Acoustic Assessments for BREEAM

What is BREEAM and What Are its Aims?

BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) is a methodology issued by the Building Research Establishment (BRE) to assess a building or development’s environmental qualities. The assessment methodology aims to provide sustainable developments regarding their environmental, social, and economic properties.

Developments are awarded credits for various considerations, such as acoustics, water consumption, waste management, energy consumption, and pollution. The final number of credits earned determines whether the development is classed as ‘outstanding’, ‘excellent’, ‘very good’, ‘good’, ‘pass’, or ‘unclassified’.

Achieving a high grade, according to BREEAM, indicates that a development is highly sustainable.

Our team of acoustic consultants in London and Manchester are experts in BREEAM acoustic performance standards and undertaking assessments.

When is BREEAM applied to a development?

BREEAM is more commonly applied to new-build, non-domestic developments. However, there are schemes under BREEAM for refurbishment projects (Refurbishment and Fit-Out Technical Standard—BREEAM).

BREEAM will sometimes be a requirement of the Local Authority. For example, a planning condition could state that a development must achieve at least an ‘excellent’ rating according to a BREEAM acoustic assessment. Alternatively, an end-user or developer may adopt the scheme to ensure their final product is sustainable and, therefore, more desirable.

How does acoustics fit into BREEAM?

Acoustics falls into two main categories:

• Health and Wellbeing (under the ‘Hea 05’ credits)
• Pollution (under the ‘Pol 05’ credits)

The number of Hea 05 credits available depends on the nature of the project (shell only, shell and core or fully fitted/simple building) and the final use (e.g., schools, offices, retail, etc.).

For Pol 05, one credit is available for shell and core, fully fitted, and simple buildings. The credit does not apply to shell-only developments.

Hea 05 Credits 

Hea 05 effectively aims to ensure that the final development provides a suitable acoustic environment for the end users. For example, a quiet, controlled environment may be essential for school classrooms but less critical for a proposed storage warehouse. Appropriate criteria are therefore adopted accordingly.

The typically available credits under Hea 05 can be summarised as follows:

• First Credit: Sound insulation of separating elements between adjacent rooms. To ensure noise intrusion is controlled to avoid disturbance or a suitable level of privacy between sensitive spaces.
• Second Credit: Ensuring a suitable indoor ambient noise level. This ensures that noise from outside (e.g., road traffic, railways, etc.) and noise from building services (e.g., mechanical ventilation) do not cause an unacceptable distraction.
• Third Credit: Suitable acoustic design of absorption and room layouts. To ensure rooms intended for speech or music are not too reverberant (or ‘echoey’) and spoken information can be heard clearly.

Criteria would be taken from different sources depending on the specific use of the building, as specified by BREEAM. For example, for school developments, criteria would be adopted from Building Bulletin 93 (BB93); for healthcare facilities, criteria would be adopted from Health Technical Memorandum (HTM) 08-01: Acoustics; and for offices or retail, criteria would be adopted from British Standard 8233: 2014.

To achieve the credits, evidence must be submitted at both the design stage (to show that acoustic requirements have been considered and designed appropriately) and at the commissioning stage (to demonstrate that the constructed development has achieved the established design targets).

Pol 05 Credits

Pol 05 relates to noise emissions from the proposed development, specifically to noise from fixed plant installations. This ensures an unacceptable noise impact is not caused for existing sensitive receivers close to a development due to plant (e.g. air conditioning, supply/extract fans).

A noise impact assessment would assess the noise of the proposed fixed plant to demonstrate whether mitigation is required and what form this mitigation should take.

Credit for Pol 05 is achieved at the design stage by demonstrating that a noise impact assessment has been carried out and that any required mitigation has been incorporated into the design.

What Stages of an Acoustic Assessment Are There?

A good acoustic assessment can provide helpful information throughout the project to ensure it runs efficiently and provides a final development suitable for its intended use. An idea of the main stages is as follows:

Feasibility Stage

Undertaking noise surveys on the proposed site to establish if levels of noise due to the existing surroundings are suitable for the proposed development use.

Early Design Stage

Outline reviews to inform the design team what acoustic requirements need to be incorporated into the high-level design to demonstrate compliance, such as sound insulation requirements between rooms, control of external noise, and any recommended site zoning.

Detailed Design Stage

Undertaking a detailed review of proposed construction drawings and assessing proposed mechanical plant to ensure the proposals are expected to achieve the stated project requirements.

Construction Stage

Answering questions as they arise on site and undertaking site visits to ensure the designs are being correctly implemented to meet BREEAM acoustic criteria.

Completion Stage

Acoustic commissioning stage to demonstrate that the completed development has met the design targets.