Acoustic enclosure provides ball mill noise compliance near residential areas
Como Engineers
Project Summary
Engineering a full Sonic Shed to meet EPA Victoria noise limits
Gold mining and mineral processing
Como Engineers
Ballarat, VIC
About The Client
The Ballarat Gold Project operates within one of Australia’s established goldfields, processing ore through heavy mechanical plant. When the project required a new high-energy ball mill to ramp up production, its location in close proximity to Ballarat township immediately introduced a noise compliance challenge.
Ball mills produce broadband noise driven by steel-on-steel impact, rotational momentum, and structural vibration. Without engineered containment, its continuous operation would generate sustained sound pressure levels well beyond the site boundary into surrounding residential areas.
This meant that for Ballarat Gold Project, noise is not just a workforce safety issue. It is an EPA Victoria compliance obligation and a community relations risk that could directly affect the project’s ability to operate.
The Challenge
The client’s brief to AcousTech was precise: they required acoustic control without compromising ventilation, access without compromising containment, and durability without compromise.
This called for an acoustic enclosure that would:
- Meet EPA Victoria noise limits at the site boundary, protecting the neighbouring township from operational noise
- Support worker noise exposure management
- Maintain airflow for heat dissipation
- Provide large-scale access for equipment and maintenance
- Integrate with site aesthetics in Cottage Green, and
- Withstand the daily rigours of a mining environment.
Our Approach
AcousTech supplied a custom Sonic System acoustic modular panel-V50 kit engineered specifically to suit the ball mill shed’s footprint.
Working from the preliminary MTO design, our team developed a full enclosure solution that incorporated:
- Acoustic wall and roof panels
- Large-format Sonic Access acoustic sliding doors
- Sonic Access acoustic personnel doors
- Sonic Series SL4-20 acoustic louvres
- Ridge-mounted acoustic ventilators
- Supplementary PVC containment elements
Because sound does not respect gaps, the AcousTech team took care to consider every interface, from door perimeters and roof junctions to ventilation penetrations and machine cut-outs.
This was no retrofit of generic cladding. It was a purpose-built acoustic system aligned with the Science of Silence principles that guide every AcousTech design.
The Delivered Solution
AcousTech supplied a full enclosure custom engineered for the mine site. A Sonic System acoustic modular panel-V50 kit was sized to fully envelope the ball mill shed across all four walls and the roof, finished in Cottage Green to integrate with the site.
Three large-format Sliding Sonic Access acoustic doors were incorporated to allow heavy plant and equipment movement without breaking acoustic containment. And Sonic Access acoustic personnel doors provided safe and compliant worker access at multiple points around the enclosure.
Ventilation was a critical design consideration. Six Sonic Series SL4-20 acoustic louvres were integrated into the enclosure walls, and full-length ridge-mounted acoustic ventilators were installed across the shed’s entire 19 metre length. These features delivered the high airflow required to manage heat from continuous mill operation, without compromising the acoustic seal. Supplementary PVC strip curtains and a rear sliding concertina acoustic curtain handled the remaining penetrations and ground-level openings.
Results achieved
The completed Sonic Shed enclosure:
- Delivers reduced noise emission from the ball mill structure
- Improves control of occupational noise exposure
- Manages airflow through engineered acoustic ventilation
- Maintains heavy plant access for operational continuity
- Is sufficiently robust enclosure to meet mining duty requirements, and
- Delivers measurable performance as a structured acoustic solution.
AcousTech’s installation meets EPA Victoria noise requirements at the Ballarat Gold Project site boundary while actively supporting Health, Safety, and Productivity on the factory floor. That balance is not accidental – it’s engineered.
The Benefits for Como Engineers
- Meets EPA Victoria noise limits at the site boundary
- Reduces noise exposure for personnel and the surrounding community
- Maintains ventilation and heat dissipation while controlling noise
- Allows easy personnel access and large equipment movement
- Provides a durable enclosure suited to demanding mining conditions
- Supports increased production without compromising noise compliance
Talk to us for solutions to your noise compliance challenge
The client’s brief to AcousTech was precise: they required acoustic control without compromising ventilation, access without compromising containment, and durability without compromise.
This called for an acoustic enclosure that would:
- Meet EPA Victoria noise limits at the site boundary, protecting the neighbouring township from operational noise
- Support worker noise exposure management
- Maintain airflow for heat dissipation
- Provide large-scale access for equipment and maintenance
- Integrate with site aesthetics in Cottage Green, and
- Withstand the daily rigours of a mining environment.
See the Project in Action
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