Asbestos surveys are an integral part of an asbestos management plan to assess risks and prevent harm to anybody living or working in the building it covers. There are three different types of asbestos surveys: management survey, demolition survey and and asbestos refurbishment survey. Are you looking for asbestos surveying and wanting to better understand them? We have provided a basic guide to which is which.
Types of surveys
Management surveys are ideal when trying to identify whether or not your premises has asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) present and when putting together your management plan for them. This survey does not consist of any significant intrusive damage to the fabric of the building but does take into account routine maintenance. During planned refurbishment works, specific intrusive inspection points for affected areas may be required.
Demolition surveys are called upon when a property has scheduled demolition work and – in contrast with management surveys – requires a fully intrusive inspection to check for asbestos within the building fabric.
Refurbishment surveys are used whenever refurbishment of the property is planned. Similar to demolition surveys, this type of survey involves a fully intrusive inspection scoped toward the nature of the planned refurbishment work.
Refurbishment and demolition surveys can be localised to the specifics of a proposed project and as such are beneficial when only limited works are planned. This allows the building not to be damaged where works are not planned.
Process
At the beginning of an asbestos survey Manchester, there is typically an initial walkthrough where the site is risk assessed, all plans are checked over and any potential issues are identified that could halt the project moving forward.
Throughout the survey, an asbestos removal company that specialise in asbestos removal services use their vast expertise to fully assess the premises and locate any asbestos-containing materials. This includes collecting various samples for asbestos testing in an approved laboratory and determining if present.
Air testing
Depending on the initial assessment’s findings, air testing may be carried out as a further safety measure. There are 3 main steps within the air testing procedure that would be used during / following asbestos surveys – reassurance air testing, background testing and personal air testing.
Reassurance air testing locates any airborne fibres within a location following a specific activity. Background testing will be taken before the asbestos inspection Manchester to pinpoint background levels of any airborne material, whilst personal air testing is useful in detecting airborne asbestos particles in the breathing zone of the surveyor.
After a survey, you will receive a survey report detailing all asbestos materials identified, along with photographs and professional recommendations on how it needs to be managed. The surveys are the first step and you will be required to act on all immediate actions raised within it.
Contact the team at Grosvenor Asbestos Solutions today for all areas of asbestos surveying and asbestos removal Cheshire.
