Shooting ranges are experiencing a bigger boom than gyms. A record was set in 2025, with Polish police issuing nearly 51,000 new gun permits. As interest grows like mushrooms under the rain, so do shooting ranges, both indoor and outdoor. Although the latter also cause premises conflicts related to noise. Why is learning to shoot friendlier indoors? And does the real estate industry stand to gain from this boom?
Recent years have brought historic records. The boom in shooting ranges and firearms in Poland began to develop strongly with the beginning of the war in Ukraine. Today it's a sport for many, an idea to improve security, and a boost to business for companies and building owners.
Currently in Poland, according to police data, there are more than 1 million registered weapons among private individuals. This is an absolute record, and the shooting infrastructure is also developing strongly. According to estimates based on data from municipalities and the Polish Shooting Sports Association, there are about 800 shooting ranges in the country. For several years, the development of classic shooting ranges and multimedia shooting ranges has also been supported by the Ministry of Defense. Under the "shooting range in the district" program, local governments receive funding for their construction.
But with the development of shooting sites, opposition to outdoor shooting ranges is also growing. In many localities, the local community protests against their operation or construction. These "noise wars" favor the development of indoor shooting ranges, also giving a new business boost to the real estate market.
The battle for indoor quality
For the past 2 years or so, we have seen a very lively demand for interior design assistance from shooting facilities. This is a completely new market, and its rapid growth is an interesting surprise to many in the construction industry, reports Wojciech Krzyzowski of Knauf Ceiling Solutions, a company that supplies equipment for ceilings and walls for shooting ranges. The manufacturer has a portfolio of panels in its Heradesign line. These are panels made of wood wool - they not only improve acoustics, but are also very hard and resistant to damage.
Building regulations for shooting ranges specify the standards that the facility must meet. The interior height of the shooting hall is 3.3 meters, in the case of adaptation or reconstruction of existing buildings, the height is allowed to be reduced to no less than 2.5 meters. Strict requirements also apply to ventilation, including strong air filtration. When firing, toxic gases (lead compounds, carbon monoxide and residues of unburned gunpowder) are released, so the interior must be ventilated in the right direction. To the outside, the air must go after passing through HEPA filters
Acoustics and safety are the two most important points in the interior design of shooting ranges, photo by Knauf Ceiling Solutions
© KNAUF
© KNAUF
Acoustics are equally important. And this is both in terms of people practicing shooting inside, as well as
and noise isolation so that it is not heard outside the building. The building envelope must dampen noise so that outside the building, especially when the facility is adjacent to residential buildings, the sound level does not exceed acceptable environmental standards, about 55 dB during the day.
Inside, in addition to headphones, the health of users should also be protected by materials. - Cladding with a high noise reduction coefficient, or NRC, is recommended, says Wojciech Krzyzowski of Knauf Ceiling Solutions. And, he adds, this is just the beginning of the requirements for materials for the interior of shooting ranges. - It's not just noise attenuation that counts, but control of the entire environment: fire safety, protection against bullet reflections, improved acoustics for better understanding of speech, including commands given by instructors, he enumerates.
Heradesign panels and wall coverings, which Knauf Ceiling Solutions supplies for this type of facility, have a fire reaction class of A1, A2 or B. Their surface does not retain gunpowder residue, and technical tests confirm that they do not cause ricochets when properly installed.
Neither bullets nor their parts can bounce off the surface toward the shooting positions. Tests have confirmed that Heradesign boards have such properties," says Wojciech Krzyzowski.
The acoustic boards help lower the echo and "overlap" of the sounds of gunfire. All this ensures that the interior does not have a destructive effect on users' hearing, causes less fatigue and better concentration. In addition, it also contributes to better speech comprehension, which is important for communication between a shooting instructor and a student who is just taking the first steps on the path of applying for a gun permit.
Knauf Ceiling Solutions in the case of the acoustically resistant Heradesign wood wool panels also provides the possibility to cut patterns on the surface, which for a shooting range means that it can have, for example, trendy slogans or its logo on the walls
© KNAUF
© KNAUF
Shooting ranges are often complemented by conference rooms and lobbies.
Using multimaterials, we are able to equip these interiors as well. Here the requirements are already completely different, often strongly focused also on design, and not only on the functional properties of the materials. We are able to combine these two needs," explains Wojciech Krzyzowski of Knauf Ceiling Solutions. Among other things, the company offers metal panels that can complement the design of shooting ranges thanks to their industrial look.
MESH METAL mesh "trusses", island acoustic panels in any color or vertical Baffles can hang above users' heads.
The austere, industrial interiors of the entrance areas to the shooting ranges can be complemented by metal mesh ceilings, perforated panels or hanging ceiling islands, photo by Szymon Polanski for Knauf Ceiling Solutions
© KNAUF
© KNAUF
For more information about the company https://knauf.com/pl-PL/p/produkty/sufity-i-absorbery-scienne-35568
