How partition walls reduce noise in the office

In short

Reducing noise in the office takes two different measures: insulating, which limits sound passing from one room to another, and absorbing, which reduces reverberation inside a room. Partition walls insulate: double glazing generally insulates more than single glazing, provided doors, ceilings and junctions are well detailed. In the ADAM Office range, the CRONO double-glazed partition offers the highest acoustic performance.

Noise is one of the most common problems in offices, especially open-plan ones: phone calls, conversations and meetings disturb people who need to concentrate and make it hard to talk in private. Partition walls are one of the main tools for solving it, provided it is clear what they can and cannot do.

Why are offices noisy?

Office noise comes mainly from people: voices, phone calls, impromptu meetings near the desks. What disturbs most is not volume but intelligibility: a conversation you can understand is more distracting than constant background noise. In open-plan spaces hard surfaces — glass, floors, non-absorbent ceilings — make the problem worse by reflecting sound.

Insulation or absorption: what is the difference?

Measure	What it does	Elements used
Sound insulation	Limits sound passing from one space to another	Partition walls, doors with seals, ceilings interrupted or fitted with barriers above the wall, sealed junctions
Sound absorption	Reduces reflections and reverberation within the same space	Acoustic ceilings, panels, fabrics, upholstered furniture

Partition walls work on insulation. A good result almost always needs both measures: a well-insulated but highly reverberant meeting room is still uncomfortable to use.

Which partition wall insulates most?

All else being equal, double glazing generally insulates more than single glazing; solid panels depend on their make-up.

Single glazing: brings daylight and transparency but insulates less; suited to defining areas where acoustic privacy is not decisive.
Double glazing with a cavity: two separate panes reduce sound transmission more effectively, and the cavity can house blinds or venetians.
Solid panel: gives complete visual privacy and, with the right make-up, good insulation.

The insulation values of each system are declared by the manufacturer and should be compared on the same configuration.

Why do the door and ceiling matter as much as the wall?

Sound does not only pass through the wall. It also follows flanking paths: the void above the suspended ceiling, the raised floor, junctions with perimeter walls and windows, and ductwork. The weakest point is often the door: without seals and an automatic drop seal at the floor, it lets through much of the conversation.

A private room is designed as a whole: wall, sealed door, a ceiling void that is interrupted or protected above the wall, and sealed junctions with the building structure.

How do you make an open-plan office quieter?

Partition walls help reduce noise in an open-plan office when they are used to create the right spaces:

enclosed meeting rooms, so meetings do not happen among the desks;
booths or rooms for calls and video calls, even small ones;
rooms for focused work, away from the busiest areas;
circulation and meeting areas kept away from workstations.

With dry-built partitions these spaces can be added even in an existing office, without masonry work, and moved if the organisation changes. The guide to demountable office partitions explains how.

Why can a glazed room sound echoey?

Glass walls insulate towards the outside, but inside they reflect sound. A meeting room with lots of glazing and a hard ceiling can have distracting reverberation, which makes conversations and video calls tiring. It is corrected with an acoustic ceiling, panels on solid walls, curtains, rugs and upholstered furniture.

What does ADAM offer for office acoustics?

ADAM S.r.l. has made office partition walls since 1990. The ADAM Office division offers three systems that can be combined:

CRONO, double-glazed with a cavity, integrated blinds or venetians and services routed through the profile: the partition with the highest acoustic performance in the ADAM Office range;
HERA, single-glazed with minimal joints, to maximise daylight and transparency;
DECUS, solid panels with wall linings and fitted walls.

The walls are dry-built, demountable and repositionable without masonry work, and are designed and manufactured at the plant in Bernate Ticino, near Milan. Projects include Planzer HQ Offices and Chatila Geneva HQ in Switzerland, KFUPM Offices in Saudi Arabia and Private Offices Milan, on the Projects page. The three systems are compared in the guide to office partition walls. To discuss a project, contact the ADAM team.

Frequently asked questions

Do glass partition walls block noise?

Yes, but to different degrees. A double-glazed partition with a cavity insulates more than a single-glazed one, because the two separate panes reduce sound transmission more effectively. The final result also depends on doors, ceilings and junctions with other walls.

What is the difference between sound insulation and sound absorption?

Insulation limits sound passing from one space to another, which is the job of partition walls. Absorption reduces sound reflections within the same space, which is the job of acoustic ceilings, panels, fabrics and furniture.

Why does a glazed meeting room sound echoey?

Because glass and smooth surfaces reflect sound instead of absorbing it. Reverberation is reduced with acoustic ceilings, panels on solid walls, curtains, rugs and upholstered furniture.

Can office acoustics be improved without a full refit?

Often, yes. Dry-built partitions make it possible to add meeting rooms and enclosed workspaces to an existing open-plan office without masonry work, and they can be moved if the layout changes.

How can partition walls reduce noise in the office?