SoundScoop helps create Passivhaus school

Ventilation manufacturer Passivent has supplied its SoundScoop acoustic cross-talk attenuators for use in a new primary school in Wales designed and constructed to meet Passivhaus standards and achieve a BREEAM Excellent rating.

Ysgol Penbre (Pembrey School) near Llanelli was designed by Carmarthenshire County Council as part of its multi-million pound Modernising Education Programme in collaboration with the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme.

At just 320mm high, the SoundScoop units are accommodated within the bulkheads that supply the rooms with fresh air, which can also be heated or cooled, via a centralised air-handling plant. The units then passively exhaust air back out into the central circulation space for it to be extracted, tempered and redistributed back into the classrooms by the main air-handling plant. 

Passive in operation, the system requires no mains power supply or maintenance. It is said to combine exceptional acoustic attenuation with very low airflow resistance enabling cross-flow ventilation between internal spaces of a building and, in the case of schools, compliance with both Building Bulletin 93 (acoustic design of schools) and Building Bulletin 101 (ventilation, thermal comfort and indoor air quality in schools). SoundScoops can also be fitted with a fire damper (by others) in fire walls to satisfy fire regulations.

Providing technical support both at the design and installation stages, the Passivent team worked closely with project partners Bullock Consulting (Mechanical and Electrical Consultants), specialist contractor Narbeths Mechanical Services, and local contractor TRJ (Betws).

Sian James, from Bullock Consulting, said: “The unique design of the SoundScoop made it the perfect choice for attenuating noise between the classrooms and circulation spaces. As the system is passive in operation and requires no energy to operate, this contributed greatly to the sustainability goals for the school.”