THE SOUND OF SILENCE: REMOVABLE ACOUSTIC BLANKET INSULATION FOR TRANE CHILLERS

Jul 20, 2022 | Shannon Blog

Removable acoustic blanket insulation is proven to reduce noise levels for a variety of equipment (including TRANE® Chillers) at office buildings, high-rise apartments, and manufacturing plants. Oftentimes, the goal of noise reduction is meeting OSHA and/or zoning laws. In fact, meeting zoning requirements was top of mind for a building owner who recently installed a Trane Chiller at a high-rise building.

The building engineer said the Trane chiller was a great replacement for what the maintenance team was looking for. But unlike the old chiller, which was installed before the local government tightened the neighborhood building code’s acoustic levels, the newly installed liquid chiller had to meet a much higher bar for acoustic requirements. According to people familiar with the project, without some modification, no liquid chiller would meet the stringent acoustic requirements for this locality.

To meet the required threshold for dBA on this project, the installation team used a removable and reusable sound package of acoustic blanket insulation. With the acoustic blankets installed on the liquid chiller, the project team reduced the machine’s sound signature by 8 dBA.

Achieving an 8-dBA reduction in sound requires blanket insulation designers who can produce an acoustic insulation package to exacting specifications and standards like the Shannon Model LT250A-VP blanket, specifically tailored for Trane’s 300-ton, air-cooled screw chiller. HVAC contractors routinely install the LT250A-VP at high-rise buildings and other facilities. These CAD-designed and CNC-manufactured acoustic insulation blankets are ideally suited for a Trane chiller’s compressors, piping, and economizer.

 

Sound reduction and reusability

Designing a removable and reusable acoustic blanket that reduces sound energy is only half the battle. Even the best removable insulation system is worthless if it isn’t reused. If a maintenance worker takes off the insulation to service equipment and can’t easily replace the blanket, then the facility owner risk fines associated with zoning or safety requirements.

Poorly made insulation often gets thrown away, too, and new material purchased, which wastes money. For the liquid chiller project mentioned above, the contractor putting in place the acoustic insulation blankets expressed how easy it was to install the kit and how satisfied they were with how Shannon labeled, sized, and assembled the insulation blankets.

Whether it’s a chiller, compressor, exhaust ducting, or sound curtain, adhering to specifications is what guides designers to create insulation systems with the high-density needled fiberglass to absorb sound in a remarkable way. When a blanket is custom fit to existing conditions, installers and maintenance teams can maximize noise reduction for any application.

The objective with a properly fitted reusable acoustic insulation blanket is to focus on the 800 to 4,000 Hz peak sound levels and shave off the high-frequency sound to reduce chiller noise or noise emanating from any other type of component. To ensure this happens with Shannon’s Acoustic Blankets, the company’s designers make sure the product meets test standards ASTM-E1222 and ISO-15665, while reducing sound by 4 to 10 dBA.

Plant managers can also use acoustic blanket insulation to lower sound levels emanating from a range of equipment in factories to reduce the noise energy and improve workplace safety. Because of their design and durability Shannon acoustic sound kits are the industry standard for many commercial and industrial applications.

Contact us today with questions about the benefits of acoustic insulation, or if you would like help with reducing noise at your facility.