Korea Land & Housing Corp. (LH) is realizing its mission to introduce noise-proof apartment units to residents in the country as noise disturbances caused by neighbouring residents in an apartment or residential building — sometimes causing conflicts that lead to fatal casualties — has been a chronic issue, according to the state-run public housing provider.
The company under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport plans to introduce LH’s “first-grade” noise-proof technology to newly designed apartment buildings starting in the second half of the next year. By further advancing the technologies, LH said it will be able to reduce costs of implementing the technology in any apartment construction project and prevent it from becoming a financial burden to those wishing to live in a quiet, "library-like" apartment unit.
At the core of the technologies are advancing qualities of cushioning materials and mortar above a concrete slab so that any noise that transmits through a floor becomes low enough to be almost inaudible. LH anticipates that with the technologies, noises that transmit through floors below will be 37 decibels or lower.
According to LH’s noise categories, establishing soundproofing of 37 decibels or lower are first-grade quality, while 37-41 are second grade, 41-45 third grade and 45-49 fourth grade. Any sound above that can be unbearable for apartment units below.
Lowering apartment noise requires raising the density of cushioning materials and mortar. Using high-quality materials for the sections helps, but they pull up the overall construction costs.
Another method is raising slab thickness from the current minimum of 21 centimetres to 25 centimetres. Installing water pipes within each apartment unit instead of through a floor to lower units is another way to achieve the purpose.
Implementing those technologies can achieve first-grade noise-proof quality, according to LH. In existing apartments in the country with fourth-grade quality, density of cushioning materials and mortar is low and the slab is no thicker than 21 centimetres.
There is more than one way to improve density of cushioning materials and mortar. Not only LH but private construction companies are doing research for the same purpose, having introduced different solutions. LH has selected six of them and, by adding its own technologies, it plans to commercialize the solutions for new apartment construction projects starting next year.
The facility will be completed next March. LH said it will enable noise-proof technologies’ certification in the country to take less than six months. Currently, the process takes more than a year.
DB35Lab will be open to private companies so that it can provide support particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises with low budgets by allowing them to test their own technologies and share LH’s own advancements as well.
