Study on Noise Perception and Distraction in Office

Very much like Tokyo, Hong Kong is a densely populated city. Over 70% of gross floor area on non domestic buildings whether new built or alteration work in Hong Kong are for commercial purpose (Building Department 2007). The demand is continue to grow. Acoustics issues such as noise in the office remains one of the most prevalence annoying source in office whether in enclosed or in open plan office. Such noise issues, some how affect productivity, and had generated dissatisfaction at some level and they were not very well understood, and seldom put into discussion for acoustic improvement in the process of a design project. There is very little information on noise perception in offices provided in Hong Kong since there is less Post Occupancy Evaluation was carried out to understand acoustic quality in most offices in Hong Kong. A study on understanding on what the noise is, with or without content and their relationship with spatial and physical attributes in regards with end users is essential. A field study and survey on the satisfactory on acoustic issues and quality were conducted for analysis and result and to inform potential solutions on space planning.