Accuracy of prediction models applied to Spanish buildings

The acoustical quality of dwellings in Spain has been guaranteed up to day with the compliance of the building regulation NBE-CA88, which established laboratory requirements to each construction element. However, the new Spanish building regulation (CTE), looking for a higher level of comfort in dwellings is increasing its requirements and considering the building as a product itself: the whole building is responsible for fulfilling the acoustical insulation requirements. This background leads to the need for prediction tools allowing architects to evaluate the acoustical behaviour from the design stage. This problem has been studied for long time in Europe, resulting in the European Standard EN 12354. This standard includes two models: a simplified method (using EN ISO 717 indexes) and a complex one, including 1/3oct calculations with structural reverberation time corrections. This paper shows a study of the accuracy of these methods applied to Spanish dwellings, comparing both models with field measurements in several buildings and providing information about their precision. A discussion about the convenience to use each method is also included.