The ones we actually get asked

Conventional sound masking emits a fixed-spectrum signal designed to obscure speech. Its spectral content is set at commissioning and the material never varies. It works: conversation becomes harder to make out, and modern systems can adjust levels and settings by zone.

Adaptive soundscaping uses biophilic audio, sounds derived from nature, designed and commissioned zone by zone for what happens in each space. It is generative rather than looped: sound elements are combined over time rather than played as a repeating playlist, and it is generated on the on-premise hub, so there is no loop length. And it responds in real time to the acoustic conditions in each zone, to occupancy, and to the time of day.

If you have heard masking and disliked it, you have not heard this.

Every project is priced specifically, because floor area, the number of zones, ceiling and services conditions, and how much bespoke content a client wants all move the number considerably.

The main variables are the number of distinct zones, which drives both hardware and design time; whether the space is a new fitout or a retrofit; and whether content is drawn from the existing library or developed bespoke for your building. Tell us the floor area and roughly how the space is used, and we can come back with an indicative range. How the pricing works, and what moves it, is on the what it costs page.

There is also a cost argument that runs the other way, for the quantity surveyor and the finance side: a designed background sound level can let a floor hit its speech-privacy target with a lighter isolation specification, from partition ratings to meeting-room glazing. We set out how to model that on the cost case page.

Yes, and a large share of our work is exactly that. Retrofits are often where the need is clearest, because the problem has had time to become obvious. The practical questions are ceiling access, power and network availability. Occupied buildings can be staged so installation happens around normal working hours.

This is the most common objection and it is a reasonable one. First, the environment is designed to sit below conscious attention; most people in an installed space do not think about it at all, which is the intent. Second, agency matters more than persuasion. Zoning means people can move to the environment that suits the work, and on the GSK workplaces we ran change management before installation so people understood what was being introduced and why.

There is an ongoing platform cost which varies with the scale of the deployment. Maintenance is minimal because there are few moving parts, and content and configuration are updated remotely. A post-occupancy review is agreed as part of the project scope. Scent design carries a consumables cost, since formulations are replenished on a cycle.

Yes, and we will name the features rather than quote you a percentage. Anyone offering you a share of a project’s WELL credits for a sound system is guessing. How we support a WELL project →

Sound concept. Our primary contribution is S06 Minimum Background Sound. We measure the space, commission to 40 to 45 dBA across open work areas and 40 to 42 dBA in focus rooms, agreed with the project’s acoustic consultant, and provide a report covering the system, measured levels and commissioned result for the project’s WELL submission. We have commissioned and reported against S06 at GSK Melbourne, GSK Bangkok and Taipei, SAP Melbourne, and Sheldon Interiors. A masking strategy is available as an optional optimisation where a project wants it delivered through the same system, and adaptive zoning strengthens the project’s acoustic zoning strategy.

Mind concept. Nature-based soundscapes can contribute to connection to nature, carrying biophilic intent beyond the visual. Localised or culturally relevant sound can contribute to connection to place. Soundscaping can also contribute to the design of restorative spaces in quiet and wellness rooms. Your WELL consultant confirms which Mind strategies apply.

And what is coming, which is not in force yet. The next version of the standard is in preview, with enrolment expected later this year. Nothing certifies against it today, so treat this as design-stage guidance rather than a current requirement. It restructures the Sound concept into four Themes, removes the point caps per concept, and makes preconditions scoreable. The structure tells you where the value sits: S2 Acoustic design is where you design for isolation, impact noise and reverberation, at one to two points each. S4 Acoustic performance is where you verify the same three things on site, at two to three points each, plus background noise levels on top. Nine points, and the highest-value Theme in the concept.

Where a project is pursuing points that depend on measured outcomes on site, it helps to agree the targets and the measurement method while the brief is still open, so the sound layer is designed to the same numbers it will later be tested against.

Elsewhere, C8.4 Inclusive design strategies names calming and natural sounds directly at both the low-stimulation and high-stimulation ends, M3.1 lists calming sounds among the strategies for restorative space, and M4.1, which is required for certification, defines natural elements to include sounds in its first mandatory clause. And the one mandatory Sound strategy in the whole standard, S1.1, is an acoustic design plan, worth a second point when a qualified acoustics professional writes it. That is the earliest and cheapest point on any project, and it is a document.

Client research across Moodsonic installations has documented a 31% increase in cognitive performance and a 19% increase in self-rated collaboration in a North American workplace over sixteen weeks, a 24% reduction in stress across workplaces in APAC and Europe, and distraction distance reduced from fifteen metres to five in a European installation measured before and after.

We would rather you interrogated the research than took our word for it, so the studies and the methodology are all in the evidence pack, including where the literature is still inconsistent.

Yes. Valeo Technology operates from Australia and Singapore, and represents Moodsonic across Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Hong Kong. Delivered projects also include Bangkok and Taipei, and our published work includes Wollongong, Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Brisbane and Singapore. Delivery depends on project scope, partner coverage and local requirements, and we will tell you plainly whether we can serve you properly rather than stretching to cover something we cannot.