MLV noise insulation & vibration damping Blackburn · UK
Mass-loaded barriers, damping pads and acoustic foams — designed and manufactured at our own plant in Blackburn, then supplied to acoustic contractors across the UK and worldwide.
Airborne noise · impact noise · structure-borne vibration
Manufacture & supply — UK and worldwide
01 — The interruption
Bolt a machine straight to a structure and every pulse has a continuous path into the building. Put a resilient mount in that path and the path is broken at the joint.
Illustrative — not a measured insertion loss. A diagram of the principle, drawn for this page.
Fig. 02 — the interruption
Read the trace
Above the mount, the trace is a machine doing work: displacement passing into the structure through a rigid connection. At the mount, the amplitude collapses. What continues on the right is the residual movement the structure still receives.
The shape is the point, not the values. Every machine, slab and mount behaves differently — which is why the material is specified per project, not picked from a shelf.
A barrier adds weight where airborne noise would otherwise pass. MLV is the dense layer in that build-up.
A mount separates the machine from the structure, so movement stops at the joint instead of carrying through it.
A damping layer takes movement out of a panel — turning vibration into a small amount of heat rather than radiated noise.
02 — The materials
Standard ranges, plus project-specific materials developed to customer requirements and specifications. Every plate below is a real WSBL product family.
Barrier membranes and barrier-led laminates — the mass layer in a partition, a lining or a lagging build-up. Revac barriers are laminated in-house.
Vibration damping pads and decoupling layers for metal roofs, floors and plant. Dedpan DS carries a BRE rain-noise report.
Floor treatment products, including Wil-Mat under-screed impact insulation used through new-build housing developments.
Duct and plant lagging, including the original Wil-Lag — specified through HVAC systems to cut airborne noise at source.
Acoustic foams, including PUNF, for absorption inside ducts, studios and plant rooms — plain or foil-faced with self-adhesive backing.
Need a material that is not on the list? Project-specific materials are regularly developed to customer requirements. Talk to the technical team
03 — Manufacturing
The Blackburn site has served industry with noise control foams and felt materials since the early 1950s. Compounding, calendaring, lamination, quilting and die-cutting all happen in-house.
Continued goal: multiple lines and processes. Bespoke acoustic and vibration damping barriers for automotive applications, including moulding and decoupling materials.
04 — Projects
Studios, theatres, transport, housing — and one very famous tennis court. Selected projects as published by WSBL.
Descriptions condensed from WSBL's published project pages. See the full project list
05 — Certifications & policy
Acoustic testing through the University of Salford Acoustic Laboratories; external fire testing through Exova. Quality management is certified to ISO 9001.
Certified · ISO 9001 Quality management, certified through NQA under UKAS accreditation.
Tested & certified
Certificates are held per product and per test. Ask the technical team for the current certificate for your build-up.
Certifications & testing06 — Contact
Discuss a project, ask for a datasheet, or order materials for delivery. The technical, sales and production teams sit in the same building.
