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Manufactured in India, supplied in San Francisco
Ceiling baffles and clouds in San Francisco
We manufacture ceiling baffles and clouds at our own plant at Palwal in Haryana, India, and supply them into San Francisco. Made at our own plant in India and shipped into Oakland, across the bay, so the road leg to site is short.
- Material
- 100% PET non-woven, the panel family
- Thickness
- 9 to 24 mm
- Size
- Made to the drawing, standard and custom
- Exposure
- Both faces work, which is why suspended area outperforms the same area laid flat
- Test standard
- ASTM C423
- Lead time
- Confirmed against the drawing
- Minimum order
- 500 sq ft, about 46 sq m
- ASTM C423
- Made at our own plant, Palwal, Haryana, India
- One batch across the order, no blending between runs
We are the manufacturer. There is no local office and we do not claim approvals we do not hold. What you get is factory pricing, one consistent batch across the order, and a straight answer on what the material will and will not do.
01 / What it is
The product, described honestly, for a San Francisco brief
PET felt suspended from the soffit, vertically as baffles or horizontally as clouds. It is how you treat a room with exposed services, where there is no ceiling to line.
Work reaching us from San Francisco is mostly victorian conversions, tech offices, apartments, studios, restaurants, clinics.
American homes are timber frame with gypsum board on both faces, so a party wall or a basement ceiling has almost no mass. Adding a second leaf with a limp membrane between does more than any amount of surface treatment.
- Vertical baffles Hung on edge in rows. Both faces absorb, so coverage figures based on plan area understate them.
- Horizontal clouds Flat rafts over the occupied zone, which also reflect early speech energy back down where it helps.
- Mixed with services Set out around ducts, trays and lighting rather than fighting them, coordinated from your reflected ceiling plan.
- What it will not do Baffles are efficient, not magic. In a very tall volume the height above the baffle line still rings, and the honest answer is either more area or accepting a higher RT, not a denser panel.
Full specification
Thickness, density, NRC by frequency, fire class, standard sizes and build-up detail for baffles and clouds are on the main product page. This page covers what that means for a project in San Francisco.
Acoustic ceiling baffles Acoustic ceiling clouds Acoustic ceiling tiles
02 / Specification
The published figures, unchanged by location
These figures are published and they do not move. The thing worth arguing about is not the number on the sheet, it is which grade and which build-up suits the room you are treating.
- EchoCore 151500 GSM. Offices, retail, general
- EchoPro 181800 GSM. Halls, atria, spaces with a target
- EchoMax 222200 GSM. High volume and high occupancy
| Material | 100% PET non-woven, the panel family |
|---|---|
| Thickness | 9 to 24 mm |
| Size | Made to the drawing, standard and custom |
| Exposure | Both faces work, which is why suspended area outperforms the same area laid flat |
| Test standard | ASTM C423 |
If a consultant has set the target, we will quote against their figures rather than ours, and stay out of the scope they own. More on working with acoustic consultants.
03 / In this market
What decides the build-up in San Francisco
- Timber Victorians
Light framed, over a century old, and divided into flats. Low frequency passes easily and footfall travels straight down.
- Depth costs real money
At local rates a wall growing into the room is a significant number. A dense thin membrane usually beats a thicker framed build-up on total cost.
- Designed to move
Seismic detailing requires junctions that stay flexible, so the acoustic layer must not stiffen across them.
- Oakland is close
A short road leg after the port keeps landed cost and timing predictable.
- School and campus buildings
Public school buildings run long corridors with hard floors and lay-in tile ceilings that were chosen for cost, not for speech. Classroom reverberation and corridor spill are the two complaints, and both respond to ceiling area rather than wall panels.
We would rather argue about the build-up at design stage than on site. See how we support architects.
04 / Durability
Why the climate in San Francisco changes the material, not the target
San Francisco is mild summers and cold, wet winters, and that narrows the sensible material list before acoustics is even discussed.
Cold external walls and long heating seasons make condensation behind a lining the thing to design out. PET felt is unaffected by damp air.
The risk we design against here is condensation and cold bridging behind new linings.
If the visual is fixed and the room still has to perform, that is a solvable problem and a conversation worth having early. See how we work with interior designers.
05 / Logistics
How material reaches a San Francisco site
| Ships from | Palwal, Haryana, India |
|---|---|
| Arrives at | Oakland, then a short road run across the bay |
| Dispatch | 4 to 7 working days |
| Freight | Sea via Oakland |
| Packing | Flat packed with fixings, sets labelled by row so the install sequence matches the drawing. |
| Lead time | Confirmed against the drawing. Standard sizes 4 to 7 working days. |
Standard items dispatch in 4 to 7 working days. The sea leg from India is long, so plan the full door to door window into the programme. We give real dates, not optimistic ones.
Sea freight into Oakland, then a short road run to site. Air freight for samples and urgent quantities.
The same 500 sq ft minimum applies on export.
| Baffles and clouds | 500 sq ft, about 46 sq m |
|---|
Baffles and clouds are cut to the drawing, so the minimum is counted on finished panel area. Both faces of a hung baffle absorb, which is why coverage taken off a plan understates what the order actually does.
06 / Read this first
The things worth knowing before you place the order
-
The wrong product for the problem
Baffles are efficient, not magic. In a very tall volume the height above the baffle line still rings, and the honest answer is either more area or accepting a higher RT, not a denser panel.
-
Square footage quoted before the room is understood
Anyone can price a wall. Working out how much material the room actually needs usually reduces the order, which is why not everyone does it.
-
A claim of being local to San Francisco
We manufacture in India and supply here. We do not run an office in this city and we will not pretend to, because you would find out on the first site visit.
San Francisco: questions we are actually asked
Are these ceiling baffles and clouds made in San Francisco?
No, and we will not say otherwise. We manufacture at our own plant at Palwal in Haryana, India, and supply into San Francisco as the manufacturer rather than through a dealer. Made at our own plant in India and shipped into Oakland, across the bay, so the road leg to site is short. You buy at factory prices with one consistent batch across the order.
What changes the specification on a San Francisco job?
Light framed, over a century old, and divided into flats. Low frequency passes easily and footfall travels straight down. At local rates a wall growing into the room is a significant number. A dense thin membrane usually beats a thicker framed build-up on total cost. Those two things move the build-up far more than the panel figure does.
Is this the right material for San Francisco conditions?
San Francisco is mild summers and cold, wet winters. Cold external walls and long heating seasons make condensation behind a lining the thing to design out. PET felt is unaffected by damp air. The failure we design against here is condensation and cold bridging behind new linings.
How does an order actually travel to San Francisco?
ships from: Palwal, Haryana, India, arrives at: Oakland, then a short road run across the bay, dispatch: 4 to 7 working days. Standard items dispatch in 4 to 7 working days. The sea leg from India is long, so plan the full door to door window into the programme. We give real dates, not optimistic ones.
When are ceiling baffles and clouds the wrong purchase?
Baffles are efficient, not magic. In a very tall volume the height above the baffle line still rings, and the honest answer is either more area or accepting a higher RT, not a denser panel.
What is the minimum order and how is it packed?
The same 500 sq ft minimum applies on export. Baffles and clouds, 500 sq ft, about 46 sq m. Baffles and clouds are cut to the drawing, so the minimum is counted on finished panel area. Both faces of a hung baffle absorb, which is why coverage taken off a plan understates what the order actually does. Flat packed with fixings, sets labelled by row so the install sequence matches the drawing.
Next step
Send the drawings, get a straight answer
A plan and a section is enough. We will come back with a build-up, a BOQ and a delivered date, and we will say so if what you are asking for will not work.