Change in Canada’s national building code—Assessing flanking sound transmission in concrete-masonry constructions

The proposed 2015 edition of the National Building Code of Canada sees a major change in sound insulation requirements. Instead of prescribing requirements for the separating assembly only (in terms of STC values), the Code now sets requirements for the sound insulation performance of the complete system (in terms of Apparent Sound Transmission Class (ASTC) values), including flanking sound transmission. The National Research Council Canada is actively supporting the change in the Code by conducting various projects with industry associations from different construction sectors, in order to provide tools, guidance, and the necessary data for compliance. This presentation focuses on a joint project between the National Research Council Canada and the Canadian Concrete Masonry Producers Association. In the project, the direct and flanking sound transmission in concrete masonry and hybrid building systems were investigated. For masonry walls in combination with concrete floors, the ASTC values were calculate...