In today’s fast-paced work environment, noise in open-plan offices significantly impacts employees’ productivity and well-being, leading to increased stress levels and decreased job satisfaction.

Open plan offices have several intended benefits, such as enhancing collaboration and quick communication in the workplace.

However, due to the lack of separation within open plan offices as well as the amount of people sharing one space (depending on the size of your company), noise problems can be common, and this can cause problems for some employees.

For example, persistent noise distractions can have a negative impact on focus, lowering productivity and increasing the chances of employees making errors.

In addition, constant noise in the office can have negative effects on employees’ mental health, causing stress and fatigue. This can lower employee morale and negatively affect retention.

In this article, we’ll give you some practical tips and strategies to help you reduce noise in open-plan offices, enhancing the work environment for all employees.

Understanding the Sources of Noise in Open Plan Offices

The first step in reducing the noise in your open plan office is identifying the source of noise.

A few common sources of noise in open offices include conversations, phone calls, people involved in online meetings, and office equipment. If there are lots of people in one space, this can create quite a persistent level of noise.

Figuring out the most prominent noise in your office will help you start to work towards reducing this noise. For example, if the noise is mostly from meetings and phone calls, this can be reduced by adding pods or booths for anyone taking phone calls or doing online meetings.

It’s important to note that  employees prefer to work in quiet environments, as this can promote concentration and productivity. Therefore, having constant noise in the office can negatively affect employees’ wellbeing and output as well as causing stress and fatigue, which will in turn have a negative impact on business operations and could lead to a higher level of employee turnover.

General Noise Reduction Strategies

Acoustic Panels

Firstly, acoustic panels can be set up around an open plan office to create clear zones for people who are taking phone calls or having conversations.

By adding these to the office, people can talk in private, without disrupting the rest of the office.

Flooring Choices

One of the things many people don’t consider when it comes to noise levels is the flooring used in the office.

For example, carpets are generally better at absorbing sound, especially vibration-based noises such as footsteps and equipment noise. Thick carpets can also reduce the amount of reverberation and echo in a space, which can significantly help reduce the ambient sound in an office.

Conversely, hard floors are more likely to create echoes and reverberation, and footsteps are likely to be harsher and more distracting.

This is why, if you’re looking to reduce the noise in your open plan office, choosing a thicker carpet could help.

Furniture Arrangement

Finally, strategically placing furniture in certain areas of an open plan office can help compartmentalise the space into different zones.

For example, having a quiet zone for focussed work means that employees can go there to avoid distractions and be left alone.

Personal Solutions for Employees

Noise-Cancelling Headphones

For employees struggling to block out the background noise in the office, providing noise-cancelling headphones can make them feel looked after and cared for, as well as helping to boost their productivity.

Some headphones offer adjustable settings that allow users to block out specific levels of sound, ensuring that they can still communicate easily with others if needed.

This can help employees focus on their work, especially if you are unable to reduce the natural levels of background noise in the office.

Quiet Zones

As we explained above, quiet zones are great for employees who need to focus on work without any collaboration or communication.

Setting up pods or cubicles for these situations can prove useful, giving employees a place to go to signal to others that they are in deep focus mode.

Personal Sound Machines

Another great option for when you can’t reduce the overall background noise is providing employees with a personal sound machine.

These machines emit white noise or nature sounds, which can be used to mask disruptive sounds, making them ideal for busy, open plan office environments.

Creating a Collaborative Culture with Noise Awareness

Establishing Office Etiquette

A big part of reducing noise in an open plan environment is ensuring that all employees follow a certain etiquette to ensure no one is overwhelmed by the workspace.

For example, suggesting guidelines for maintaining noise levels such as asking everyone to use softer voices could help reduce overall sound in the office.

Scheduled Quiet Hours

Another approach to reducing human noise in an open plan office could be setting up scheduled quiet hours.

Whether it’s for an hour per day or more, having time set aside for employees to have quiet time to focus on their individual work can be beneficial for all.

This can especially help neurodiverse employees and those who struggle with loud noises, improving productivity and overall wellbeing for these employees, as well as helping regulate their mental health.

Team Awareness Training

A final way to incorporate employees in your efforts to reduce office noise is by offering noise awareness training.

In this training, you can educate employees about the impacts loud noises can have on people in the workplace, as well as suggesting some ways they can help reduce the noise themselves and maintain respectful practices.

This way, everyone can feel involved in the cause when you’re trying to reduce office noise.

Technological Solutions for Noise Reduction

Sound Masking Systems

If you’re looking to spend a bit more money to reduce noise in your open plan office, sound masking systems could be the way to go.

Sound masking systems emit a low-level background noise which is usually a mix of white or pink noise, helping mask distracting noises.

These systems work within specific frequency ranges, meaning they reduce distractions without being intrusive.

Noise-Reduced Office Equipment

Additionally, it could be worth considering quieter models of equipment, including printers, copiers and laptops.

This could be as simple as ensuring that noise level is part of your decision-making process when it comes to choosing office equipment.

For example, if you’re choosing between two laptop models for a new employee, perhaps prioritise the fan noise as part of your final decision.

This can all significantly help you reduce the noise in your open plan office environment.

Monitoring your Office Noise

When it comes to monitoring noise levels in your office, you can use sound level metres to achieve this.

Sound level metres are portable devices which are generally used to measure noise levels of a space in decibels, helping you record current levels in your office as a starting point.

Management and Design Interventions

Office Space Redesign

One of the main ways you can reduce the noise in your office is by reconfiguring your office layout.

For example, you can still keep the majority of your office space open plan, whilst adding in some meeting or focussed work rooms for when the situation requires it.

This way, you can keep clients and employees satisfied and productive while they’re in your office.

Greenery and Biophilic Design

Biophilic design – the concept of bringing the outside in through interior design – can also help you reduce the noise in your open plan office.

Plants and natural materials can absorb or deflect sound, especially higher-frequency noises such as conversations, ringtones and keyboard clicking.

Thus, as well as improving employee wellbeing and the office’s aesthetic appeal, adding greenery to the office could also help reduce noise.

Feedback from Employees

The most important thing to keep in mind when reducing the noise in your open plan office is getting feedback from your employees.

Noise reduction is for the benefit of your employees, at the end of the day, so it’s important to ensure that you’re consistently checking in with them and understanding their thoughts on the current noise levels in the office.

Employees might also be able to suggest alternative noise reduction solutions you might not have considered yet, which is another reason as to why employee feedback is essential to your noise reduction strategy.

How you can Reduce Noise in an Open Plan Office Environment

To summarise, it’s essential to address the noise levels in your open plan office, even if this just means establishing whether these levels are too high.

Sound monitoring can both help you achieve this, but employees’ opinions and feelings around noise levels are essential in helping you understand the current situation.

We’ve had a look at some of the ways to reduce noise levels, from flooring choices and sound panels to noise-cancelling headphones and sound masking systems. All of these can be used either individually or together to ensure your office is a safe and comfortable environment in which your employees are productive and creative.