🏗️ Single-number quantities of airborne sound insulation (Rw, R′w, DnT,w, Dn,w, Dn,e,w and others) with spectrum adaptation terms C and Ctr — shifting the reference curve, one-third-octave or octave measurements, PN-EN ISO 717-1

Construction PN-EN ISO 717-1

Overview

WHAT THE STANDARD COVERS. We have a preview of ISO 717-1:2020 (fourth edition) — from the table of contents to Table 4 (page 6 of 26), cut off in the middle of this table at the 1250 Hz band; PN-EN ISO 717-1:2021-06 introduces the text unchanged (IDT). Scope (Clause 1): the document (a) defines single-number quantities for airborne sound insulation in buildings and of building elements — walls, floors, doors and windows, (b) takes into account different noise spectra, e.g. from sources inside a building and from traffic outside, and (c) gives rules for determining these quantities from measurements in one-third-octave or octave bands, e.g. according to ISO 10140-2 and ISO 16283-1. The quantities serve to rate insulation and simplify requirements in building codes; for expressing uncertainty an additional value in steps of 0.1 dB is determined (without the adaptation terms). For laboratory measurements according to ISO 10140-2 only one-third-octave bands are used; rating over an enlarged frequency range is dealt with in Annex B. The introduction says outright that the measurement methods are described in other standards (e.g. ISO 10140-2, ISO 16283-1) and that this one only converts the results into one number. Changes from the 2013 edition (foreword): G.6 of ISO 10140-1:2016 and Annex B of ISO 10140-5:2010 were relocated into this document and references were updated.

QUANTITIES AND PROCEDURE (Clauses 3–4 of the preview). The single-number quantity is the value of the reference curve at 500 Hz after shifting it according to the standard; the spectrum adaptation term is a value in decibels added to the rating (e.g. Rw) to take account of the source spectrum — there are two, C and Ctr. Table 1 lists the quantities for building elements (among others Rw, Dn,e,w, Dn,f,w, Rs,w, RI,w), Table 2 those for buildings (among others R′w, R′45°,w, R′tr,s,w, Dn,w, DnT,w, Dls,2m,nT,w and Dtr,2m,nT,w), each with a reference to the measurement standard. The results are compared with the reference curve in the range 100–3150 Hz (one-third octaves) or 125–2000 Hz (octaves). Reference values (Table 3): one-third octaves 100 Hz — 33 dB, 125 — 36, 160 — 39, 200 — 42, 250 — 45, 315 — 48, 400 — 51, 500 — 52, 630 — 53, 800 — 54, 1000 — 55, from 1250 to 3150 Hz — 56 dB; octaves 125 Hz — 36, 250 — 45, 500 — 52, 1000 — 55, 2000 — 56 dB. Method of comparison (4.4): the data are given to one decimal place, the curve is shifted in steps of 1 dB (0.1 dB when expressing uncertainty) towards the measured curve until the sum of unfavourable deviations is as large as possible but not more than 32.0 dB with 16 one-third-octave bands or 10.0 dB with 5 octave bands. A footnote gives the rule for rounding data with more decimals: multiply by 10, add 0.5, take the integer part and divide by 10 — and warns software developers to round the true input values, not only what is displayed on the screen. The spectra for C and Ctr (Table 4) are A-weighted and normalized to 0 dB; if needed, terms for the range 50–5000 Hz can be added.

STATUS (state of the cards on 29 September 2026). The card of PN-EN ISO 717-1:2021-06 (English version) has no "Withdrawn" header — the standard is CURRENT: published 10-06-2021, 40 pages, price group R, Construction and Building Structures Sector, KT 253 for Architectural Acoustics, ICS 91.120.20, "Introduces: EN ISO 717-1:2020 [IDT], ISO 717-1:2020 [IDT]", "Replaces: PN-EN ISO 717-1:2013-08 - English version". The card of PN-EN ISO 717-1:2013-08: "Withdrawn and replaced by PN-EN ISO 717-1:2021-06", "Withdrawal date: 10-06-2021", 32 pages, "Replaces: PN-EN ISO 717-1:1999/A1:2008 - Polish version, PN-EN ISO 717-1:1999 - Polish version"; its scope still referred to EN ISO 140-4 and EN ISO 140-5 instead of ISO 16283-1. The PKN search (29 September 2026): PN-EN ISO 717-1:1999 — "Withdrawn and replaced by PN-EN ISO 717-1:2013-08", amendment A1:2008 — withdrawn in the same way. ISO 717-1:2020 was reviewed and confirmed in 2026 (ISO page of the standard).

HOW MANY LABORATORIES AND IN WHAT FORM (copy of the accreditation-scope database, data loaded up to 17 September 2026, read on 29 September 2026). The number ISO 717-1 (pattern with the ISO element — excluding PN-EN 717-1 on formaldehyde emission from wood-based panels, which has the same number): 26 entries at 11 laboratories. The 2021-06 edition is cited by 10 laboratories, 7 of them also cite the withdrawn 1999 edition alongside it (AB 796, AB 869, AB 1162, AB 1271, AB 1391, AB 1621, AB 1924), 3 — the 2013-08 edition (AB 1162, AB 1271, AB 1391), AB 1271 — also amendment A1:2008; AB 838 and AB 1413 apply the 2021-06 edition "excluding Annexes D and E". AB 1054 writes "PN-EN ISO 717-1" without a year, marked "N" — according to the explanation in its scope, a method used in activities related to notification under an EU regulation. The "Laboratories" tab searches for notations BEGINNING WITH "PN-EN ISO 717-1" and shows 8 laboratories — checked with the tab query on the labcoda.pl production server on 29 September 2026: 8; AB 1162, AB 1391 and AB 1621 write this standard at the end of one string with the measurement standards (PN-EN ISO 140-4, 140-5, 16283-1, 16283-3) and are not visible in the tab. Current scopes on the PCA website (read on 29 September 2026, issues from 07.02.2025 to 28.07.2026): all entries stand in the valid issues, the pairs of range limits from the copy appear in the current documents and no entry is suspended.

SUBJECT AND QUANTITIES. Buildings (field measurements) — AB 796, AB 838, AB 869, AB 1162, AB 1271, AB 1391, AB 1413, AB 1621, AB 1924: R′w and DnT,w, at some also Dn,w, and for façades Dls,2m,nT,w and R′45°,w; measurements in one-third-octave bands from 50 Hz (AB 1924 — from 100 Hz) to 5000 Hz. Products in the laboratory — AB 1271 (walls, doors, windows, glazing, floors: Rw; acoustic linings: improvement ΔRw; ventilation elements and small elements: Dn,e,w) and AB 1054 (doors, windows, shutters, walls, gates, curtain walls, ventilation elements: "single-number rating of sound reduction index … with adaptation terms (from calculation)"). Acoustic booths for offices — AB 1241 ("A-weighted sound insulation index" — from calculation). Everywhere these are quantities "from calculation" — computed from spectra measured according to other standards.

ALONGSIDE THIS STANDARD. The same entries hold the measurement standards: PN-EN ISO 140-4:2000 and PN-EN ISO 16283-1:2014 (usually with the year 2014-05 and amendment A1:2018-02) — 7 laboratories each, always the same ones (AB 796, AB 838, AB 869, AB 1162, AB 1391, AB 1621, AB 1924), for façades PN-EN ISO 140-5:1999 and PN-EN ISO 16283-3:2016-04 — AB 838, AB 1162, AB 1391, AB 1621, AB 1924; in addition PN-EN ISO 140-14:2006 — AB 1162, and Annex C of PN-B-02154-05:1983 ("open-closed" method) — AB 838. PN-EN ISO 140-4 and PN-EN ISO 16283-1 have separate entries in the Knowledge Base. Statuses (read on 29 September 2026): PN-EN ISO 140-4:2000, PN-EN ISO 140-5:1999 and PN-EN ISO 140-14:2006 — withdrawn and replaced by PN-EN ISO 16283-1:2014-05 (PKN search, for 140-4 also the card), PN-EN ISO 16283-3:2016-04 — current (PKN search), PN-B-02154-05:1983 — withdrawn on 22-12-1999 and replaced by PN-EN ISO 140-5:1999 (PKN card).

WHERE A SEEMINGLY CORRECT RESULT IS EASY TO GET. The rating from this standard is only as good as the spectrum it was calculated from — the standard measures nothing. The second place is rounding: the footnote to 4.4 requires the one-third-octave data to be rounded to 0.1 dB before the calculation, not only on the printout; software that rounds only the displayed number can shift the curve by 1 dB. The third — the edition: whoever cites the 1999, 2013 and 2021 editions together gives the result according to one of them, and the report should say which; the 2021 edition took over content from ISO 10140-1 and ISO 10140-5.

WHAT WE DO NOT GIVE. The preview ends in Table 4 at the 1250 Hz band, so we do not give the full spectra for C and Ctr, the formulae for the adaptation terms (4.5), the rules for stating results for elements and buildings (Clause 5) or the annexes — the informative A–C (use of adaptation terms, enlarged frequency range, calculation examples) and the normative D (rating of the improvement of sound reduction by linings) and E (standard basic elements for measuring this improvement) — precisely the two that AB 838 and AB 1413 exclude.

Method principle

The results of an insulation measurement in one-third-octave bands (100–3150 Hz) or octave bands (125–2000 Hz), given to one decimal place, are compared with a reference curve (e.g. 52 dB at 500 Hz). The curve is shifted in 1 dB steps towards the results until the sum of unfavourable deviations — the bands in which the result lies below the curve — is as large as possible but does not exceed 32.0 dB (16 one-third octaves) or 10.0 dB (5 octaves). The value of the shifted curve at 500 Hz is the single-number quantity (e.g. Rw, R′w, DnT,w). From two A-weighted noise spectra the spectrum adaptation terms C and Ctr are calculated and added to the rating. For expressing uncertainty the rating is determined in 0.1 dB steps.

Applications

• Ratings of partition insulation in buildings (R′w, DnT,w, façades Dls,2m,nT,w) from field measurements — 9 laboratories
• Ratings of building products in the laboratory (Rw, ΔRw of linings, Dn,e,w of ventilation elements) — AB 1271, AB 1054
• Insulation rating of acoustic booths for offices (AB 1241)

Key parameters

Standard

Standard number

PN-EN ISO 717-1:2021-06 (wersja angielska; EN ISO 717-1:2020, ISO 717-1:2020 IDT)

Title (PL)

Akustyka — Ocena izolacyjności akustycznej w budynkach i izolacyjności akustycznej elementów budowlanych — Część 1: Izolacyjność od dźwięków powietrznych

Title (EN)

Acoustics — Rating of sound insulation in buildings and of building elements — Part 1: Airborne sound insulation

Step-by-step procedure

1. Input data

   Insulation in one-third-octave bands 100–3150 Hz or octave bands 125–2000 Hz, measured according to a measurement standard; values to one decimal place (rounding rule from the footnote to 4.4).

2. Shifting the reference curve

   The curve from Table 3 is shifted in 1 dB steps towards the results until the sum of unfavourable deviations is as large as possible but ≤ 32.0 dB (16 one-third octaves) or ≤ 10.0 dB (5 octaves).

3. Single-number quantity

   Reading the value of the shifted curve at 500 Hz — e.g. Rw, R′w, DnT,w; for expressing uncertainty — the same in 0.1 dB steps.

4. Adaptation terms

   C and Ctr from spectra No. 1 and No. 2 (Table 4, A-weighted, normalized to 0 dB); formulae (4.5) — beyond the preview, we DO NOT GIVE them.

5. Stating the result

   According to Clause 5 (elements and buildings) — beyond the preview; the report states the edition of the standard used for the calculation.

Required equipment and apparatus

Health and safety (OHS)

• A calculation standard — no hazards of its own; hazards come with the measurements that provide the data (loud sound sources — hearing protection according to the measurement standards)
• SUBSTANTIVE NOTE: the rating is not a measurement — its value depends on the spectrum from the measurement standard and on correct rounding of the input data

Frequently asked questions