University of Houston, The RAD Center

Acoustic Design for a Campus Dining, Retail and “Third Space” Hub

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Built Environment

Industry

Higher Education

Multi-Use Event Centers

Location

Texas

Architect | Contractor

Perkins+Will | Turner Construction

The RAD Center brings a distinctive retail and dining environment to the University of Houston campus in Houston, TX. The 40,000-square-foot facility centers on an open, double-height dining hall featuring a diverse mix of local and international food concepts, along with flexible meeting and conference spaces designed as adaptable “third spaces” for studying, gathering, and events. Jaffe Holden, a Trinity Consultants team, provided acoustic design services for the $40 million project, completed in 2024, working alongside Perkins+Will and Turner Construction.

Vision

The University of Houston set out to bring a distinctive retail and dining environment to campus with The RAD Center — a 40,000-square-foot facility built around a diverse mix of local and international food concepts, including Nook Café, The Burger Joint, The Taco Stand, Paper Lantern, and Absurd Bird, alongside meeting and conference spaces designed as flexible “third spaces.” At the heart of the building is an open, double-height dining hall meant to encourage students to linger well after their meals — a space defined by polished concrete floors, glass exterior walls, and an exposed mass timber structure. The challenge was to shape a controlled acoustic environment that supports everyday conversation among students while preserving the liveliness and energy the design team wanted the space to carry.

Partnership

Jaffe Holden, a Trinity Consultants team, worked closely with the University of Houston, Perkins+Will, and Turner Construction from design through completion, identifying opportunities to introduce sound-absorptive finishes without compromising the exposed mass timber aesthetic that anchors the building’s identity.

Services Performed

Room acoustics, sound isolation, and MEP noise and vibration control — including sound-absorptive cementitious wood wool and felt wall panels, perforated metal soffit panels at food kiosks, and acoustical channeled wood plank treatments to manage reverberant energy in the double-height dining hall.

Building Sound Isolation

Environmental Acoustics

Noise & Vibration Analysis

MEP Assessments & Solutions for Noise & Vibration

Value-Add

By balancing sound-absorptive treatments with the architectural intent of an exposed mass timber structure, the acoustics program allowed The RAD Center’s dining hall to feel lively and energetic without becoming overwhelming — supporting the University’s vision of a “third space” where students can study, meet, and socialize well beyond mealtimes. The result is an acoustically comfortable, sustainably minded environment that reinforces the RAD Center’s role as a new campus hub.

High-performing studios are built on acoustic precision. From controlling vibration and background noise to shaping rooms for clarity and consistency, every decision impacts what happens on air. When acoustics are integrated early with structure and systems, studios deliver the quiet, control, and reliability that production teams depend on every day.

David Legenhausen | Senior Associate