Airports are always filled with people. The big city airports don’t sleep, and are bustling with activity. Here I am at 11:18pm, with a delayed flight in Mactan, Cebu, and the place is packed!
With all these people talking, walking, listening to music and creating all sorts of noise, it’s important to have an environment where one can still hear the PA system when they call for your flight.
That’s right, you heard me – hearing announcements in large buildings is critical, especially in a public location like an airport.
What if there was a change in gate? The PA system is the most efficient way to inform people.
What is there was a fire? What if there was a delay? Again, having a room where people can understand each other’s speech counts a lot. Imagine have a flight delayed for 3 hours and not having the ability to announce it clearly to everyone at one time? It would be a horrible experience for customer service representatives who will have to explain to 200 people (2 or 3 at a time) why there was a delay.
It will be equally painful for passengers who will keep asking questions and have to wait for the announcement one at a time.
In this video, I’m walking through Mactan International Airport while the PA system goes off informing people or arrivals, departures and changes in schedule. They’ve got their acoustics right, and so announcements are clearly heard across the rooms.
So when designing a building – think about what people need to do inside the space. Remember that people need to communicate inside, and so think of its acoustic design.
For more information on acoustic design, you can visit avdph.com or gbmph.com. Armstrong ceilings are a good way to ensure great acoustics.
