Aberdeen Residence

About This Project

Located directly beneath the flight path of aircraft using YVR’s south runway, the 120-unit Aberdeen Residence lies in the City of Richmond’s Aircraft Noise Sensitive Development Policy Area, a zone that normally prohibits the construction of residential buildings.

However, after consulting on a hotel immediately adjacent to the site, and successfully incorporating many special design features to attenuate aircraft noise, BKL helped the architects, Bing Thom, and developers, Fairchild Developments, convince City of Richmond planners to approve the project and make an exception to the aircraft noise policy in effect at the time.

To support their case to the city, BKL conducted noise measurements inside a guest room at the hotel while aircraft departed overhead. The results of these measurements—and the fact that the hotel had not received any aircraft noise–related complaints from guests—proved that, with thoughtful acoustical design, the proposed Aberdeen Residence could meet or exceed interior noise level requirements.

Acoustical challenges

BKL’s noise control measures included custom windows that the firm had previously recommended for another hotel, the YVR Fairmont, where the windows had been highly successful in preventing intrusion of aircraft noise.

Since aircraft noise at the Aberdeen site can be either very loud or non-existent depending upon runway usage, the plans could include balconies for the residences. This presented an additional challenge in the acoustical design because the acoustical performance of most sliding patio doors is limited. BKL worked with VisionWall, a Canadian window manufacturer, to develop a semi-custom patio door with non-conventional seals and operating mechanism to achieve sound attenuation equal to that offered by the windows.

Scope of services

BKL’s services on this project included design advice on attenuating aircraft noise, isolating interior sound between residential units, and controlling noise from building services. During construction, BKL reviewed shop drawings, conducted sound transmission loss tests between mock-up units, and carried out periodic inspections of acoustically critical installations.

Project benefits

Upon completion of the project, prior to occupancy, BKL measured interior noise levels within the residential units as commercial jets departed over the building. These measurements confirmed BKL’s earlier predictions and demonstrated that, with the right acoustical design features, overall noise exposure from aircraft could be controlled to satisfy the city’s noise criteria and maximum levels during flyovers could be limited to 45 dBA, the World Health Organization’s criterion for sleep disturbance.

The People Behind Our Work

Our Technical Leads
Our Team

Trevor Cheng

P.Eng., MIOA

Managing Specialist Acoustical Consultant

Trevor Cheng, P.Eng., MIOA

Managing Specialist Acoustical Consultant

Trevor Cheng holds a bachelor of applied science (engineering physics) from University of British Columbia and joined BKL in January 2016, with experience in environmental and architectural acoustics, as well as condition monitoring, and machine vibration analysis and diagnostics.

With BKL, Trevor has primarily been involved in transportation, commercial, industrial, and infrastructure projects. His work experience includes measuring baseline noise conditions, predicting future noise environments, assessing noise impact, and offering mitigation measures where appropriate.

Trevor also has experience in architectural acoustics, working on hospitals, performance spaces, and multipurpose buildings. He is proficient in measuring noise insulation performance, reviewing building designs, and predicting noise levels from HVAC equipment.

Prior to joining BKL, Trevor worked in London, UK, on a wide variety of projects ranging from large-scale architectural renovations to major airport improvement works. He has unique experience in measuring and assessing noise and vibration in buildings from underground rail sources.

He also has experience using sound level meters by Brüel & Kjær, Norsonic, and Larson Davis, and software tools such as Cadna/A. He is familiar with ASTC/AIIC testing and using acoustic software including Insul, SONarchitect, and EASE for indoor noise predictions.

Trevor is a member of the Institute of Acoustics (IOA) in the UK.
Andrew Williamson

P.Eng., B.S.M.E.

Specialist Acoustical Consultant

Andrew Williamson, P.Eng., B.S.M.E.

Specialist Acoustical Consultant

A graduate of the University of Victoria, Andrew Williamson holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and has practiced as an acoustical consultant in BC for over two decades. He joined BKL in 2023.

During his career, Andrew has worked on numerous projects involving environmental noise assessments, building noise and vibration control, and architectural acoustics. As a project manager, Andrew has led acoustics teams on a variety of projects across sectors including cultural and recreation, education and research, health care, industrial, commercial, and residential.

Andrew has attended public meetings, open houses, and government-sponsored working groups to present and discuss technical information with the public, municipal councils, and members of the government and other organizations. In addition, Andrew has acted as an expert witness in BC Supreme Court and participated in a joint review panel hearing for the environmental assessment of a major infrastructure project.

Andrew is a Professional Engineer registered with Engineers and Geoscientists BC.
Joonas Niinivaara

M.Sc.

Specialist Acoustical Consultant

Joonas Niinivaara, M.Sc.

Specialist Acoustical Consultant

Joonas Niinivaara has practiced as an acoustical consultant since 2007 and joined BKL in May 2019. During his career, Joonas has conducted extensive acoustical measurements, assessments, and mitigation treatments on a variety of community, commercial, and residential projects in both Europe and Canada.

In 2017, Joonas co-authored multiple publications for the Canadian Acoustical Association on the acoustical performance of wood-frame double-shear wall assemblies and laminated drywall assemblies in concrete frame buildings. He has also presented papers on acoustical design in modern offices buildings to the Baltic Nordic Acoustic Group.

Joonas has recently worked under the TARION Builder Bulletin 19R program for multi-occupancy buildings. In this, he has assisted project design teams, general contractors, and subtrades to achieve adequate acoustical conditions for all occupants by minimizing noise-related warranty claim risks from integrated building systems, while also maximizing acoustical privacy between adjacencies.

As a professional acoustician, Joonas has a particular interest in room acoustics related to concert halls, rehearsal rooms, and music facilities. He is proficient with ray-tracing computational software including ODEON, EASE, Pottorff AIM, and Insul software.