Specifying for Sustainability: Earning BREEAM and WELL Credits with PetFelt Acoustics
In modern commercial architecture, sustainability is no longer a "nice-to-have" add-on; it is a strict tender requirement. With the global push towards Net Zero and human-centric design, lead specifiers and architects are under immense pressure to deliver buildings that achieve prestigious certifications like BREEAM and the WELL Building Standard. To hit these ambitious targets, every single material specified in the fit-out must be heavily scrutinised.
Acoustics present a unique challenge in this space. Historically, high-performance sound absorption relied on fiberglass, mineral wools, and heavily chemically treated foams—materials that often fail modern sustainability and indoor air quality checks. At GB Acoustics, we have engineered a solution. Here is how specifying our PetFelt acoustic treatments actively helps your projects secure valuable BREEAM and WELL credits.
The PetFelt Sustainability Promise
Before diving into the specific certification frameworks, it is important to understand what makes our acoustic material fundamentally different from legacy soundproofing products.
Our acoustic panels, baffles, and rafts are manufactured from PetFelt—a highly durable, lightweight acoustic substrate.
The Raw Material: The PetFelt product we produce contains a minimum of 75% recycled PET plastic (primarily sourced from post-consumer single-use plastic water bottles).
The Manufacturing Process: The fibres are compressed and bonded using heat, eliminating the need for toxic binding agents or toxic glues.
The Lifespan: PetFelt is incredibly robust. It does not degrade, shed fibres, or crumble over time, ensuring a massive lifecycle for the interior fit-out.
By taking plastic waste out of the ocean and landfill and upcycling it into high-performance architectural materials, you are immediately improving the embodied carbon footprint of your build.
Securing Credits in the WELL Building Standard
The WELL Building Standard focuses specifically on human health and well-being within the built environment. GB Acoustics PetFelt contributes directly to major WELL concepts:
1. The Sound Concept
The WELL Sound concept aims to bolster occupant health and productivity through comprehensive acoustic design.
Reverberation Time (RT): WELL requires strict control over reverberation times in open-plan offices and meeting rooms to reduce fatigue. Our PetFelt solutions deliver up to Class A sound absorption, easily allowing architects to meet the required RT metrics.
Speech Privacy: By utilising our high-density PetFelt Panels, Privacy Partitions and Screens, specifiers can meet strict criteria for acoustic privacy, helping prevent sound from bleeding across different collaboration zones.
2. The Materials Concept
WELL heavily regulates the chemicals used inside a building to protect indoor air quality.
Low-VOC Emissions: Because our PetFelt uses heat-bonded fibers rather than chemical binders, it is inherently low-VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds). It does not off-gas toxic chemicals into the workspace, making it a safe, compliant choice for the WELL Materials concept.
Achieving BREEAM Compliance with Acoustics
BREEAM is the world’s leading sustainability assessment method for masterplanning projects, infrastructure, and buildings. Specifying GB Acoustics PetFelt directly supports your BREEAM rating in key assessment categories:
1. Health and Wellbeing Categories
To achieve credits in health and wellbeing, a building must meet appropriate acoustic performance standards regarding indoor ambient noise levels and reverberation.
Our suspended ceiling solutions, including PetFelt Acoustic Beam Baffles and Modular Acoustic Ceiling Grids, can be precisely calculated to hit the required absorption coefficients for specific room types, ensuring maximum credits are awarded for internal acoustic environments.
2. Responsible Sourcing of Materials
BREEAM rewards projects that use legally harvested, ethically traded, and highly recycled materials.
By specifying a product manufactured from a minimum 75% recycled post-consumer waste, you provide your BREEAM assessor with a clear, measurable reduction in the environmental impact of your interior finishes.
No Compromise on Safety or Aesthetics
Green materials are only useful if they meet commercial building codes.
Despite being made from recycled plastics, GB Acoustics PetFelt achieves excellent EN 13501-1:2018 fire ratings, meeting strict commercial safety standards without compromising on design. This makes it entirely safe to specify in commercial escape routes, lobbies, and high-occupancy areas.
Furthermore, with a massive range of colours, custom-printed wood grains, and bespoke cutting capabilities, your sustainable choice no longer has to look like a compromise.