Materials7 May 20265 min read
Acoustic Wall Panels That Don't Look Acoustic
Foam tiles solved sound and created an aesthetic problem. Perforated slat systems solve both — the maths of NRC ratings, explained without the lab coat.
Every restaurant knows the moment: the fit-out is beautiful, the booking book is full, and nobody can hear the person opposite. The retrofit — foam tiles, fabric clouds — usually costs the room its looks.
NRC is the number to hold onto. It describes how much sound a surface absorbs rather than reflects: 0.0 is a mirror for sound, 1.0 is an open window. Hard minimal rooms live near zero, which is why they roar.
A perforated slat wall works because the holes let sound into a chamber and the chamber keeps it. DECORA's acoustic profiles reach NRC ≤ 0.70 while reading, from two metres, as millwork. The sound treatment disappears into the design intent — which is the only place it ever belonged.
- acoustic wall panels
- NRC rating explained
- restaurant acoustics design
- acoustic slat wood panels