The Problem
The Auckland Pistol Club is one of Australia’s oldest gun clubs. Situated in the rural setting of Brookby, South of Auckland, the club has been active since the 1960s. Due to the urban sprawl of Auckland, the club now has residential neighbours close to its boundary fences. This has resulted in noise complaints being lodged with the council, and at one point the club was issued with a notice to cease all shooting until a solution was in place.
Site Issues
The club has a number of ranges for various shooting pursuits. Over the years with the encroachment of residential homes into more rural settings, the club has had to reduce the noise emitted during shooting on all ranges. The club is situated at the bottom of a hill with fairly steep inclines rising from the ranges. This further complicates issues as the geography creates reflections as well as direct noise which both need to be managed.
The Solution
APC needed to find a solution that enabled the club to achieve the required dBA reading on the boundary fence, but without creating indoor shooting ranges. This was both a cost consideration as well as maintaining the club as an outdoor venue. They investigated a number of options and then decided to use the Echo Barrier. This was first tested using the Echo Barrier H20 enclosure, which immediately produced the required results during measurement.
Unlike most attenuation and noise absorbing products, Echo Barrier is waterproof and is UV coated. This allows it to be used outdoors on a continuous basis over many years. As the barriers are not affected by water, they still perform just as well in the wet without becoming reflective as most other materials do when they take on water.
Following on from the enclosure results, the club then erected a large metal framed enclosure, and Echo Barrier was used to line the complete enclosure. Tests were then conducted with acoustic engineers and the council, which showed that the club now was within their consent for the site. This enabled the club to open their range up again for member’s use.
The Outcome
Echo Barrier
Echo Barrier is the world leader in managing noise on outdoor and manufacturing sites. The barriers have the best weight to attenuation ratio on the market, allowing the barriers to be safely installed on various types of structures. As they are truly waterproof, they do not place undue strain on any structure when they do become wet, or absorb water and become reflective.