Modern schools need open spaces where students can work together, but open layouts often come with high noise levels and heavy echo. At Karl Kübel Schule, a technical school in Bensheim, Germany, the large common areas offered great potential for group work, but hard surfaces made the rooms too noisy for quiet concentration.
To fix the sound issues, the school worked with A-SH Architects & MBSY to add sound-absorbing seating, quiet study booths, and movable acoustic dividers. By applying the standard Acoustic ABCs of sound control, they turned noisy hallways into functional areas for both individual studying and group projects.
Karl Kübel Schule Project Photos
The Acoustic ABCs: How to Control Noise in Open Spaces
In room acoustics, managing noise without building solid walls comes down to two basic methods: Absorb and Block. Here is how the school applied these principles:
A — Absorb (Soaking Up Echo)
Hard materials like concrete walls, glass windows, and laminate floors bounce sound around the room, making chatter sound louder than it is.
B — Block (Stopping Sound Traveled Across Rooms)
When noise travels freely from one end of a floor to another, students lose concentration.
-
The Fix: Free-standing partition screens like the BuzziShield Hook stop sound in its tracks. These moveable screens create physical barriers between groups so students can work without distracting people nearby.
Key Takeaway for School Designers
Plan for sound before picking furniture. Large, open school spaces need a mix of noise-absorbing fabrics and movable screens to keep noise down. Applying the Acoustic ABCs lets you block and absorb sound where it happens, keeping rooms bright and open while cutting down on echo.
