How to Achieve WELL Building Certification

By Sarah Okonkwo · May 1, 2026

How to Achieve WELL Building Certification: An Audio Project Case Study

1) Project overview: what, where, who, and why

In late 2024, our team at Sonus Gear Flow was brought in to support a WELL Building Standard v2 certification effort for a six-story, 148,000 sq ft tenant improvement in Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood. The client, a mid-sized biotech company, was consolidating three leased offices into a single headquarters with a strong wellness brand promise. The project included an all-hands town hall (220 seats), a divisible training suite (2 rooms, 80 seats each), 14 conference rooms, an open office for 380 staff, and a hybrid-work AV strategy built around high intelligibility speech reinforcement and high-quality conferencing.

The core team consisted of the owner’s project manager, the architect (AOR), MEP engineer, a WELL AP consultant, the general contractor, and us as the audio/AV consultant of record. The certification scope included multiple WELL concepts, but the parts that repeatedly intersected audio engineering were: Sound (acoustic comfort and noise management), Mind (stress reduction via comfort), and the operational side of Community (post-occupancy feedback and policy compliance). The “why” was not just a plaque: the owner had high turnover in their previous open office, and internal surveys named noise and video-call fatigue as top stressors.

2) Challenges and requirements at the outset

The building came with constraints typical of urban retrofits: a concrete frame, limited above-ceiling plenum in some areas (9’-6” AFF to slab with a 9’-0” finished ceiling target), and an existing mechanical system with VAV boxes that were serviceable but not quiet. On the acoustic side, the project began with three specific red flags:

Open office adjacency to focus rooms: The original space plan placed open collaboration zones directly outside four 1–2 person focus rooms and two larger “library” rooms. The risk was speech privacy and distraction.
Town hall under mechanical penthouse risers: The all-hands room sat beneath a zone with higher duct velocities and several large return paths. Background noise could have undermined speech intelligibility and any WELL Sound feature tied to comfort and distraction control.
Hard finishes everywhere: The architectural concept leaned into polished concrete, glass fronts, and minimal acoustic ceiling tile for an “industrial lab” feel. That aesthetic conflicted with reverberation targets for conferencing and presentations.

WELL’s Sound features can be met in different ways depending on the project, but the practical translation for our scope was: reduce intrusive background noise, manage reverberation, and demonstrate that the most critical occupied spaces support comfortable communication. The WELL AP set target criteria early: open office background noise aligned with a comfortable office environment (we set a design target of NC 35 with local exceptions), private rooms supporting speech privacy, and conferencing spaces achieving consistently high speech intelligibility (we set STI ≥ 0.60 as a design intent in key rooms, recognizing that exact measured results vary).

3) Approach and methodology chosen

We treated WELL certification as an outcomes-driven commissioning problem, not a prescriptive shopping list. The methodology had four pillars:

Predict first: Model reverberation time (RT60), estimate background noise contributions, and run speech intelligibility predictions before the interiors were frozen. We used a combination of manufacturer absorption data, room volume calculations, and EASE-style conceptual modeling for the town hall and training rooms.
Design to measure: Every major acoustic decision was tied to a commissioning test plan: what we would measure (NC, RT60, STI), where, with what instruments, and under what operating modes (HVAC at occupied setpoints, typical AV gain structure).
Coordinate with MEP early: For WELL Sound success, mechanical noise is often the silent project killer. We scheduled a dedicated “Sound + MEP” workshop in design development, not after permit.
Keep AV simple and serviceable: Wellness fails when systems are hard to operate and users compensate by turning things up. We standardized signal flow, limited one-off DSP tricks, and emphasized consistent microphone technique through room design.

4) Step-by-step execution narrative

Week 1–3: Discovery and baseline. We started with a site walk during demolition planning. Using a Class 1 sound level meter (NTi XL2 with an acoustic calibrator), we captured spot readings of existing HVAC noise in representative zones. With the old air handling configuration running, we saw a range of NC 40–45 near core returns and NC 35–38 near perimeter. That immediately informed the MEP noise budget.

We also interviewed department leads. The single most useful quote: “People don’t mind an open office—until they can’t hear a customer call.” That clarified priorities: improve speech intelligibility on calls and reduce distraction at workpoints, not chase absolute silence.

Week 4–8: Acoustic concept and room-by-room targets. We created an acoustic criteria matrix for 28 spaces (town hall, training rooms, conference rooms, huddle rooms, focus rooms, open areas). For each, we defined: NC target, RT60 target band, and a speech metric goal (STI for presentation rooms; privacy expectations for focus rooms). This matrix became the single source of truth during value engineering.

During this stage we flagged the town hall as highest risk. The initial architectural ceiling concept was exposed slab with decorative baffles. The model predicted RT60 above 1.2 s in the mid-band with the proposed finishes—too live for speech reinforcement and conferencing. We recommended a hybrid: high-performance acoustic ceiling clouds over the seating area plus wall absorption on the rear third of the room.

Week 9–14: MEP coordination and noise control. The mechanical engineer proposed standard ductwork and terminal units. We asked for three changes that ended up making the WELL Sound pathway realistic:

Lower duct velocities in branches feeding the town hall and training suite (targeting < 900 fpm in critical sections).
Add lined duct sections and at least one properly sized duct silencer on the loudest supply path to the town hall.
Specify low-noise diffusers in conference rooms and avoid placing returns directly above ceiling microphones.

These changes added cost and coordination time. The GC pushed back initially. We brought receipts: baseline NC measurements, predicted noise contribution, and the operational risk of having to “fix” noise later with masking and gain hacks.

Week 15–22: AV system design with intelligibility in mind. For the town hall, the first impulse was a distributed ceiling speaker approach. We rejected it because the room had localized ceiling height changes and a hard rear wall that would make coverage and feedback stability more difficult at the SPL needed for 220 seats. We chose a left/right point-source system with controlled directivity:

Main speakers: 2x QSC AD-S12 (12” two-way, 75° conical coverage) flown at ~14’ AFF with tilt brackets.
Delay fills: 2x QSC AD-S8T for rear coverage, time-aligned in DSP.
Amplification: QSC CX-Q series with network monitoring.
DSP: Q-SYS Core 110f, primarily for AEC, matrixing, and loudspeaker processing.
Mics: 2x Shure ULXD4Q (dual quad receiver arrangement) with ULXD2/SM58 handhelds and ULXD1 bodypacks for lavs (DPA 6066 headworns were considered but cut for budget; we kept one headworn kit for presenters who wanted maximum gain-before-feedback).

For conference rooms, we standardized on Shure Microflex Ecosystem ceiling arrays in the larger rooms (MXA920 in two 18–22 person rooms; MXA902 in four medium rooms) and table mics only in the smallest rooms where ceiling conditions were impossible. Camera choice was driven by consistent framing and reduced “AV anxiety”: Logitech Rally Bar for small/medium rooms, and a Q-SYS camera (Seervision-based auto-tracking) for the town hall.

Week 23–30: Construction administration and finish tuning. The biggest midstream change was aesthetic: the architect wanted more glass fronts. We agreed, but only with two compensations: higher NRC ceiling tile in adjacent open areas and acoustic film/laminated glass at specific fronts. We also pushed to keep door undercuts minimal on focus rooms and to add perimeter seals on the highest privacy spaces.

We reviewed submittals with an eye toward “acoustics through the cracks.” A single example: the first door hardware package included a bottom sweep only on a few rooms. We caught it and expanded seals to all focus rooms and HR offices, because speech privacy was a wellness issue as much as a comfort issue.

Week 31–36: Commissioning, measurement, and punchlist. Two weeks before occupancy, we ran our measurement plan. With HVAC in occupied mode, we logged NC readings at multiple points. The town hall averaged NC 32–34 after the silencer and duct revisions. Most conference rooms landed NC 30–35, and open office zones clustered NC 35–38 depending on proximity to returns.

We measured RT60 in the town hall at 0.70–0.85 s mid-band with the final ceiling clouds (NRC 0.90) and rear wall treatment. STI testing during a live mic playback scenario showed 0.62–0.70 across the seating area after we set delay timing and reduced early reflections via minor speaker aiming adjustments.

5) Technical decisions and trade-offs made

Trade-off #1: Architectural openness vs. privacy. The owner wanted transparency and daylight; the acoustic requirement wanted separation. We allowed glass but insisted on targeted upgrades: laminated glazing on the noisiest edges, acoustic seals on doors, and zoning the open office with higher panels and absorption near focus rooms.

Trade-off #2: Loudspeaker strategy vs. ceiling constraints. Distributed ceiling speakers would have been visually cleaner, but controlling reflections and achieving consistent intelligibility at lower SPL was easier with directional point sources and properly timed delays. This decision also reduced the temptation to “turn it up” to overcome room issues.

Trade-off #3: Budget vs. microphone performance. Headworn microphones generally outperform lavs for gain-before-feedback and clarity, but not every presenter will wear one. We maintained a mixed inventory: lavs for comfort, handhelds for reliability, and one headworn kit for high-stakes events. We then tuned DSP presets accordingly (gentler compression and less aggressive EQ on lavs to avoid pumping).

Trade-off #4: Sound masking deployment. The initial plan was to blanket the open office with masking. We limited masking to specific zones after testing, because excessive masking can increase fatigue and conflict with wellness goals if not tuned. We set masking at 44–46 dBA in targeted areas and avoided masking in collaboration zones where it would fight conversation.

6) Results and outcomes with specific details

The project achieved WELL certification with Sound-related documentation supported by measured performance and commissioning reports. From a practical operations standpoint, three outcomes mattered to the client:

Town hall clarity improved dramatically. During the first all-hands, the A/V tech reported average program levels around 72–76 dBA at mix position for speech reinforcement without feedback issues, and remote attendees reported fewer “roomy” complaints compared to prior sites.
Conference rooms became predictable. With standardized DSP blocks (AEC, automix behavior, output limiting) and consistent mic choices, the helpdesk tickets for “people can’t hear us” dropped. In the first 60 days, the client logged 11 AV tickets across 14 rooms, compared to 40+ tickets in a similar 3-month period at their previous office.
Focus rooms became usable. Post-occupancy surveys at 90 days showed a 28% reduction in negative comments about “overheard conversations” near focus rooms, even though the office remained open-plan.

Timeline-wise, audio/acoustic decisions were locked by the end of design development (~14 weeks). Construction ran ~7 months. Our final commissioning and tuning took 6 site days spread over two weeks: 2 days for measurements and inspections, 2 days for DSP/speaker tuning, and 2 days for user acceptance testing and staff training.

7) Lessons learned and what could be done differently

Mechanical noise must be owned early. The biggest risk to WELL Sound success was HVAC noise, not loudspeakers. The moment we had baseline NC measurements, the conversation became factual. If we did it again, we’d insist on an early mock-up measurement plan for one typical conference room as soon as a floor was operational, not waiting until late-stage commissioning.

Don’t rely on masking as a first resort. Masking is useful, but it’s not a substitute for layout, absorption, and door sealing. We spent more time than expected tuning masking zones because the open office had uneven ambient noise depending on time of day and VAV behavior. Next time, we’d require the masking vendor to provide tuning logs and a re-tune visit after 30 days of occupancy as a contractual deliverable.

Glass fronts need a privacy strategy. Visual openness is easy; acoustic openness is expensive. Where full acoustic glazing wasn’t feasible, we found that relocating noisy collaboration points by even 10–15 feet and adding absorption at the right surfaces yielded better results than trying to “seal everything” after the fact.

8) Takeaways applicable to other projects

Write an acoustic criteria matrix early (NC, RT60, and a speech metric) and make it the anchor for value engineering decisions.
Measure baseline conditions with a Class 1 meter and document them. It changes coordination dynamics with MEP and GC because you’re no longer debating opinions.
Design conference rooms for intelligibility, not just coverage. Ceiling arrays, careful return placement, and predictable DSP blocks reduce fatigue and troubleshooting.
Control reverberation before adding gain. If you need more level because the room is live, the problem isn’t the amplifier; it’s the decay time and early reflections.
Standardize equipment families where possible. A consistent ecosystem (DSP, amps, monitoring) improves maintainability and reduces user workarounds that undermine wellness goals.
Commission like you mean it. Treat WELL Sound goals as testable outcomes: define what you’ll measure, when, and under what operating conditions. Include re-test time in the schedule.

WELL certification can feel abstract until you translate it into design targets, coordination steps, and measurable results. For audio engineers and project managers, the practical path is straightforward: control noise at the source (MEP), control the room (absorption and layout), and only then optimize the system (microphones, loudspeakers, DSP). When those layers line up, the certification process becomes less of an administrative hurdle and more of a framework for delivering rooms that people actually want to work in.