The Problem

Speech leakage is an operational security risk.

In government facilities, legal boardrooms, defence SCIFs, and confidential consultation environments, speech travelling through walls and structures compromises security. Low-frequency speech components — which carry the most intelligibility — are notoriously difficult to attenuate with conventional mass-law materials.

Traditional solutions are heavy, thick, structurally invasive, and visually disruptive. They limit retrofit potential and add significant cost. A new approach is needed.

The Challenge

Three design constraints for secure environments.

Lightweight

Retrofit without structural modification. No mass-law bulk. Panel geometry creates the performance — not thickness or weight.

Measurable

Every installation is validated with before/after transmission loss measurement. Performance is proven — not assumed or simulated.

Scalable

Modular tile system scales from single panel testing to full-room deployment. Repeatable manufacture with Cambridge Smart Plastics.

The Solution

Acoustic bandgap panels.

Modular, puzzle-like geometric tiles designed to disrupt the transmission of sound across the speech band.

The panels use acoustic bandgap architecture — geometry tuned to speech-relevant frequencies (250 Hz – 4,000 Hz). Multiple unit sizes tile together with dovetail connections, supported by chemical bonding links for layered material coupling.

Lightweight enough for retrofit into existing rooms without structural modification. Validated using before/after transmission loss measurement — delivering up to 45 dB improvement.

Puzzle-like interlocking geometry • Dovetail connection points • Chemical bonding links • Repeatable manufacture

Evidence

Measured Results.

"Performance must be measurable, not assumed."

45 dB

Improved transmission loss

250 Hz – 4 kHz

Speech band coverage

Development Roadmap

From component to room-scale.

Full-wall prototype

Increase test area; validate room-scale acoustic behaviour.

Material refinement

Optimise layer bonding, damping, and low-frequency response.

Manufacturing optimisation

Improve repeatability, assembly process, and cost efficiency.

Before/after validation

Measure baseline and treated acoustic transmission for client evidence.

Manufacturing Partner

Cambridge Smart Plastics

Collaborative development of the acoustic bandgap panel system. Combining metamaterial design with repeatable polymer manufacturing to move from research-grade prototypes to production-ready hardware.

Discuss your secure speech requirements.

Share your operational constraints. We'll map a geometry-led solution with a before/after measurement plan.

Start a co-creation project