Its awards season at the Institute of Acoustics (IOA). Following the most recent Council meeting, the Institute of Acoustics is proud to announce the following award winners for 2019 along with our brand new Sustainable Design award:

IOA Education and Training is pleased to be able to announce and welcome the new Diploma Laboratory venue in the Middle East.

IOA Education Manager, Professor Keith Attenborough HonFIOA, reports.

Sound Quality by Design

Just a reminder that the consultation on the proposed amendments to BS4142:2014 is still open.

The IOA is preparing for a damage limitation exercise, should a no deal Brexit occur. As part of this, we will be contacting Government to identify which of the acoustics regulations might be affected by Brexit, and to offer to work with them to ensure that post Brexit our framework of regulation is not damaged and, where possible, it is improved or reformed where needed

This year’s John Connell Innovation Award winner AECOM utilises powerful sound demonstrations for Stonehenge

AECOM helped Highways England to effectively communicate proposed changes to the landscape around Stonehenge and the A303 to its key stakeholders by creating sophisticated audio simulations. They could simulate the changes in acoustics after building a tunnel to replace a road nearby to reduce traffic congestion, and helped stakeholders to experience the changes in noise and visual impact of traffic for the World Heritage Site (WHS).

WHO/Europe has published the WHO Environmental Noise Guidelines for the European Region as a regional update. The Guidelines include a review of evidence on the health effects of environmental noise to incorporate significant research carried out in the last years.  The health outcomes for which the evidence will be systematically reviewed include: sleep disturbance, annoyance, cognitive impairment, mental health and wellbeing, cardiovascular diseases, hearing impairment and tinnitus and adverse birth outcomes.