Okumura-gumi and Teijin announced that their jointly developed wood-based hybrid sound-insulating panel substantially reduces the transmission of floor-impact noise through a combination of carbon fibre and wood, improving sound-insulation performance by 4 grades.
As the use of wood increases in construction, the ease with which floor-impact noise travels has become a challenge. Okumura-gumi and Teijin have jointly developed a new sound-insulating panel. Unlike conventional methods, the panel is designed to increase rigidity rather than mass.
The key development was to combine carbon fibre and wood to achieve rigidity exceeding that of plywood. This improves sound insulation by dispersing impact forces.
Full-scale testing showed a 22 dB improvement in sound-insulation performance in the 63 Hz band, exceeding the level of typical raised flooring. The panel is therefore expected to be effective in addressing floor-impact noise in wooden buildings.