Room acoustics and hygiene: A perfect union

Discover the benefits of this new product for architects, clients and planners in an interview with fire protection specialist Marcel Lutz from Gantenbein + Partner AG in St. Gallen.  Mr Lutz, as a fire protection specialist and construction manager, you know the challenges of safe construction from different perspectives. What are the biggest challenges in your everyday life? Marcel Lutz: As a fire protection specialist, communication with the client is often challenging. On the one hand, the objective is to keep costs low, and on the other hand the fire protection aspect is often not planned in detail until it is too late. Any project must, without fail, comply with fire protection standards, but the later a fire protection specialist is involved, the more complicated the planning process becomes. What are your responsibilities as a fire protection specialist? A fire protection specialist is responsible for quality assurance with regard to fire protection and ensures that the framework conditions specified in the fire protection guidelines are adhered to. Fire protection guidelines are likely to be particularly comprehensive for projects using wood as a building material. In terms of fire protection, building with wood is of course always particularly challenging. For escape route surfaces, for example, Switzerland generally applies the standard RF1 – ‘non-combustible’. This is more difficult to achieve with wood than with solid masonry construction. Customised solutions that are only implemented retrospectively on the building site are even more complex. As a general rule, important details must be taken into account when it comes to fire protection. Akustik & Raum AG, who have already successfully implemented projects with you, are now launching the FeinMicro Secure fire protection solution, which has been tested by the association. What do you think about the new possibilities this opens up with wood as a building material? Wooden acoustic elements that meet the Swiss fire protection standard RF1 and also the highest EU standards open up exciting possibilities in the planning and execution of new buildings. This solution enables, for example, escape routes that fit seamlessly into the architecture of the building. In addition to safety aspects, this also offers aesthetic and planning advantages: Until now, a change of material for escape routes required an additional interface and an additional contact person at the construction site. A complete solution for interiors and escape routes eliminates this constraint – a welcome change.  In your opinion, what are the biggest advantages of using wood in construction? It is a pleasure to work with wood. Wood is a renewable material and offers many advantages in architecture. Wood is the first choice when the work has to be accurate down to the millimetre. Tolerances in solid masonry construction are one or several centimetres, depending on the length. Wood allows you not only to plan with precision, but also to construct it that way. When everything fits, it is a pleasure for observers as well.  For which project did you collaborate with Akustik & Raum AG? We worked with Akustik & Raum AG to fully line a 360° cinema with acoustic elements for the visitor exhibition of a company in Appenzell Ausserrhoden. We found ideal solutions despite the challenging conditions. The space was a two-storey room with around 40 windows, which had to meet the same visual requirements as the walls. Akustik & Raum AG produced shutters with the same look as the acoustic elements – an individually tailored solution for the customer. The 360° cinema was opened in the summer of 2021.  FeinMicro Secure The innovative FeinMicro Secure fire protection solution offers planners, architects and consumers new design freedom. Due to the fulfilment of the strictest EU standards (EN 13501-1, A2 – s1, d0), wood can be used safely as a building material as never before. Experience room acoustics in a new way and feel free to contact us for more information.

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Akustik & Raum AG presents FeinMicro Secure, a fire protection innovation developed in-house. This composite fire protection solution sets new standards and opens up new possibilities for wood as a building material – without compromising on safety.  Wood is a popular building material. It radiates warmth and is a sustainable material with very versatile properties. Until now, stringent fire protection regulations have made it difficult to implement building projects where wood was the preferred material for aesthetic and ecological reasons. For these projects, the FeinMicro Secure innovation developed by Akustik & Raum will offer exciting new possibilities in the future – without compromising on safety.  Wood is now as versatile as your building projects As a composite fire protection solution, FeinMicro Secure allows new design latitude. Due to the fulfilment of the strictest EU standards (EN 13501-1, A2 – s1, d0), wood can be used safely as a building material as never before. For planners, architects, clients and consumers, this means that wood is now as versatile as their building projects. This allows sensitive areas of buildings, such as escape routes, to be integrated seamlessly into the architecture.  Experience room acoustics in a new way – with safety In addition to its excellent fire protection properties, FeinMicro Secure offers unique sound absorption thanks to its eponymous micro-perforations – with 467,000 holes per square metre. This makes the latest product within the MAKUSTIK system ideal for improving room acoustics in small and large rooms, while meeting a wide range of requirements in terms of material and aesthetics. Contact us to find out more about innovative FeinMicro Secure fire protection and to experience room acoustics in a new way – with safety. Find out more about FeinMicro Secure and read the interview with fire protection specialist Marcel Lutz from Gantenbein + Partner AG in St. Gallen. 

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By combining FeinMikro, veneer, geometry and light, our MAKUSTIK FeinMikro optimized the room acoustics. In addition to the auditory experience also a pleasure for the eye. We thank the building owner, architects and the executing carpenter for the use of MAKUSTIK products in this beautiful project. Display in LinkedIn

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