In a gymnasium seating thousands, the roar of a basketball game can reach 100 decibels. Sound reflection in the empty space pushes reverberation time to over 5 seconds—meaning every shout "lingers" five times before fading away. This acoustic disruption not only ruins the spectator experience but also undermines athletes’ focus and referees’ decision-making accuracy. As a pioneer in China’s acoustic materials sector, Earppie Acoustics leverages 19 years of industry expertise to deliver full-scenario acoustic solutions for landmark projects like the Beijing Winter Olympics Speed Skating Venue and Guangzhou International Sports & Performance Center, using innovative materials to solve acoustic challenges in large spaces.
Traditional solutions face key pain points: conventional sound-absorbing panels are prone to moisture damage and warping, and their aesthetics rarely align with the modern style of sports venues. Earppie’s solutions:
- Metal Perforated Sound-Absorbing Panels: Constructed with 304 stainless steel perforated sheets (6mm hole diameter, 25% perforation rate) paired with 50mm centrifugal glass wool. They achieve a sound absorption coefficient of ≥0.85 across the 125–4000Hz frequency range, with exceptional performance for human vocal frequencies (800–2000Hz). After retrofitting a Beijing gymnasium, reverberation time for audience cheers dropped from 6.2 seconds to 2.8 seconds, improving on-site commentary clarity by 40%.
- Wood-Grain Polyester Fiber Panels: Made from pressed, eco-friendly PET fibers, with customizable 3D wood-grain textures. Formaldehyde emissions measure just 0.01mg/m³ (vs. China’s national E1 standard of 0.124mg/m³). For a Guangzhou middle school gymnasium, 2,000m² of light walnut-grain panels met acoustic needs while creating a warm, natural athletic atmosphere.
Earppie’s innovative water-based acoustic coating forms a 2–3mm porous structure via high-pressure spraying, boosting construction efficiency by 3x compared to traditional panels. After application in a Shanghai badminton hall, high-frequency reflections from racket impacts decreased by 22dB. Athletes noted: “The sound of racket-on-ball is clearer, making it easier to judge landing positions accurately.”
Gymnasiums typically have ceilings over 15 meters high, making traditional suspended ceiling ineffective at targeting overhead echo sources. Earppie’s 3D solutions:
- Honeycomb Sound Absorber Arrays: Independently developed, these absorbers feature a three-layer structure (aluminum frame + glass wool blanket + sound-permeable fabric). Each 1.2m×1.2m×0.5m module is suspended 3 meters below the roof, absorbing 65% of overhead reflected sound. After installing 800 units at Shenzhen Universiade Center Gymnasium, reverberation time in the main venue improved from 5.8 seconds to 2.5 seconds—meeting international competition standards (ISO 3382-2:2008).
- Smart Retractable Acoustic Ceilings: Designed for multi-purpose venues, these retractable acoustic curtains stay hidden when not in use (preserving ceiling height). For concerts, 50mm-thick polyester fiber curtains lower, working with overhead LED strips to enhance both acoustic performance and stage visuals. A Guangzhou university gymnasium uses this system to dynamically adjust reverberation time between 3.2 seconds (basketball games) and 1.8 seconds (cultural performances).
Traditional aluminum doors/windows leak up to 15dB of sound—equivalent to leaving a window ajar. Earppie’s precision solutions:
- Triple-Layer Acoustic Door & Window Systems: Custom acoustic windows use triple-pane insulated glass (8mm+12A+6mm+12A+5mm configuration) paired with multi-cavity broken-bridge aluminum frames. Gaps between frames and walls are sealed with Earppie’s proprietary butyl rubber strips, achieving a measured sound insulation rating of 42dB (reducing street noise from 75dB to 33dB). For a Hangzhou gymnasium adjacent to an elevated highway, this system keeps indoor noise below 45dB—ideal for professional training.
- Smart Seal Monitoring Systems: Embedded pressure sensors detect sound leaks exceeding 5dB from door/window gaps, triggering inflatable sealing strips to expand and reinforce the seal in 0.5 seconds. This technology is used in a national training base gymnasium to counter strong wind noise during typhoons.
Overlooked details: Sneaker friction can reach 65dB, while barbell impacts spike to over 110dB. Earppie’s layered solutions:
- Shock-Absorbing Acoustic Flooring: Features a three-layer structure (elastic base + acoustic felt + sound-absorbing top layer). The base uses 10mm-thick EPDM rubber granules, the middle layer 3mm self-adhesive acoustic felt, and the top layer optional sports PVC or solid wood composite flooring. Testing shows this reduces footstep noise by 28dB and barbell impact noise by 45dB.
- Smart Sensor Mats: Embedded in strength training areas, these mats detect equipment impacts over 80dB, triggering wall-mounted acoustic modules to adjust angles and form temporary sound barriers. This protects athletes’ hearing and prevents interference with adjacent spaces.
- Duct Silencing Solutions: Ventilation ducts use “impedance composite mufflers” with Earppie’s patented folded acoustic sheets (50mm thick, 0.92 absorption coefficient). Duct exteriors are wrapped in closed-cell rubber insulation (thermal conductivity: 0.03W/(m·K); sound insulation: 18dB), reducing HVAC noise from 68dB to 42dB.
- Equipment Vibration Damping: Earppie’s proprietary combination of spring shock absorbers and rubber vibration pads (vertical stiffness: 0.2N/mm; horizontal stiffness: 0.3N/mm) controls vibration transmission from fans, pumps, and other equipment to below 0.05—eliminating structure-borne noise at the source.
As one of China’s few companies with end-to-end capabilities (acoustic design → material R&D → construction & calibration), Earppie built South China’s first gymnasium acoustic simulation lab. Using 3D sound field modeling, it accurately predicts key metrics (reverberation time, sound field uniformity) during the design phase. By 2025, the team has completed over 500 gymnasium acoustic retrofits, achieving an average noise reduction of 38dB and an 87% customer repurchase rate.
“For Earppie, gymnasium acoustic treatment is not a simple accumulation of materials—it’s a dialogue between space, sound, and people,” says Li Minghui, Earppie’s Acoustic Design Director. “When cheers aren’t distorted by echoes, and sneaker friction becomes a rhythmic beat, the true beauty of sports shines through.”
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