Noise and Vibration – Understanding and Controlling the Experience
Martin Alexander, P.E., Bruel and Kjaer
1 May 2014, Penn State University, 9 am – 5 pm
We are surrounded by sound and vibration. In the office, in our vehicles, on the street, in the
workplace, and in the park, sound, and often vibration are a constant part of our experience.
Understanding the basics of sound and vibration – how the phenomena is created, transmitted,
and where necessary, abated is the subject of this one day short course. The course starts with
the basic physics of sound and vibration, the terminology and descriptors for its
characterization, and continues with a discussion of the instrumentation with which it is
measured. It finishes with strategies to reduce unwanted sound and vibration, or in some
cases “tune and shape” the sound to make it more acceptable and possibly more “sellable”.
Martin Alexander P.E.
marty.alexander@bksv.com
Martin Alexander has worked in the field of acoustics and vibration for more than 40 years.
With the international firm of Bruel & Kjaer for more than 30 years, Martin has worked as a
Field Sales Engineer, an Application Specialist, and a Product Manager. In the latter role he was
part of a team which helped to define the specifications for the company’s modern sound level
meters. He currently acts as Solution Manager for the Telecom-Audio market in the Americas,
and continues to lecture for Bruel & Kjaer in the areas of Acoustics, Vibration, and Noise
Control. He has served as an industry representative on several Acoustical Society standards
groups and was a member of the ASA noise committee. Prior to joining Bruel & Kjaer, as a
consultant in architectural acoustics, environmental noise and noise control he participated on
projects for the Environmental Protection Agency, the Federal Highway Administration, and
numerous architects and private sector clients in the power generation, food processing, and
pharmaceutical industries. He has managed projects as far ranging as acoustical design for the
USGA testing laboratory, to the noise and vibration impact analysis of the Hudson Bayonne
Light Rail Transit project. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the Cooper Union and a Masters
degree from MIT, both in mechanical engineering, and is a registered professional engineer in
the state of New Jersey. He has presented papers at numerous Institute of Noise Control
Engineering and Acoustical Society conferences, and has had papers published in several
journals.
An on again - off again musician, he often quips that he makes noise on the weekend, but
makes things quieter during the week.