As already announced, the 47th AIA National Convention cannot be held in person and will be held online.
In this period there has been a rapid affirmation of distance communication which, while guaranteeing the necessary continuity in the activities of dissemination and scientific dissemination, does not allow to propose all those moments of sharing and participation of which the National Conference represents the main and long-awaited event by AIA Members every year.
In order to involve the Members also on this occasion, all the comments and suggestions received at the numerous online events organized by the AIA in the last year were analyzed and discussed and a specific questionnaire was proposed to collect the preferences of the Members on how to organize the National Online Conference.
Participation in the survey was large, with almost one hundred questionnaires filled in, which clearly showed the preferences and expectations of a wide representation of Members who deal with acoustics and its applications mainly in the professional field (51.7%) , in scientific research (23.6%), in the Public Administration (13.5%) and in services (5.6%).
Over 83% of participants are enrolled in the National List of Competent Acoustics Technicians (ENTECA) and deem it useful to have refresher seminars for TCA on the sidelines of the National Conference, as a moment of synthesis and application of the research topics addressed during the scientific sessions.
The topics that have attracted the greatest interest of AIA Members are those related to noise in living environments (84.4%), measurement and evaluation of noise (65.6%), building acoustics and regulatory updates (both with 62.5% approval).
Many Members are interested in presenting scientific memoirs at the National Conference, in particular in the field of noise assessment and control techniques and in architectural acoustics.
As regards the emerging issues, on which the members would like to organize plenary communications or round tables, there was a notable interest in the integrated acoustic design of buildings (56.3%), for acoustic simulation techniques ( 54%), for the study of acoustic comfort in leisure areas (43.7%). Numerous other topics and in-depth proposals have attracted particular attention, such as noise control in the industrial field, acoustic ecology and the design of urban soundscapes.
The Members who replied to the questionnaire showed a strong interest in the technical reviews and the display of case studies by the supporting companies of the AIA and by the exhibitors at the Conference (88.5%) and also indicated numerous topics and fields applications on which they would like this type of communication to be focused.
As regards the organizational aspects, most of the Members expressed their opinion for the distribution of scientific communications over a whole week, with afternoon sessions.
On the basis of these indications, the program of the National Conference will then be organized which will take place from 24 to 27 May 2021, with scientific sessions in the form of webinars organized in the afternoon and other moments for social activities, in particular the Assembly of Members and awarding ceremonies, distributed during the event. Two training seminars for TCA will also be scheduled to take place on Friday 28 May 2021.
Registration for the event will open shortly, while information on fees (particularly facilitated), deadlines and methods of participation and uploading of scientific contributions are already available on the dedicated web page (https://acustica-aia.it/event / 47-convention-national-aia-online /), which we invite you to visit for more details and information.
The AIA Board of Directors thanks all the Members who have dedicated their time and attention to completing the questionnaire, thus helping to bring the AIA closer to everyone’s needs and expectations.
The regret remains for the impossibility of meeting in person and sharing those social moments that just cannot be offered online. However, we hope to make up for lost time and opportunities with the subsequent National Conference in attendance, which will be re-proposed in Matera as soon as conditions permit, hopefully in 2022.