Case Study

The University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC)

About This Project

We had a rare opportunity to provide the acoustical design for an entire new University campus at UNBC in Prince George. While there were several architects involved in the design of the buildings on the campus, we were hired by the project manager and worked with the coordinating architect, Chernoff Thompson Architects, to provide acoustical design, as well as mechanical system noise and vibration control for the entire project. The architects doing the building designs included CJP Architects, IBI Group, Hemingway Nelson Architects, Dialog and Lubor Trubka Architects. In all, there were six new buildings plus the physical plant in the first phase of the project, housing the laboratory, the conference/fitness centre, the agora, administration, the library, and the student residences buildings. We assigned a senior acoustical consultant to oversee each individual building project.

As part of the process of coordinating acoustical design for a large project of this type, we provided acoustical guidelines to all the design teams that covered all critical acoustical issues. These guidelines allowed the schematic and design development stages to move along smoothly, and provided a uniform framework for the acoustical design of architecturally disparate buildings. The use of wood frame construction and innovative, energy saving HVAC systems for the large buildings presented unusual acoustical challenges which were successfully addressed during the fast-track design and construction process. BKL’s involvement included site visits during the entire construction period up to and including the commissioning phase.

The People Behind Our Work

Our Technical Leads
Our Team

Paul Marks

M.Sc., MIOA

Vice President, Project Delivery

Paul Marks, M.Sc., MIOA

Vice President, Project Delivery

Paul Marks joined BKL in 2013. He is a full corporate member of the UK Institute of Acoustics and the Canadian Acoustical Association. He has over 20 years’ experience in the measurement, analysis, and assessment of noise, vibration, and acoustical matters and is a former member of the technical advisory team working with the UK government on noise and statutory nuisance issues. During this time, Paul has undertaken major projects within Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

He has experience in a wide range of multi-disciplinary environmental assessment projects including highway, rail, and air transportation infrastructure, mixed-use and brownfield regeneration schemes, renewable energy facilities, and power generation plants.

Paul also has experience in a broad range of building and architectural noise assessment projects including the design of residential, office, educational, and commercial buildings. He has also undertaken acoustical studies for major infrastructure developments including work in the design of appropriate sound-fields for room-spaces in multi-occupancy buildings, including atriums and performance spaces. His work regularly involves close liaison with other acoustical engineers, planning consultants, architects, designers, and a variety of specialist environmental consultants.

Paul is an experienced expert witness within the UK and has a broad experience of planning, licensing and statutory nuisance proceedings as well as being responsible for the successful design of a variety of impact mitigation measures including detailed engineering solutions, lay-out design, and administrative regimes where it has been necessary to closely liaise with clients, designers, and regulatory bodies in order to provide developments in accordance with sustainable principles.
Katrina Scherebnyj

M.A.Sc., P.Eng., MIOA

Technical Director, Building Acoustics

Katrina Scherebnyj, M.A.Sc., P.Eng., MIOA

Technical Director, Building Acoustics

Katrina Scherebnyj started consulting in acoustics in 2007 in England and joined BKL in 2014. Her experience covers architectural acoustics, mechanical noise control, and environmental noise control, and she has worked on major projects in Canada, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

In architectural acoustics, Katrina has worked on a range of new builds and refurbishment projects including schools, universities and higher education facilities, hospitals and healthcare facilities, performance spaces, cinemas, laboratories, office buildings, hotels, and residential buildings. She has provided acoustical design services in relation to sound insulation, room acoustics, and noise control.

Katrina was a co-author of Music Accommodation in Secondary Schools: A Design Guide, published for the UK Department for Education in 2010. Researching the guide, she carried out acoustical measurements in the music departments of several schools and interviewed music teachers and students on the suitability of their music spaces.

Katrina has extensive experience modelling internal sound fields and has carried out numerous models of performance spaces, lecture theatres, and other spaces where acoustical design is critical. She also has experience modelling outdoor noise propagation and has constructed and reviewed noise models for Columbia Containers in Vancouver, BC Children’s and Women’s Hospitals, the Pinnacle (once planned to be London’s tallest building), Crossrail, and other transportation projects.

Katrina is a member of the Canadian Acoustical Association and the Institute of Acoustics (UK).