National Physical Laboratory

Acoustics Consultancy

Industry and academia can gain access to a wide range of facilities and expertise via tailored consultancy services provided across the broad field of acoustics. 

NPL has one of the largest UK research groups in acoustics and many experts in the group are leaders in their field. Clients can access this expertise directly, through our range of specialised consultancy services that are adapted according to the customer's specific requirements.

Consultancy services can be carried out in our range of acoustic facilities or on-site, as required by the application. Please note that NPL does not perform routine acoustical surveys or noise measurements, as these services are readily available commercially.

Examples and case studies of consultancy services offered by the three science areas in Acoustics are listed below. Most of these can be customised to suit individual requirements.

General

  • Finite element modelling of transducers and other acoustic/mechanical structures
  • Design of bespoke acoustical calibration systems (e.g. primary and secondary calibration facilities of other national laboratories)
  • Design of specialised acoustical facilities
  • Development of novel measurement techniques to solve specific problems
  • Development of instrumentation
  • Provision of acoustics experts for education / training purposes
  • Provision of information on acoustic standards and likely future developments.

Sound in Air

  • Bespoke measurements (sound power, absorptivity, wind noise on microphones)
  • Assessment of microphones, sound level meters, loudspeakers and other transducers
  • Speech recording
  • Subjective audio evaluation
  • Legislative noise monitoring for architectural planning and environmental noise monitoring
  • Machinery and product noise
  • Acoustic characterisation and quality

Ultrasound

  • Hydrophone field characterisation at intensities up to therapy levels
  • Acoustic power measurement from 5 mW to beyond 500 W by radiation force and, for strongly focused fields, by buoyancy change method
  • Thermal 3D field mapping
  • Ultrasound induced temperature rise measurement in test phantoms, using thin film thermocouples and tissue mimicking gels
  • Material properties measurements

Underwater Acoustics

  • Measurement of underwater radiated noise
  • Assessment of accuracy in acoustic measurements
  • Transducer capability testing
  • Detector characterisation

Contact

Customer Service tel: 020 8943 8631
Email: acoustics_enquiries@npl.co.uk