PET Felt Panels for Offices: Reducing Echo in Open-Plan Workspaces

The open-plan acoustics problem

Open-plan offices have a well-documented acoustic problem. The combination of hard floors, glass partitions, exposed concrete or plasterboard ceilings, and large numbers of people talking and moving creates reverberant, noisy spaces where concentration is difficult and calls are hard to make. It's one of the most consistent complaints about modern office design.

PET felt wall panels are one of the primary tools for addressing this problem. Here's what they can and can't do in an office environment.

What PET felt panels contribute to office acoustics

In a typical modern open-plan office, the major acoustic surfaces are the floor (usually hard), the ceiling (often exposed concrete or a suspended grid with partial acoustic tiles), and the walls (glass, plasterboard, or brick). These surfaces reflect sound rather than absorbing it, which extends the reverberation time in the space - meaning sound persists for longer after it's produced, contributing to background noise levels and making speech less intelligible.

Installing PET felt panels on wall surfaces converts some of those reflective surfaces into absorptive ones. The effect is a measurable reduction in reverberation time and - subjectively - a noticeable improvement in how the space sounds. Conversations don't carry as far. Background noise is easier to ignore. The general sense of noisiness is reduced.

The degree of improvement depends on how much surface area is treated, the NRC of the panels used, and the existing acoustic conditions in the space. A rough guideline: covering 20 to 30 percent of wall surface area with panels achieving NRC 0.75 or above will produce a clearly audible improvement in a hard-surface open-plan office.

Where to position panels for maximum effect

Sound builds up most in corners and at reflective surfaces close to noise sources. For open-plan offices, positioning panels on the main perimeter walls - particularly those facing the desks and opposite the main glazing - gives the best return on area treated.

End walls of open-plan floors are particularly important. Sound from the entire floor length reflects off these walls and travels back through the space. Treating them absorbs that reflection at source.

If budget limits total panel area, prioritise the walls nearest to collaborative areas, phone booths, and high-activity zones. These generate the most noise and produce the most noticeable reflections.

PET felt panels as a design element in offices

The design flexibility of PET felt - its wide colour range, its ability to be cut into shapes, its clean visible finish - means it doesn't have to look like an acoustic fix. Contemporary office specifications increasingly treat PET felt panels as a deliberate design element rather than a remedial addition.

Large-format panels in a single colour aligned with the brand palette read as a considered design choice. CNC-cut panels with geometric patterns or company graphics add design interest. Colour blocking across different zones of an office can support wayfinding and zone identification while delivering acoustic treatment.

Large-format sheets for offices

Standard acoustic panel sizes (600 x 600 mm, 600 x 1200 mm, and similar) are appropriate for many office applications. For large uninterrupted wall areas, custom large-format PET felt sheets - available up to 3 m or more in length - reduce the number of visible joints and give a cleaner result. Custom sheets can be made to the exact height and width of a wall panel, eliminating the need to work out a tile grid on non-standard dimensions.

Installation in occupied offices

PET felt wall panels can be installed with mechanical fixing (screws, clips, or adhesive fixing rail systems) or with compatible adhesive. Both methods are quiet and produce minimal dust or disruption. Panels can typically be installed in a working office without requiring the space to be vacated - a significant practical advantage for retrofitting acoustic treatment into existing workplaces.

The material itself requires no curing time, produces no off-gassing after the initial period, and requires no maintenance beyond occasional cleaning with a soft brush or low-pressure vacuum.