Key Services Offered by Professional Commercial Asbestos Removalists
As a hazardous material, asbestos requires careful handling during removal as well as during disposal. This is because asbestos fibres can remain suspended in the air for extended periods. While undisturbed asbestos materials don't pose a danger to staff in a commercial facility, it is not right to take chances because damage, disturbance or deterioration over time can free asbestos fibres in the air. Therefore, hiring a commercial asbestos removal and disposal service provider is vital. However, what services should you be looking for in a commercial asbestos disposal service provider? Read on to find out.
Sampling and Analysis
When you hire an asbestos abatement company and the first thing they do is secure the facility and start tearing down asbestos-containing material, ditch them. This is not how professional asbestos abatement companies perform their work. Notably, the first thing an asbestos abatement service provider should do is conduct sampling and analysis of the asbestos material. The reason is that it is challenging to tell friable asbestos from non-friable asbestos simply by looking at the material with the naked eye. The service provider must thus conduct tests on samples collected from the facility to determine the type of asbestos they are dealing with. Consequently, this will help them determine the best way to handle the removal as well as disposal process.
Auditing
Commercial asbestos abatement companies must observe care during removal, transportation and disposal of asbestos material. Such care is only achievable if the service provider performs due diligence and is compliant with legal and system audits. For instance, when a service provider approaches your facility, they usually first ask where the asbestos-containing material is located. However, due diligence requires that the service provider inspects the entire facility because there might be asbestos materials in another area that you might not be aware of. As such, due diligence ensures the service provider completely removes any existing asbestos material from a given commercial facility. The service provider should also inspect your systems and how you conduct an asbestos inspection. If the asbestos removal and disposal company identifies a weakness, they will recommend the best cause of action you should take.
Air Monitoring
Most facility managers think that commercial asbestos removal and disposal involves tearing down asbestos materials and dumping them on trucks. Nothing could be further from the truth because monitoring the air before, during and after asbestos removal is a vital step in commercial asbestos processing. Therefore, before the process begins, the service provider will take an air sample from the facility and test it for the presence of asbestos fibres. Once asbestos removal is complete, another air sample is taken to determine if there are any fibres present, and the appropriate action is taken. Only when the air is free of asbestos fibres can the service provider clear the facility for occupation.