For projects in Ethiopia
HVAC, plant and machine noise control in Ethiopia
Noise with a source. Almost every honest fix is at the machine, the duct or the plant room, and almost nothing useful happens by lining the far wall of the occupied space. Split units and generator sets, with mechanical plant close to occupied areas.
- At source
- Enclosure, barrier or anti vibration mounts at the machine.
- In the path
- Duct lining, attenuators and lagging on the first run out of the plant.
- At the receiver
- Only after the first two, and only for what is left.
- Quote
- From a plan and a section, within 48 hours
01 / What it is
The product, described honestly, for a Ethiopia brief
Noise with a source. Almost every honest fix is at the machine, the duct or the plant room, and almost nothing useful happens by lining the far wall of the occupied space.
Split units and generator sets, with mechanical plant close to occupied areas.
Work reaching us from Ethiopia is mostly industrial parks, offices, hotels, places of assembly, schools, hospitals.
- Landlocked, so the road leg counts Djibouti then several hundred kilometres by road. We quote the sea leg and the road leg separately so the date is honest.
- Packing has to survive the run A long road leg on mixed surfaces is hard on a pallet. We brace and wrap for that rather than for a short port transfer.
- Industrial parks at scale New manufacturing built quickly, where enclosure and partition detail can still be designed in rather than retrofitted.
- At source Enclosure, barrier or anti vibration mounts at the machine.
Full specification
Thickness, density, NRC by frequency, fire class, standard sizes and build-up detail for HVAC and plant noise control are on the main product page. This page covers what that means for a project in Ethiopia.
02 / The build-up
The stack, in the order it is installed
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Layer 1
Soundproofing materials
The blocking side of the range taken together: mass loaded vinyl, resilient layers, cavity absorption and the build-ups they belong in. In Ethiopia, split units and generator sets, with mechanical plant close to occupied areas.
Resilient bar. Where a full independent leaf will not fit. Effective, and very easy to short circuit with one wrong screw.
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Layer 2
Acoustic foam and BassBloc
Open cell foam shapes for high frequency control, and BassBloc, a high density absorber built for the low mid range where ordinary foam does nothing. In Ethiopia, church buildings and conference halls are tall hard volumes with long reverberation.
Behind a fabric frame. Where the room has to look finished, absorber inside a frame rather than foam on show.
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Layer 3
Ceiling baffles and clouds
PET felt suspended from the soffit, vertically as baffles or horizontally as clouds. In Ethiopia, classrooms are concrete and hard surfaced with large class sizes and long corridors.
Mixed with services. Set out around ducts, trays and lighting rather than fighting them, coordinated from your reflected ceiling plan.
Architects working in Ethiopia usually need the build-up before the product. We will draw the section and mark what does the work. See how we support architects.
03 / Local conditions
What decides the build-up in Ethiopia
- Landlocked, so the road leg counts
Djibouti then several hundred kilometres by road. We quote the sea leg and the road leg separately so the date is honest.
- Packing has to survive the run
A long road leg on mixed surfaces is hard on a pallet. We brace and wrap for that rather than for a short port transfer.
- Industrial parks at scale
New manufacturing built quickly, where enclosure and partition detail can still be designed in rather than retrofitted.
- Large assembly spaces
Halls and civic spaces built in concrete where speech fails long before the room is called echoey.
- Plant and HVAC
Split units and generator sets, with mechanical plant close to occupied areas.
04 / Room by room
Room by room, on a typical Ethiopia job
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At source
Enclosure, barrier or anti vibration mounts at the machine. Djibouti then several hundred kilometres by road. We quote the sea leg and the road leg separately so the date is honest.
- Soundproofing materials, 2100 kg per cubic metre. 2.5 mm STC 30 at 5.25 kg per sq m, 4 mm STC 34 at 8.4, 6 mm at 12.6
- Acoustic foam and BassBloc, 20 mm
- Ceiling baffles and clouds, Made to the drawing, standard and custom
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In the path
Duct lining, attenuators and lagging on the first run out of the plant. A long road leg on mixed surfaces is hard on a pallet. We brace and wrap for that rather than for a short port transfer.
- Soundproofing materials, 1800 x 900 x 20 mm, 100 kg per cubic metre, NRC 0.85
- Acoustic foam and BassBloc, 100 kg per cubic metre
- Ceiling baffles and clouds, Both faces work, which is why suspended area outperforms the same area laid flat
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At the receiver
Only after the first two, and only for what is left. New manufacturing built quickly, where enclosure and partition detail can still be designed in rather than retrofitted.
- Soundproofing materials, Mass, then decoupling, then cavity absorption, then sealing
- Acoustic foam and BassBloc, 100 to 500 Hz
- Ceiling baffles and clouds, ASTM C423
Interior designers tend to arrive with the look already decided. We will tell you which finish gets there without losing the acoustics. See how we work with interior designers.
04 / Conditions
What the Ethiopia climate rules in and rules out
Ethiopia is warm and humid through most of the year, with a long wet season, and that narrows the material list before acoustics is discussed.
Humidity is the deciding factor. PET felt does not absorb moisture, shed fibre or feed mould, which is why it outlasts fabric-wrapped mineral wool in this climate. Wood wool and timber need a ventilated cavity behind them.
The failure we design against here is mould, sagging fabric finishes and swelling in timber.
Where a consultant is already engaged on a Ethiopia project, we supply to their specification and send the test reports rather than describing them. More on working with acoustic consultants.
06 / Read this first
The six errors that cost the most
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Absorption on the office wall for a plant room problem
Plant noise treated as a room problem is the most reliable way to spend a budget and change nothing anyone can hear.
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Lagging a duct that is carrying the noise as breakout from the fan
Plant noise treated as a room problem is the most reliable way to spend a budget and change nothing anyone can hear.
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Ignoring structure borne vibration through the mounts
Small on the drawing, expensive on site, and almost always found after handover.
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Treating it as a generic Ethiopia job
Djibouti then several hundred kilometres by road. We quote the sea leg and the road leg separately so the date is honest.
05 / Supply
What the route into Ethiopia actually looks like
| Ships from | Palwal, Haryana, India |
|---|---|
| Arrives at | Djibouti, then road inland to Addis Ababa |
| Dispatch | 4 to 7 working days |
| Freight | Sea via Djibouti, then road |
| Support | Drawings, build-ups, BOQ and material that arrives complete |
Standard items dispatch in 4 to 7 working days. Grooved panels and custom colours take longer, and we say so before you order, not after.
Sea freight into Djibouti, then road inland to Addis Ababa and beyond. Air freight for samples and urgent quantities.
Questions from Ethiopia projects
What makes HVAC, plant and machine noise control different in Ethiopia?
Split units and generator sets, with mechanical plant close to occupied areas. Djibouti then several hundred kilometres by road. We quote the sea leg and the road leg separately so the date is honest.
Where should the budget go first on a Ethiopia project?
At source. Enclosure, barrier or anti vibration mounts at the machine. In the path. Duct lining, attenuators and lagging on the first run out of the plant.
Do you have an office or installation team in Ethiopia?
No. We manufacture in India and supply into Ethiopia. We give you drawings, build-ups, a BOQ and material that arrives complete, and we will tell you plainly when a job needs a local contractor we cannot be.
How does material get to a Ethiopia site?
ships from: Palwal, Haryana, India, arrives at: Djibouti, then road inland to Addis Ababa, dispatch: 4 to 7 working days. Standard items dispatch in 4 to 7 working days. Grooved panels and custom colours take longer, and we say so before you order, not after.
What goes wrong most often on this kind of project?
Absorption on the office wall for a plant room problem. Lagging a duct that is carrying the noise as breakout from the fan.
What do you need from us to quote?
A plan, a section through the critical partition or ceiling, and what the room is for. From that we can give a build-up and a BOQ rather than a price per square foot.
Next step
Send the drawings, get a straight answer
One drawing gets you a proper answer. Build-up, quantities, a delivered date, and an honest note on anything we think is the wrong approach.