3030 Gordon Project

About This Project

Operated by RainCity Housing, the 3030 Gordon Project is a shelter and transitional housing facility serving the cities of Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody.

The shelter features 30 private rooms (20 for men, 10 for women), 30 self-contained transitional housing suites and 30 emergency beds for inclement weather.

Scope of Services

The project architect, dys architecture, hired BKL to provide acoustical consultation during the design of the shelter. The project offered a significant noise-related challenge: 3030 Gordon is located only a few metres from a railway line that sees as many as 40 trains roll through every day. After conducting on-site audio and video measurements and performing 3-D computer predictions, BKL began work on a thorough and creative a plan to ensure that shelter goers would enjoy a good night’s sleep, despite rail passerby noise levels of up to 90 dBA.

Sound Level, Vibration Level, Audio and Video Measurements

For most projects, measuring sound levels is all that’s needed. But for 3030 Gordon, the variety of train-related noise and vibration meant that BKL needed to record both sound and vibration, and audio and video, over a 24-hour period to distinguish between various types of rail activities- including whistles, pass bys from both passenger and freight trains, and impact noise from railcars shunting and coupling. BKL accomplished this task using microphone, accelerometer and USB webcams connected to one device: its 8-channel Sound book sound and vibration analyzer.

Project Benefits

The three keys to mitigating the potential noise and vibration impacts from the trains were

improving the sound insulation provided by the building envelope.
designing an effective sound wall, and
assessing site vibration levels and selecting an appropriate foundation.

BKL recommended an 8-foot high sound wall, a 6-inch block layer between the frame and exterior cladding and acoustical windows that feature additional air space between layers and extra-thick glass.

“BKL solved the significant acoustic issues confronting this site”

says Richard Stout, Principal at dys architecture. “The future residents face many challenges and need to have a calm, quiet place to rebuild their lives. The site, with its poor soils and the adjacent railway running trains almost continuously day and night, offered many barriers to creating the type of environment we needed. BKL’s recommendations of concrete fencing. masonry walls and acoustic windows solved the problems completely, to the extent that trains are not heard from within the building unless the windows are opened. Further, our concern about vibration is also a non-issue due to the piling option we selected with BKL’s input.”

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.

Residential & Mixed Use

Relevant Case Studies

Environment we needed. BKL’s recommendations of concrete fencing. masonry walls and acoustic windows solved the problems completely, to the extent that trains are not heard from within the building unless the windows are opened. Further, our concern about vibration is also a non-issue due to the piling option we selected with BKL’s input.