Principal consultant honored for decades of excellence in acoustical consulting

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – June 22, 2016   –  Acentech, a nationally recognized multi-disciplinary acoustics, audiovisual, IT and security system design, and vibration consulting firm, is proud to announce that Principal Consultant James D. Barnes, PE, INCE-USA Fellow, has received the Laymon N. Miller Award for Excellence in Acoustical Consulting, provided jointly by the Institute of Noise Control Engineering of the USA (INCE-USA) and the National Council of Acoustical Consultants (NCAC). Jim was honored with this prestigious award at the INCE NoiseCon-16 Conference on June 15.

INCE-USA is a professional organization that promotes engineering solutions to environmental, product, machinery, industrial, and other noise problems. The Laymon N. Miller Award for Excellence in Acoustical Consulting honors an individual who has practiced acoustical consulting in an exemplary manner over a sustained period of time to improve acoustical environments in and around buildings, transportation systems, work places, recreational and other occupied spaces, such that the quality of life for citizens and communities is significantly enhanced. Laymon N. Miller was a distinguished consultant and leading expert in noise control engineering at pioneering firm Bolt Beranek and Newman (BBN).

In reviewing Jim’s nomination, the award committee bestowed Jim with this honor based on his impressive professional accomplishments, education and mentorship of industry colleagues, technical knowledge and writing, and flattering endorsements from clients and colleagues. They write: “Like Laymon, Jim clearly exemplifies the qualities of an outstanding acoustical consultant and has during his entire 40+ year professional life. His unwavering commitment to both the quality of his work and service to his clients is clear to all who have worked with him. In addition, his professional ethics are second to none.” “Jim is a clear and effective communicator and writer of technical reports, explaining just what clients need to know, as Laymon recommended, in ordinary language, not scientific or technical jargon." And, “Jim has given much time and effort into mentoring the next generation of noise control engineers…much like Laymon Miller himself.”

At Acentech, Jim concentrates on noise and vibration control, with an emphasis on resolving community and workplace noise problems in the power industry. He has managed and technically supervised hundreds of projects covering the energy, transportation, manufacturing, and processing markets. His projects have encompassed interior and community noise and vibration control studies for existing sources, prediction of construction and operation noise levels, and ambient sound studies for proposed industrial sites and transportation corridors. To fulfill the requirements of these projects, Jim has worked closely with design team engineers, architects and planners, attorneys, equipment suppliers, owners, community representatives, and state and local government personnel. 

Throughout his 40-year career in noise and vibration control, Jim has authored dozens of technical reports and research papers and presented at the industry’s top conferences. In 2012, Jim was designated an INCE-USA Fellow for “decades of outstanding professional service as an industrial and environmental noise control engineering consultant to clients throughout the United States, service to INCE-USA during NoiseCon conferences and InterNoise congresses, and teacher of classes for INCE-USA.” 

He received a Master of Engineering in mechanical engineering and a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering, both from Cornell University, and completed additional graduate study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

INCE-USA is the world’s foremost professional organization focusing exclusively on noise control engineering, and Acentech’s consultants have been involved with INCE-USA for many years and in many capacities. Acentech is proud and fortunate to have on its staff: ten members of INCE-USA, five INCE-USA Board Certified members, three INCE-USA Fellow members, a vice-president of INCE-USA, a past-president of INCE-USA, a recipient of the INCE Distinguished Noise Control Engineer Award, and now, a recipient of the Laymon N. Miller Award for Excellence in Acoustical Consulting. Achieving the Institute’s Board Certification requires a high level of technical competency, analogous to a professional engineering registration for acoustical engineering. INCE-USA Fellows are those members who have rendered service to the Institute and made distinguished contributions to the advancement of noise control engineering or who notably promoted knowledge of noise control engineering.

About INCE-USA

The Institute of Noise Control Engineering of the USA (INCE-USA) is a non-profit professional organization with the mission to promote engineering solutions to environmental, product, machinery, industrial and other noise problems. The Institute publishes the Noise Control Engineering Journal (NCEJ), which presents peer reviewed articles on all aspects of noise control engineering, and sponsors the NOISE-CON series of national conferences. INCE-USA maintains a digital library of more than 20,000 technical papers. INCE-USA is a member society of the International Institute of Noise Control Engineering (I-INCE), an international consortium of organizations with interests in acoustics and noise control. INCE-USA together with I-INCE publish Noise/News International for practicing noise and vibration control engineers worldwide. For more information, please visit  www.inceusa.org.

About Acentech

Acentech is a multi-disciplinary acoustics, audiovisual system, IT and security system design, and vibration consulting firm. The company serves a diverse group of clients from its offices in Cambridge, Mass.; Trevose, Penn.; and Los Angeles, Calif. With a professional staff of more than 50 consultants, Acentech is one of the oldest and largest organizations of its type: an unequaled resource to engineers, architects, and designers worldwide. For more information, please visit  www.acentech.com or on Twitter at @AcentechTweet.