Blog By Erkki Poikolainen

1980s: Measuring Ambient Noise on Christmas Eve, Industrial Site -- Part 2

Erkki paints a vivid picture of how environmental noise was measured in the 1980s: “A career in environmental acoustics looked very different in the 1980s and 1990s. Early noise measuring equipment had no internal memory, narrow measuring ranges, and only limited octave band capability. Longer measurements required external loggers, and even then, only one parameter per second—typically LAeq—could be stored.

For nearly a decade I relied on a MIP 7178 meter paired with a Grant logger packed inside a plastic toolbox, later upgraded with external connectors and a power unit. Despite leaving these systems unattended for hundreds of days and nights around factories and urban areas, none were ever stolen or vandalized. By the late 1990s, more advanced devices like the B&K 2260 and later Rion models finally brought internal memory and multi parameter measurement, transforming fieldwork.”

Measuring at the industrial site in 1980s: “One of the most memorable—and challenging—measurements of my career took place on Christmas Eve. A large industrial complex in Finland in a dense urban area shut down only once a year, offering a rare chance to measure true ambient noise without factory operations. The temperature limit for the equipment was –20°C, but that morning it was –34°C. I had committed to the job, and the compensation was triple pay, so I loaded the car at 2 a.m. and drove 150 kilometers to the site.

To keep the instruments functioning, I shortened each measurement to the minimum and warmed the meter inside the running car between points. I kept the engine running the entire day. Despite the extreme cold, the measurements were successful—one more story from an era when environmental noise work demanded equal parts expertise, improvisation, and endurance.”