In busy kitchen environments, the noise from a fan or ventilation system can impact both staff comfort and overall workflow. We have recently launched our Turboflow Max to cover the key factors in kitchens, whilst also focussing on better sound performance.

Understanding the Difference: Fluctuating vs. Constant

To grasp the real impact of the Turboflow Max, it’s beneficial to understand how noise perception works. Our previous Turboflow fan used contra-rotating technology, where two sets of fans rotate in opposite directions. This is effective for high pressure generation, although this design leads to fluctuating noise patterns.

This type of fluctuating noise is more distracting to the human ear in comparison to constant sound. As humans, our brains are wired to detect sudden changes in noise; however we are able to “tune out” steady sound over time. In a kitchen environment, where focus is paramount, inconsistent noise can contribute to disruption and elevated stress levels.

The Solution: Single-Stage, Consistent Sound

In contrast, our Turboflow Max uses an advanced single-stage technology that produces a consistent, steady sound, whilst still creating that high pressure. While decibel levels provide a measure of noise, they don’t fully capture the quality or characteristics of the sound.

On paper, the overall decibel level of the Turboflow Max may be higher than that of the Turboflow model. However, the sound it generates is much more predictable and, therefore, easier for the brain to process and ignore. So despite higher dBA readings on paper, is much less intrusive in real-world environments.

Why Reduced Low-Frequency Noise Matters

Another crucial aspect of the Turboflow Max is its ability to reduce low-frequency noise. This is the kind of deep, rumbling noise that is often more intrusive and carries through the space. The single impeller design results in smoother air flow, which cuts down on these low-frequency fluctuations. For a team working hard in the kitchen, this means less of a bass-heavy noise profile and more of a manageable, steady hum.

A Balanced Approach

With the Turboflow Max, Elta has focussed on balancing the demands of both performance and acoustics. The new single-stage design delivers higher pressures with a simpler, more efficient mechanism, making it particularly suited for commercial kitchens, especially where carbon filters are used. It’s designed to be lightweight, easier to maintain, and capable of higher pressures, all while offering a shorter casing length for easier installation in tight spaces.

Key Benefits at a Glance

•  Reduced Low-Frequency Noise: The smoother airflow reduces intrusive noise and creates a more constant sound, contributing to a more pleasant working environment.
• Engineered for Performance: Delivers higher pressures with a simpler, more efficient design.
• Easier Maintenance and Cleaning: With shorter casing lengths, the Turboflow Max is lightweight and compact, built for ease of maintenance, making it more reliable for commercial kitchens operating in demanding environments.
• Variable Speed Drive Controllable: Allows for precise adjustment of airflow, giving greater control over ventilation performance to suit specific kitchen demands.
• Shorter Casing Lenths: Easier to install in tight spaces, making it adaptable to a wide range of commercial kitchen setups.

Setting the Standard in Kitchen Ventilation

At Elta, delivering cutting-edge ventilation solutions that not only meet but exceed industry standards.

Earlier this year, we also introduced our new Qube fan range, with the Qube HT engineered to handle temperatures of up to 120°C, making it another ideal choice for high-temperature applications such as commercial kitchens.

As sustainability becomes a key consideration in the hospitality industry, fans like the Turboflow Max and Qube are designed with future-proof features that ensure both environmental and economic benefits. By focusing on engineering excellence and user experience, we ensure that our fans don’t just meet ventilation demands but improve overall working conditions, making kitchens more productive, efficient, and comfortable.

View the Turboflow Max product page here.

About Acoustica

Since 1992, Acoustica has been providing leading noise control solutions to the HVAC market, along with quality service to customers across the UK. Our Colchester-based manufacturer of silencers, louvres, and enclosures has been a key part of many Elta projects, including those at New Children’s Hospital in Dublin and the Shell Cormorant Alpha Platform. Acoustica is also renowned for its acoustic measurement, modelling, and monitoring expertise.

Acoustica was acquired by Elta in 2016, with the view to support their future expansion and development, led by General Manager, Andy Milkins, and overseen by Damian Buxton, CEO of Elta.

By adding Acoustica into the Elta brand, we are acknowledging that as a business, we have transcended our previous capabilities, and it shows our full capability as a manufacturer of not only fans, but air handling units, controls and acoustic equipment too.

Pictured: Andy Milkins, General Manager (Left) & Damian Buxton, CEO of Elta UK (Right).

Specialising in both ventilation and acoustics, we can provide you with a comprehensive one-stop solution. From powerful ventilation systems to specialised noise control equipment, we simplify your projects with a unified approach, ensuring efficiency and excellence at every step. Our expertise in acoustics enables us to offer unparalleled guidance and support to solve complex noise issues.

Andy Milkins, General Manager at Acoustica, says: “We’ve been Elta’s acoustics division for eight years now, so this feels like the natural next step in our evolution. Acoustica’s values have always aligned with Elta’s and it’s great to be fully recognised as an integral part of providing the highest standard of air quality. Acoustica has grown a lot in the past eight years and we’re all very much looking forward to what the future holds for the new and improved Elta.”

Mark Rickard, CEO at Elta Group, said: “Elta is known as a provider of industry-leading ventilation. Noise management is a vital part of any high-quality ventilation system and, with Acoustica’s incredible track record of manufacturing the very best in noise control components, we’re excited to have them now under the growing Elta brand. Our business is increasingly well-equipped with a comprehensive portfolio of solutions and technical expertise to lead the charge on improving air quality throughout the built environment and the newly integrated Acoustica division is a major part of our ongoing success.”

www.eltauk.com/products/noise-control/

Noise Rating values for different sound pressure levels are tabulated below and are the established sound pressure levels at different frequencies. Noise Ratings are then used to specify the maximum permissable sound power level at each frequency by selecting a single Noise Rating (NR) number. The use of Noise Rating – NR – is widespread across Europe.

Noise Criterion or NC levels are a different set of values developed for the same purpose, the use of Noise Criterion (NC) is mainly used in North America.

Noise Rating Values (dB)

Recommended Noise Ratings

The table indicates recommended Noise Rating specifications for some common interior room applications.
For advice on how to specify or achieve the recommendations please contact us.

Download this page as a printable pdf!

Modern Methods of Construction and offsite initiatives are growing exponentially across the UK. To highlight this, earlier this year, the Crown Commercial Services selected 29 firms to be part of the £10bn Offsite Construction Solutions framework, with public sector buildings across healthcare, education, justice and defence all expected to swing toward modular construction.

Our Prefabricated Solutions service is an ideal solution for specifiers and contractors working on commercial building projects of any scale. Fans and ancillaries, such as acoustic equipment, mounts, panels, flexible connections, fan controls and more, can all be assembled offsite and delivered as a compliant assembly, ready for crane lifting that results in quick, efficient installation. The ventilation and air movement manufacturer is one of the first in its sector to offer this across its entire range of fans.

Colin Moss, Car Park & Smoke Control Manager, has pioneered the service and elaborates on the multiple benefits specifiers and contractors can gain by going down the prefabricated assembly route. He said: “Installing individual components on-site can be a cumbersome and time sensitive task. It requires ample storage and working space, leading to congestion on busy sites and increasing the potential for site safety issues. The collection and assembly of various parts can also be time-consuming, causing delays to projects.

“Not only this, but site time is costly, and labour costs can quickly add up when dealing with unnecessarily complex, site installations. With Prefabricated Solutions by Elta, these challenges are a thing of the past, and you can manage these expenses and have better quality control of the finished product.”

A key benefit of the new service is the provision of sound and performance data associated with acoustics ancillaries. For all acoustics components in the fan setup, acoustic performance data is also supplied at the initial stages from our Noise Control Specialists to help simplify the process for specifiers and contractors, so they do not need to re-select or re-calculate separately were they sourcing these components from elsewhere.

This service means units are built to the highest standards within a controlled factory environment. We hold ISO 9001 accreditation for quality management, guaranteeing that finished products are reliable, durable, and ready on time.

Luke Hammond, Applications Specialist (Smoke and Fire), explains that prefabricated assembly of fans also unlocks a host of other benefits. These include a more streamlined design process, offering simpler compliance with both ‘The Golden Thread’ and environmental requirements while reducing disruption to the local community, and other related site activities.

“Gone are the days of waiting for single components to be delivered to the site, which can get lost or damaged while other elements of the project are in transit. With our Prefabricated Solutions service, all necessary components are packaged together, ensuring a hassle-free delivery,” said Luke.

“Preassembled units also mean other costly, disruptive activities on-site, such as crane lifting and road closures, can be minimised. Shipping materials like pallets, packaging and strapping is all reduced as well, and with better overall coordination, Prefabricated Solutions allows workforces to focus on boosting productivity in other areas.”

For more about our Prefabricated Solutions service, visit eltauk.com/prefabricated-solutions

With space in commercial buildings at a premium and the distance between commercial and residential buildings closing at a growing rate, noise control is playing a more prominent role than ever before.

Despite the growing importance of noise control, building regulations for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are yet to include mandatory requirements for the acoustic performance of commercial buildings.

BS 8233:2014

Instead, sound insulation guidance for commercial buildings is covered in BS 8233:2014, which deals with the control of noise from outside the building, noise from plant and services within it, and room acoustics for non-critical situations.

As you will probably be aware, BS 8233 is a code of practice that is intended for use by non-specialist designers and constructors of buildings and those concerned with building control, planning and environmental health. The code suggests appropriate criteria and limits for different situations, which are primarily planned to guide the design of new or refurbished buildings undergoing a change of use.

The British Council for Offices (BCO) Guide to specification 2009 also provides essential acoustic guidance for external noise intrusion, internal noise and noise from building services. But, in the absence of any real mandatory requirements, it raises the question of what factors need to be considered before a noise reduction method is selected? Find out the answer with Elta right here.

Andy Milkins, General Manager at Colchester – part of the Elta Group, has taken time out of his busy schedule to discuss the influencing factors of Noise Control.

Influential factors

In reality, the acoustic needs of specific commercial buildings go a lot further than the guidelines suggested by the British Council for Offices; meaning that every application needs to be looked at separately.

The practical measures for an office, bank, shop, court room or distribution centre, for example, are all very different and must be managed by varying acoustic attenuation methods if the exacting demands are to be achieved.

Additional considerations need to be added into the mix when residential and commercial co-exist in the same structure, such as apartments sitting above retail facilities.

All things taken into account

Effective acoustic management can only be achieved when all of the specific considerations are taken into account, which include:

• Sound Insulation; the passage of sound between buildings, from street to a room, from room to room or between floors.
• Reverberation; a re-echoed sound that is persistent after its source has stopped, which is caused by reflection of the sound within a closed space. Reverberation can be controlled with the specification of suitable wall, floor and ceiling finishes. It is crucial that the reverberation of sound is controlled in spaces where speech intelligibility is important, such as in meeting rooms.
• Ambience; correct specification of materials can significantly affect the acoustic performance of the space and the ambience that is created. This is particularly the case in large open spaces such as car show-rooms, in areas with large hard surfaces and in stores where the quality of music and/or PA system is important.
• External noise intrusion; any external noise in your surroundings created by people and the nearby environment.

Find out more about our Noise Control Solutions.