There are a lot of challenges involved working on a construction site. Whether you are flipping the entire site or developing a new establishment, there are a lot of things that must be taken care of. One of them is asbestos management.
Proper asbestos management plans can only be developed by following a precise guideline. If there is even a minor flaw in the plan then a lot of issues may arise. A major issue could primarily involve chronic health risk and environment damage of the particular site.
But no matter how complex the planning seems it is a crucial part of the process if you are dealing with asbestos on the site. Below we have listed out some crucial steps that would guide the people involved in proper asbestos management. Continue to read till the end to find out.
- Validating the presence of asbestos on site
Before anything else, it is an obligation to conduct a proper assessment and survey of the premises for the siting of asbestos. The easiest way to identify the presence of asbestos by carrying out a professional survey.
At SERS, our team of qualified asbestos assessors collect samples from premises that are then sent to NATA (National Association of Testing Authorities) accredited laboratories for assessing the presence of asbestos in the sample.
The surveys carried out are carefully designed to validate the asbestos containing materials that could be potentially damaged or disturbed causing contamination of the site.
- Proper training of the workers on site
One of the overlooked yet crucial part of proper asbestos management is offering suitable training to everyone involved on the construction premises. All the individuals that are involved in managing asbestos must undergo Asbestos Awareness Training.
The training typically includes an overview of what asbestos exactly is, why it was used and in which part of building or sites you can find asbestos, how it poses as a hazardous material and more relevant subjects.
Without acquiring proper training, there is always an alarming risk of work safety infringement.
- Asbestos management plan
Once the survey and training is accomplished successfully you will be having a survey report that lists down the details of asbestos presence. Now it is time for you to move forward by assessing the risks and managing them carefully. Management of the risks basically means that you have to ensure no one is exposed to harmful asbestos fibres while its removal.
You have to document everything for managing risks in your Asbestos Management Plan. This plan of yours will also include in-depth risk assessment in order to assess the intensely vulnerable materials that would cause risk due to disturbance.
- Careful planning of remedial actions (if any)
This one is entirely dependent on the survey report and the asbestos management plan you have prepared previously. Whether you require a remedial action plan or not is completely based on the outcomes from the aforementioned steps.
Usually, premises where it is identified that asbestos containing materials are in an extremely poor state that is beyond repair or is particularly vulnerable to disturbance then it is highly recommended to remove them from the site. Removal of such asbestos containing material is one of the many forms of remedial actions.
Aside from this, the other remedial actions include repair, encapsulation, isolation or sealing. Make it a point that for such remedial actions to carry out successfully, a professional asbestos removal contractor must be hired.
- Communicating the risks involved and the entirety of the plan
Lastly, when the entire asbestos management plan is prepared and you have in place the actions you are going to adopt for managing the risks, it is important that you communicate this info with relevant individuals. For instance, the occupants of the building or premises and any contractors that are undertaking the particular project.
Keep in mind that anyone who will or may potentially come in contact with asbestos on site must be informed about the essential information.
Conclusion
The above listed step-by-step guide is a key to prepare proper asbestos management plans.
Follow the steps diligently so that the necessary action is carried out successfully without causing a hazard of any kind.
Contact SERS to see how we can help with the remediation of your site.