Kingston Library is located at the Kingston Centre retail park, Milton Keynes, near to the junction of the A421 and A4146 roads. The building comprises a community library facility at ground floor with an office unit above part of the library, separated by a mezzanine floor and partition at first floor level.

Project brief:  WBM was commissioned by Milton Keynes Council to carry out an acoustic assessment and testing of the library building. The acoustic issues that required consideration included indoor ambient noise levels within the library, control of reverberation, and sound insulation.

Acoustic aspects:  There are no mandatory acoustic standards for a library outside of a school, so WBM used appropriate performance requirements set out in guidance documents as design aims. As part of the assessment we reviewed the internal constructions and finishes and provided recommendations regarding internal sound insulation within the library and the control of reverberation.

The sound insulation between the library and office unit required consideration of both the airborne and impact sound insulation performance of the mezzanine floor as well as airborne sound insulation of the separating wall.

Outcome:  The results of the tests indicate that the acoustic performance in terms of sound insulation, reverberation time and indoor noise levels were as anticipated and acceptable for library use.