Launched to address climate change and its devastating effects on our lives and environment, Ilmatar Windpower is a Finnish utility company dedicated to the supply of clean and affordable wind power as part of the drive to transition to renewable energy sources. The company recently moved to new headquarters in Helsinki, designed according to sustainable practices with the aim of achieving optimum efficiency and well-being.

A/V solutions specialist 4Business Oy handled design and implement all the A/V technologies for the new premises, which included a Smart IP audio solution from Genelec.

One of the greatest sound issues was presented by Ilmatar’s open workspaces – an open plan layout that invited disruptive noise in from elsewhere in the environment. Ilmatar was determined to create the most comfortable and efficient working environment possible in the open plan areas, and so paid great attention to sound behaviour in these spaces.

‘The lobby and open work areas, as well as the meeting rooms and offices, are all exceptionally well designed from an acoustic point of view, with excellent reverberation times,’ says Janne Lankinen of 4Business. ‘There are also absorbing screens between the desks, and the background noise caused by ventilation has been minimised. Nevertheless, while these measures help considerably, they cannot resolve the issue completely. To achieve optimum results, we designed and implemented a custom sound masking system – starting with a high quality audio solution – specifically tailored to Ilmatar’s requirements.’

Based on detailed coverage simulations, 4Business devised a comprehensive Genelec audio system comprising 204420 Smart IP loudspeakers distributed across two separate open spaces. ‘We selected Genelec’s Smart IP solution, as it met all of the client’s criteria for quality – both sonically and materially – as well as being the most sustainable audio solution available,’ Lankinen explains. The Smart IP technology platform delivers power, audio and control over a single CAT cable across a digital audio network – in this case, Dante – making them exceptionally easy to install and ensuring that the systems are fully scalable.

‘The site-wide loudspeaker system was individually measured with room acoustics analysis software and adjusted using Genelec’s Smart IP Manager software to ensure the most transparent audio reproduction possible,’ Lankinen continues. ‘Technical criteria aside, the fact that Genelec is a native Finnish brand and manufactured in Finland according to sustainable principles was also extremely important for Ilmatar.’

Implementation of the masking signal itself fell to Pyry Survo, sound designer and composer for global infrastructure company WSP. Survo designed the signal to be as pleasant and even as possible – an ambient background sound that mimics airflow and is specifically engineered to match the frequencies of human speech and to sound comfortable. The sound is audible but not intrusive and serves to reduce speech intelligibility in the surrounding environment. Nearby conversations or telephone calls are no longer a distraction, ensuring comfort and privacy for all concerned.

‘A high-quality sound system and careful spatial measurement of the audio signal avoided the “whoosh effect”, which is a problem with low-quality speakers and the wrong type of audio signal,’ Lankinen says. ‘The masking system generates a multichannel audio signal to avoid the sound distortion caused by differences in speaker distance that typically occurs with mono sound masking systems.’

In addition to the sound masking, Ilmatar wanted to create a unique atmosphere that reflects the company ethos of working with nature in order to preserve it. A generative soundscape – emulating a natural marine environment with sounds of the sea, seagulls, and of course, the wind – was created for the entrance lobby and implemented using a WSP multichannel soundscape player and eight Genelec 4430 Smart IP active loudspeakers. Virtual nature is created with algorithms that mimic the mechanisms and the timelines of the natural world so that the soundscape remains as authentic as possible and avoids playlist-like repetition. A soothing four-channel forest soundscape was also created for the café area, which is equipped with four Genelec 4430s in white.

‘Our goal was to create the best office in Finland for our staff, making full use of new technologies in terms of comfort and usabilityl,’ says Ilmatar Windpower VP and co-founder, Mikko Toivanen. ‘This was achieved by 4Business through consultative sales methods and technical expertise, ensuring an excellent end result. We are very pleased with the outcome and believe that we have one of the most comfortable offices in Finland.’

More: www.genelec.com