The collective application of vibration isolation, acoustic absorbents, and structural decoupling measures throughout the elevator installation to reduce airborne and structure-borne noise levels in adjacent occupied spaces.
Full Definition
Elevator noise dampening (noise attenuation, acoustic treatment) is a multi-layer engineering strategy addressing the principal noise sources in a lift installation: (1) Machine room — anti-vibration mounts under bedplate, acoustic enclosure panels, resilient conduit supports (see elevator-machine-isolation); (2) Guide rails — rubber or polyurethane clip inserts in rail brackets decouple rail vibration from shaft walls; (3) Car and counterweight — roller guide shoes fitted with polyurethane tyres replace sliding shoes, eliminating metal-on-rail scraping; (4) Ropes and belts — rope tensioner weights and guide rings prevent rope resonance oscillation; (5) Door operators — brushless DC operators with soft-open/soft-close profiles reduce door slam noise; (6) Shaft walls — acoustic lining on internal shaft faces in residential buildings targets NR 30–35 curve in bedrooms per ISO 10052. Measurement and acceptance: BS EN ISO 10052 and EN 12354 framework; field measurements of impact sound and airborne sound insulation at commissioning. Typical acceptance criteria: elevator noise contribution ≤ 35 dB(A) LAeq in adjacent sleeping rooms.
