Since 1833, Antwerp City Brewery’s De Koninck manufacturing site has brewed the famous “Bolleke” beer. The premises recently underwent significant renovations to open the facility to tours, creating a visitor experience in keeping with the quality long established by their brew masters.
In late 2015 they opened an experience room to tell the story of their famous Belgian Beers, utilizing much needed acoustical treatment from Primacoustics.
During the renovation process there emerged a hiccup in their plans and it had nothing to do with their effervescent selection of ales. Transforming some of the rooms to accommodate visitors included ensuring their guests could actually ‘hear about the beer’.
This challenge was put to the Product Division manager for FACE (Foundation for Audio-visual Commerce & Engineering), Steven Kemland: “To optimize the rooms, they were looking for better acoustics without ruining the beautiful architecture. When going through a museum, you want the sound to be clear and without noise for the next part of the story. Because the museum is situated in an old building and the acoustics were not yet optimized, it was very difficult to listen to particular parts of the story on the tour. Brewery De Koninck wanted to create an excellent experience for their visitors and we went in to present an ideal solution.”
“While observing the different rooms, it was clear they needed an advanced set of acoustic panels for a superior sound. The panels of Primacoustic are especially made for rooms where excellent acoustic sound is needed. The panels are available in different colors so that made it possible to choose a color that blended perfectly with the walls and ceilings.”
The museum consists of various rooms with different shapes, equipment and furnishings. Primacoustic Broadway panels were selected for the project because of the variety of dimensions to choose from and the fact they are suitable for use on walls and ceilings. The aesthetics of the space benefited from the use of the same style of panels installed in all rooms. With a minimum use of walls and ceilings, the troubled acoustics were fixed.
“We are very pleased with the panels. Taking the tour and telling people about our beloved beers is now a pleasant experience.” concludes Anik Van Bellegem of Antwerp City Brewery.