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Noise Studies and Mower Man

Have you ever been relaxing in your backyard, enjoying the warm sunshine of the spring day, listening to the chirping of birds, admiring the new buds on the trees and—BAM—your tranquil oasis has been invaded by your neighbor, aka, the Mower Man?

You know the guy—he mows the lawn at least twice a week, whether it needs it or not, and seems to time his noisy yard maintenance perfectly with your personal enjoyment of your usually serene outdoor sanctuary.

If you’re mad, you’re totally right to be: the noise created by Mower Man’s lawn ritual is roughly equal decibel-wise to the amount deemed loud enough by Federal law to negatively affect quality of life.

Ouch, right? Though those laws aren’t in place to imprison Mower Man (darn), they are there for a reason much more frustrating to outdoor serenity than poorly timed lawn maintenance: highway noise.

If you live next to a highway, your backyard might see the equivalent of Mower Man 365 days per year. So loud, in fact, that if you were sitting on your deck during peak hours, trying to have a nice after dinner conversation with friends, you would struggle to hear each other.

You’ve got to admit, that’s way more annoying than Mower Man.

Which is exactly why those laws—including two key Federal ones—are in place. And those laws lead to noise studies. These studies are completed by qualified engineers like those at GBA—our engineers are recognized by the Missouri Department of Transportation and others as experts in Traffic Noise analysis.

When conducting these noise studies, engineers collect existing data in the study area like topography, surrounding land use (homes, schools, commercial property), traffic information (volume, speeds, types of vehicles) and existing noise. After existing data is collected, future noise levels are predicted and impacts are evaluated. If the noise is deemed excessive, abatement options would be identified and could be recommended for implementation. 

If your backyard is included in the area determined to be impacted by excessive highway traffic noise, there are a variety of ways it can be shielded, but the most effective tend to be noise walls and berms.

They can’t do anything about Mower Man and his habits, but if you’ve got more on your plate than his John Deere, they might just return your backyard to Zen-level peacefulness.

10 Years of Autodesk Civil 3D!

Nearly ten years ago, GBA made the investment to become an early adopter of Autodesk Civil 3D. This software took the civil engineering deliverables from 2D designs on paper to 3D models in the computer. Once a 3D model is created, any data referenced from it is instantly calculated. If the model is refined or changed, the same data updates automatically. Once completed, these models can be shared with contractors for use in machine controlled earthmoving equipment or for quantity take-offs.  

 

Being an early adopter was not easy. Our in-house Civil 3D project team worked with consultants to develop standards and processes for the new software. We frequently found ourselves in meetings with software engineers who had flown across the U.S. to meet with us to evaluate the software performance in the real world. 

 

The transition to 3D modeling software saved significant time on tasks like earthwork calculations - operations that once took several hours of computer processing now take mere minutes. Additionally, we have an ability to run design scenarios for projects while seeking to reduce overall development and construction costs. Most importantly, referencing data from a completed 3D model results in fewer errors in design documents translating to fewer delays during construction. 

 

We have continued our investment by sending key team members to attend Autodesk University (AU) each year. AU is a gathering of engineers, designers and technology teams that teach, share and learn about Autodesk products. By providing our team members with opportunities to learn and engage with their peers, we believe they will be best equipped to serve clients with innovative solutions.

 

In a design world where 3D modeling has become common place, GBA is positioned as a leader in the application of design technologies. You can read about GBA’s early adoption efforts in an Autodesk Whitepaper titled “Implementing AutoCAD Civil 3D: Three Case Studies” at this link.