India is the land of BPOs and call centers, and honestly, there is no place on earth that is noisier and more hectic than an Indian telephone call center. Hundreds of operators lined up in cubicles attempting to speak with clients – all at the same time – their voices echoing off the walls, floor, ceiling and desks creating what only can be described as a cacophony at the grandest scale. The excessive noise and prevalent reverberant field make it difficult to communicate with clients and almost impossible to receive instructions from superiors without spilling everywhere. To compensate for the room noise, voices are raised and the problem exacerbates. After a few hours, efficiency begins to decline and at the end of a long day employees and managers are exhausted, frustrated and eventually quit due to elevated stress caused by the inhospitable environment. Containing the noise adds another challenge as adjoining meeting rooms or administrative offices are subjected to spill from the noise traveling through the customary cheap T-Bar POP ceiling into the plenum and offices next door. This not only causes disruption, it also limits privacy when discussing sensitive matters.
How can Aural Exchange help you?
Reducing the noise inside the call center is easily done by treating 15% to 25% the available wall surface with Nankarrow GeoDeco acoustic panels. These high-performance panels are made from high-density polyester fiber and are highly effective at absorbing sound in the voice range. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes to create a modern seamless architectural look to the room. Mounting them is as easy as putting up a picture. For ceilings, Nankarrow GeoWool acts like magic and sucks up all the reverberation. In rooms with high ceilings, ceiling clouds may be suspended above noisy areas to help confine the problem. Should noise traveling into adjacent offices need to be controlled, we have immediate remedies. These combine the same high-density mineral wool for best absorption with a heavy Magnesium Oxide backing board to block sound. Our ceiling panels easily fit into an existing T-Bar system without the need for special tools. Once installed, they will immediately quiet down the excess reverberation and create a much more comfortable space. This will reduce workplace stress, improve communication between clients and staff, and reduce absenteeism due to excessive exposure to loud noise.
Ambient Noise vs Volume
In addition to absorbing reverberation, our solutions also work by creating a quieter environment. Becuase of this, executives stop raising their voice levels to hear themselves talk over the din. Most call center headsets are very sensitive and do not require the operator to speak at loud volumes. The biggest benefit is that the client on the other side of the phone stops hearing ambient noise from the call center.
Note: The biggest enemy is one sided headsets. If the headset has an earpiece that covers only one ear, the other ear is left exposed to hear and be distracted by other conversations in the area. To compensate for this, operators will raise their voice level. So will other operators in response – and so on and so on. We have what is often referred to as the “cocktail party effect”. Decibel escalation. Competition for air time. Drop the one sided headset and switch to stereo headsets for your team.
Executive Summary
- Less ambient noise, improves intelligibility and communication
- Employees are less tired and more productive when at work
- A more comfortable working environment reduces turn-over
- Panels may be used to confine or even contain noise
- Improves privacy and safeguards sensitive information