Walk around an older factory, depot or processing plant and you will see pipes, pumps, boilers, and a lot of corrugated sheeting. What you will not see is which of it contains asbestos.
If the site was built or fitted out before asbestos was banned at the end of 2003, some of it probably does.
Left alone, most of it is harmless enough. The danger turns up on an ordinary Tuesday, when fitter cracks open a flange or an electrician cut into an old switchboard without knowing what’s in there.
So, for site managers, asbestos is mostly an ongoing management job. Removal is just one part of it.
Where asbestos hides on industrial sites
Industrial sites have asbestos in places an office never would. Some of the usual ones:
- Gaskets and seals in pipe flanges, pumps, and valves
- Lagging on steam lines, boilers, and hot water systems
- Insulation inside ovens, kilns, and furnaces
- Brake and clutch linings on older machinery
- Switchboard backing panels
- Corrugated roofing and wall cladding on sheds
- Fire doors and firewall linings
Commercial buildings on the same site add the familiar ones: ceiling tiles, vinyl floors, fibro sheeting, and old partitions.
The tricky part is that so much of it sits inside plant. You cannot spot a gasket by walking past it.
Start with the asbestos register
Most states and territories run under Work Health and Safety (WHS) laws, and Victoria has its own Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) laws. Under either, workplaces built before 31 December 2003 generally need an asbestos register.
At a minimum, the register should show where asbestos is (or is assumed to be), what type it is if that’s known, and what condition it’s in.
Here’s the catch. On a big site, a register sitting in a filing cabinet in the admin block doesn’t help anyone. It needs to be easy to get to, kept current, and checked before every maintenance job, shutdown, or construction project.
Where asbestos is found, you’ll generally also need an asbestos management plan. It sets out how the material is controlled, who’s responsible for it, and when it’ll be reviewed or removed.
Day to day hazard management
Not everything has to come out tomorrow. Stable asbestos in good condition can often be managed where it is, as long as people know about it.
In practice, that usually means:
- Labelling asbestos materials where you can
- Taking contractors through the register before they start
- Using permits to work for any job that might disturb suspect material
- Checking known asbestos regularly for damage
- Stopping work straight away if something suspicious turns up
Contractors are where it most often goes wrong. A crew brought in for a weekend breakdown doesn’t know your site. Nobody mentions the gaskets on that flange, and out comes the angle grinder.
When removal makes sense
At some point, managing it in place stops being the sensible option.
That point usually comes when the material is damaged or breaking down, or when the plant it’s in is due for an upgrade or replacement. Planned refurbishments, extensions and demolitions trigger it too. So does asbestos in a spot with heavy foot traffic or constant vibration, or asbestos that keeps getting in the way of routine maintenance.
Timing matters. Planned shutdowns are often the best window for industrial asbestos removal, because the plant is already offline and access is easier. You also aren’t losing extra production days.
What makes industrial removal different
An office fitout this isn’t.
Access is often the first headache. Asbestos might be up on a gantry, inside a confined space or wrapped around live services. Then the plant itself has to be isolated, drained or otherwise made safe before anyone touches it.
Some sites also have enormous amounts of friable insulation or long runs of lagged pipe. That means enclosures, negative air units, and air monitoring for the whole job, plus a lot of planning beforehand.
And the site usually can’t just stop. Work may need to be staged around production lines, shift changes, and truck deliveries.
That’s why industrial asbestos removal belongs with a team that has real industrial experience. General building work won’t have prepared them for a live plant.
Licensing and compliance
State and territory regulators issue asbestos removal licences in Australia.
Friable asbestos needs a Class A licence. Non friable (bonded) asbestos over 10 square metres needs at least a Class B licence.
For licensed jobs, the regulator generally has to be notified before work starts. Afterwards, a clearance inspection is carried out and a clearance certificate issued before the area goes back into use. All asbestos waste has to go to a facility licensed to take it.
Choosing a certified commercial asbestos removalist
When people search for a certified commercial asbestos removalist, what they’re really after is someone with the right state licence who’s worked on sites like theirs.
Before you sign anyone up, check that they:
- Hold the right licence class for what’s on your site
- Have worked on industrial plant, not just offices and houses
- Understand isolation, confined spaces, and working at heights
- Give you a written asbestos removal control plan
- Arrange air monitoring and clearance where required
- Can fit the work around shutdowns and production
- Use a licensed disposal facility and hand over the records
A good certified commercial asbestos removalist should also help you update the register and management plan once they’re done.
Keep it current
Registers go stale. Equipment gets swapped out, buildings get extended, and contractors come and go.
Review the register and management plan regularly, and every time major work is on the horizon. A gasket nobody has written down is the one that causes trouble.
Disclaimer: This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute professional, legal, or occupational health and safety advice. Asbestos regulations, licensing requirements, register obligations, removal procedures, and clearance processes vary by Australian state and territory and may change without notice. The general reference to asbestos being banned at the end of 2003 and the 31 December 2003 register threshold should be verified against current legislation in your jurisdiction. Readers should consult their relevant WHS/OHS regulator and a licensed asbestos removal professional before undertaking any inspection, management, or removal work. Any mention of specific services does not imply endorsement. The author and publisher disclaim any liability for decisions made based on this content.
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