competition
In-plenum Oasis QtTM
The SoundAnnoying, hissy and
Lauder for equal AI
Unobtrusive, pleasant
And quieter for equal
AI
Sound Field Uniformity Moderately uniformSome hot spots
Very uniform
Spill into Private Offices
Significant None
Installation Difficulty More complex Much less complex
Post Installation Tuning Required Not required
Typical Oasis QtTM
Specification
• Emitters are laid out on a grid based on ceiling height (a typical 2,74m ceiling) uses a (3,05m x 3,05m) grid
• Up to 300 emitters per control module
• One control module per zone (a zone is either private offices or open areas – not both!)
It’s really that easy!Oasis Qt ™ is a trademark of Cambridge Sound Management, LLC
Typical Layout
Oasis QtTM
Success Story
Phoenix Wealth Management
Headquarters, Hartford, CT
– National Historic Landmark
– 15 floors; 5580m2
– 38 zones integrated
– Expanded to paging
Oasis QtTM
Success Story
Michigan Information
Technology Center, Ann Arbor, MI
- National hub of 2nd Generation
Internet
- 2 floors, 2790m2
- 18 independently-controlled
zones
Oasis QtTM
Success StoryWilliams College SchowScience LibraryWilliamstown, MA
- 12,2m ceilings with skylights
- Walls of brick, glass, plaster
- 1116m2
- Library had been too quiet
- Adding sound masking reduced the effect of reverberations and greatly minimized distractions
Oasis QtTM Success StoryBank of America, National Help
Line Call Center Boston, MA
- 200 call center associates
- 3535m2
- A highly - productive work environment
Oasis QtTM
Success Story
Wells Fargo
- Speech Privacy System and Paging installed
- 9500m2
- Open offices
Partial list of End-User Customers• Bank of America
• Boston Scientific
• Cigna Dental
• Dana Farber Cancer Institute
• General Electric
• Herman Miller
• Hewitt
• Husky Canada – Shanghai
• Keane Corporation
• Marsh McLennan
• Mass General Hospital
• Merrill Lynch
• MIT
• Monster.com
• Northrop Grumman
• Northeastern University
• One Beacon Insurance
• Pella Corporation
• Shell Oil - Philippines
• Jones Lang Lasalle
• Steelcase
• Wallmart
• Wells Fargo
• Wyeth
In the USA, a 10 year research project was conducted to determine the breakdown
of the cost of an employee in an office, as shown below. The results also definitively
confirmed that an office environment with more privacy and less distractions, had a
positive impact on worker efficiency and reduced office operating cost.
BETTER PRIVACY = BETTER EFFICIENCY = LOWER COST
Economics of Privacy
82% 18%Employees work cost
Salary, insurance, education, social fund
Operating cost
Work stands, energy, dailyused materials, media, cleaning
Can you benefit from a Sound Masking System?
If you
- Have workers who are distracted by conversations or activities around them
Or
- Need to improve the confidentiality of discussions among workers / customers
Then the answer is YES!
Thank you for your attention !
SOUND MASKING SERVICE
Mark Szwejczewski, Sales & Marketing
Tel. +48 71 710 46 25
Tel/Fax. +48 71 367 22 05
Mob. +48 601 086 039
www.soundmasking-office.eu