Case studies

The Boiler Rooms

We recently inspected a school building which had two boiler rooms, we were informed by the client that the boilers had been removed 3-5 years previously and that they had been cleared of asbestos

However when we came to survey the first boiler room we found asbestos lagging splashed on the walls, asbestos insulation board on a section of the rear wall, extensive dust and debris on all conduits and the floor, all these proved positive for asbestos. When we moved onto the second boiler room we again found debris which contained asbestos. The works had been carried out by so called reputable contractors however the standard of work was far from acceptable and left asbestos which was a very real risk to anyone entering the boiler rooms. On our advice the contractor was called back to site to clear the rooms of the remaining debris, which should have been cleared in the first instance. The contractor was a large company based in the South West who also have asbestos surveyors as young as 16 carrying out so called asbestos surveys.

The Hotel

We surveyed a large hotel in Swansea, part of which had been surveyed by a local Swansea asbestos surveyor. The local surveyor took two samples on site, one in a large boiler room and one of pipe lagging in the hall of the basement. He concluded that there was asbestos in the boiler room but not in the hallway. We found 17 instances of asbestos materials in the hallway which the local surveyor failed to find and a further 27 instances of asbestos materials in the basement areas. To describe the local surveyor as incompetent would be an understatement. No doubt he had done a two day course and thought he was competent, like many others he was not.

The hidden danger

We were instructed to survey a shop premises before our client acquired the business. On inspecting the area above the suspended ceiling in the sales are we noted that the beams which were supporting the floors above had been clad with asbestos insulation board as a fire proofing measure, however as often happens the board had been broken by contractors fitting cabling. As a result asbestos board debris was laying on ceiling tiles and presented an unacceptable risk to anyone going into the ceiling void.

As a result of our survey our clients renegotiated the purchase agreement and agreed that the sellers would contribute to the costs of making the asbestos boards safe.