A family-owned Italian restaurant located in Sydney’s beachside suburb of Coogee has successfully addressed serious noise issues by installing Ecoustic Veneer panels from Instyle Contract Textiles.
The busy restaurant, La Spiaggia was experiencing excessive noise levels – common in many restaurants today – with the upstairs area consisting of carpeted floor, fabric wall panels and solid timber panels causing regular frustration for patrons. When the noise issue started impacting business, the owner Maurizio Lombardo began looking for a solution to the restaurant’s poor acoustic issues.
Since Instyle’s founder and managing director Michael Fitzsimons had experienced the uncomfortable noise levels himself in the restaurant, he suggested to Maurizio that Instyle’s new acoustic product Ecoustic Veneer would resolve this problem as well as seamlessly blend with the restaurant’s existing interior.
In consultation with acoustic specialist Glenn Leembruggen, principal acoustician at Acoustic Directions, Instyle recommended the installation of perforated Ecoustic Veneer, which achieves a noise reduction coefficient of NRC 0.8. Installed on one feature wall as well as three smaller walls in the noise-prone areas, Ecoustic Veneer provided an elegant and effective acoustic solution for the restaurant. The Ecoustic Veneer panels were easy to install and retrofitted over the existing timber panels during the day while the restaurant was closed.
Acoustic Directions measured patron noise levels before and after the installation of Ecoustic Veneer, with the results showing a marked reduction in conversational noise levels. Patrons no longer have to raise their voices as much to be heard, ensuring a far superior dining experience without the discomfort from ambient noise.
Commenting on the effectiveness of Ecoustic Veneer acoustic panels in reducing noise levels in his restaurant, owner Maurizio said:
“We are so pleased with Ecoustic Veneer in reducing noise in our restaurant. It works perfectly. Previously, customers would tell us they loved our food and service but could not tolerate the noise within the restaurant. We’ve even had customers request to be seated in the downstairs area as upstairs was too noisy. Now we can confidently seat a group of 50 people upstairs as the noise levels are considerably lower and our customers can hear each other.”
