Asbestos Matters - no other matters just Asbestos Matters

The Asbestos Specialists in another asbestos training industry first today are proud to announce the launch of The Duty to Manage online and face 2 face training courses.

The Duty to Manage Asbestos training course is directed at those who manage non-domestic premises: the people with responsibility for protecting others who work in such premises, or use them in other ways, from the risks to ill health that exposure to asbestos causes.

RoSPA Approved
The e-learning (on-line) course

The Asbestos Specialists can offer you the opportunity to undertake the Duty to Manage Asbestos training course through two routes; traditional face-to-face training or our industry leading online version. Both courses are examination based and are fully certificated. The course will assist building owners to comply with The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 and ACoP L143 (second edition). This course is suitable for delegates who already have attained an approved asbestos awareness qualification.

Face-to-Face Option
Available as both in-house and at locations throughout the UK. The in-house option can accommodate up to a maximum of 15 delegates. It follows all relevant guidance published by the HSE. The course includes specific information contained with HSG 264 and ACoP L143. This course is a 2-day training course that includes a tutor-led practical exercise on asbestos risk assessments and use of the priority assessment – HSG 227. The course is also inclusive of a 1-hour examination externally marked. Certification is issued on successful completion of the course.

This course is available in the following training centre locations:

South East, South West, Midlands, North West, North East and Central Scotland.
Call us for dates and booking details

If you are interested in either of our industry leading asbestos management Duty to Manage courses......just give our expert training advisers a call, we will guide you to the most cost efficient route to gaining this vital qualification to enable you to comply with The Control of Asbestos Regulations.

Another first for the UK’s most innovative asbestos training provider.
”...we would rather fail in originality than succeed in imitation...”

5 surprising facts about asbestos.

With graphic descriptive terms used to describe it, such as ‘the hidden killer’ and ‘deadly fibre’, the discovery or presumption that you may have asbestos in your workplace or even in your home is enough to strike fear into the minds of many people – and rightly so. Despite there being legislative controls to protect workers and members of the public from the 1930s right up until 2012, asbestos is still the single greatest cause of UK work related deaths and to this day it also remains a source of misery and ill-health the world over.

Here are 7 of some of the most surprising facts about asbestos…

1. Asbestos is a natural product – and still mined today:
Yes, asbestos is actually a mineral, unlike many other dangerous materials and substances found in the workplace, asbestos is not manmade. It’s not made in ‘asbestos factories’ - it is a naturally occurring silicate mineral with long, thin needle fibres or soft silky strong fibres held within the rock which is mined from the earth – a practice which is still carried out in many countries such as Russia, China, Brazil, Kazakhstan and, up until 2011, in Canada. In 2009, there were still two million tonnes of asbestos fibre mined worldwide.

2. Asbestos refers to a group of minerals:
The term ‘asbestos’ actually refers to a set of six minerals. All six are strong, heat resistant and chemically inert – properties that originally made it such a desirable material for a range of products and applications. Of the six types, three were commonly used in the UK:
chrysotile (white asbestos),
amosite (brown asbestos) and
crocidolite (blue asbestos).
All six have been found to harm human health due to the long term damage that breathing microscopic asbestos fibres causes to the lungs.

3. We have used asbestos for almost 5000 years:
The earliest known use of asbestos was in about 2,500 B.C in what is now Finland, where fibres were mixed with clay to form stronger ceramic utensils and pots. Since then it was used by most of the world’s major civilisations, including the ancient Greeks, Romans and Persians, where its fire-resistant properties were heralded by many as a form of ‘magic’. However, it wasn’t until 1858 that the asbestos industry formally began, when the Johns Mannville Company in New York began mining asbestos for use as industrial insulation.

4. Remarkable but true:
It might seem absolutely incredible to us now that we are aware of its dangers but, during the 1950s, asbestos was used as a medium in cigarette filters. Between 1953 and 1957 it is estimated that over 13 billion ‘Kent Micronite’ cigarettes were sold worldwide, mostly in the USA. Blue asbestos was used within the filter material to remove the heat from the smoke and tar from the tobacco.
Actually within the first half of the twentieth century asbestos was used in a variety of surprising applications. Back in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s, for example, asbestos was within a fake snow product that was used as a Christmas decoration. Its heat-resistant properties meant it was thought of much lower fire risk than alternatives – and it was even used on the film sets of ‘The Wizard of Oz.’


5. Asbestos exposure kills somebody every five hours:
As early as the 1930s it was understood that exposure to asbestos fibres could cause the disease which is known as asbestosis. However since then we have also discovered other diseases associated with being exposed to asbestos fibres.
The most serious disease is mesothelioma – cancer of the outer lining of the lung which is invariably fatal. Due to the risks posed by other people such as family members and ancillary workers who may have been subject to indirect exposure, it is difficult to put an exact figure on the number killed. However, the British Lung Foundation and the Health and Safety Executive estimate that more than 2,000 people are diagnosed with mesothelioma every year in the UK and someone dies every five hours. What’s more, in a report called the ‘Projection of Mesothelioma Mortality in Great Britain’, produced for the HSE, around 91,000 deaths are predicted to occur in the UK by 2050 as a direct result of exposure to asbestos.

Our vision and mission statements are the purpose of our Company business and the reason for our Company’s existence.

Our vision and mission statements will guide the Asbestos Specialists to spell out our overall goal, provide a path, and guide us with business decision-making.
Commenting on the launch of the company statements Managing Director Les Cooper said:

“...these statements will provide the framework or context within which the company's existing or future business strategies that are, or will be formulated. We take our statements seriously, they are a clear way forward, they are a goal for what the Asbestos Specialists as a company wants to achieve in the asbestos related training industry...”

Company motto
“...we would rather fail in originality than to succeed in imitation...”

Vision Statement
The guiding vision of The Asbestos Specialists is "To bring the best to everyone we deal with". What do we mean by the ‘best’...? we mean the best customer service, the best training and the best price. These three pillars have been the hallmarks of our Company since its foundation in 2003. They remain the foundations which we will continue to build upon.

Mission Statement
To supply outstanding service and training solutions through dedication, innovation and excellence. To become and sustain the position of undisputed marketplace leaders in asbestos related training.

Once again UK Asbestos Specialists are proud to announce another major step forward in the continuous improvement programme of our company, which has been on going since the re-launch in December2010.

Today we are very proud to announce that we have become members of RoSPA.
Of course our membership of RoSPA is just another step on the ladder to maintaining our position as the UK’s leading asbestos awareness and asbestos management training provider.

RoSPA’s Mission and Vision
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), work is centred on two simple statements their mission and vision.

The RoSPA mission is to save lives and reduce injuries.

The RoSPA vision is to lead the way on accident prevention.

These statements provide the foundation on which their work is based - including their long-term goals and what they do on a day-to-day basis.

The RoSPA mission describes their passion, their belief in their "cause" and their energy and commitment to improving the lives of others.

Too many people are killed and seriously injured in preventable accidents. At RoSPA, they remember that every accident “statistic" represents a real person - a life lost or affected, often severely - and a family left enduring the consequences. Everything they do, therefore, is focused on preventing this unnecessary suffering.

The RoSPA vision encapsulates how they work towards the RoSPA mission.

RoSPA have been at the heart of accident prevention in the UK and around the world since our inception back in 1917. With a huge toll of death and injury from accidents remaining in this country and overseas, they are committed to using and adding to the tremendous base of expertise they have built up over many decades.

Commenting on our membership of the British Safety Council, UK Asbestos Specialists Managing Director Les Cooper said;

“As a company we are proud to become members of The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents.

The Asbestos Specialists believe in the RoSPA ethos of improving health and safety standards in the workplace, which is why we have made another significant investment promoting the RoSPA mission and vision. We already have courses approved by RoSPA and this membership will cement our place at the forefront of the asbestos training industry once again.

Having practised occupational health & safety in many industry sectors for over 20 years, I have always been aware of the fantastic work that RoSPA undertake to promote safe working environments for the employee and employer.

A statement of commitment....
"It not only demonstrates our commitment to improving health & safety in our work places, but also allows us access as an organisation to a constant source of information and support in all areas of occupational health & safety……of course being members of RoSPA will also compliment our other professional membership of The British Safety Council”

On mesothelioma action day campaigners demand research into asbestos cancers set to claim 60,000 lives in next three decades

HEALTH campaigners will mark National Action Day on Mesothelioma today by ramping up their fight for funds to research into the fatal asbestos-related cancer.

Latest figures from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) revealed a shocking rise in the number of fatalities from the disease in Britain, which has the highest rates of mesothelioma in the world.

The HSE said that 2,535 people died from mesothelioma in 2012, an increase from 2,291 in 2011 and the disease is expected to kill around 60,000 people over the next 30 years unless new treatments are found.

But campaigners say that investment in mesothelioma research has long been dwarfed by amounts invested in cancers that kill similar numbers of people, such as skin cancer and myeloma.
Asbestos was used widely in construction industry up until the 1970s.

One of the major difficulties for those who contract the disease is establishing when and where they were exposed to the deadly fibres due to the length of time symptoms can remain dormant.

Greater Manchester Asbestos Victims Support Group spokesman Graham Dring told the Star the group often came across victims who were diagnosed with mesothelioma after being exposed to asbestos 60 years previously.

Following a lengthy campaign the government has now established a compensation scheme for those unable to establish liability.

But campaigners argue that the scheme, which caps compensation at 80 per cent and only applies to those diagnosed with the disease after 2012, does not go far enough.

Mr Dring said the new figures were “shocking” and urged greater government action on the issue. “New cases of mesothelioma in Greater Manchester are increasing year on year,” he said. “It is vital that the government commits research funding to give some hope to sufferers, most of whom contracted this disease simply by going to work.”

Malcolm Yates, a mesothelioma patient from Blackrod, said: “One of the worst aspects of being diagnosed with mesothelioma was the despair of knowing that there were no treatments available. “It just left us feeling so hopeless. We desperately need more funding for mesothelioma research, so that families can hope for a future.”

And construction union UCATT general secretary Steve Murphy said: “This large increase in mesothelioma deaths demonstrates the continuing dangers of asbestos.

“It is essential that today on Mesothelioma Day and in the future far more pressure is applied to politicians to ensure that training is improved for workers and that far greater funding is provided for treating and curing this terrible disease.”

Source: Courtesy of the Morning Star 04/07/2014

Got 5 minutes to spare?.......it just could go a long way to help you avoid the risks of asbestos in the buildings you or your employees carry out works in!

Launched in 2013 the Take 5 and Stay Alive initiative is leading the way within the UK to highlight the risks of working in buildings, which may contain asbestos.

The Take Five British Lung Foundation website has a number of brief easy to understand sections with vital information about asbestos, where it can be found, the risks associated with it and of course important information about rules for working with asbestos.

The website also recognises that the risks from asbestos are not just about those who work in buildings but also of course about the risks of asbestos in the home. It is essential that those who are keen non-professional DIYers also understand the dangers of working near or on asbestos.

This section in the website provides a very handy 5-step checklist for anyone planning to carry out work around the home.

The checklist includes:
• What is asbestos?
• Where and when was asbestos used?
• What does asbestos look like?
• What if I find asbestos in my home?
• Where can I get all the facts?

Its very rare that any organisation tackles the subject of asbestos dangers during DIY and this section within the website also enables you to download a very useful free download fact sheet.

The Asbestos Specialists are proud to announce that we become official partners with The British Lung Foundation last year, enabling anyone to locate us direct from the website for training in asbestos awareness or asbestos removal.

For further information about Take 5 and Stay Alive, check out the website: www.take5andstayalive.com or contact the British Lung Foundation their website is: www.blf.org.uk

Gina Lees – A Symbol of Britain's Third Wave of Asbestos Deaths, 2000
Studies of the global impact of asbestos have identified three waves of deaths: the first was amongst those people who worked directly with asbestos such as Nellie Kershaw, Nora Dockerty and Alice Jefferson, the second affected workers like Bill Tait who used asbestos products whilst the third is associated with exposure to asbestos in situ such as that experienced by plumbers, electricians, carpenters and refurbishment workers.

In 2000, at age 51, Gina Lees died of asbestos cancer, a mere three months after her condition had been diagnosed. Gina had never worked with asbestos, nor lived near an asbestos factory; none of her relatives had worked in an industrial setting where they were exposed to asbestos. When she was diagnosed with the asbestos-related cancer mesothelioma, neither she nor her husband could comprehend how a primary schoolteacher could contract an industrial disease. So began a personal quest by her husband Michael for an explanation.

As Michael pored through government records, witness statements and archival material, he put together a dossier, which revealed appalling behaviour by successive governments determined to ignore the deadly problem posed by asbestos in schools. Michael discovered that most of the 25 schools in which Gina had worked during her teaching career contained asbestos products, which were often in a damaged and dangerous condition, a fact that was unknown to the schools' head teachers, governors and staff. When Michael raised his concerns with the authorities, he was “dismayed” by their indifference.

During the course of his research activities, Michael made contact with asbestos victims, scientific experts, trade unionists and public health campaigners, as a result of which a network to tackle the “national scandal” of asbestos in UK schools was born. Gina Lees was not the first schoolteacher to die of hazardous workplace exposure and she won't be the last but her case was the catalyst for the unprecedented mobilization on asbestos in schools, which has taken place in recent years.

This article by kind permission of: Laurie Kazan-Allen

http://ibasecretariat.org/lka-female-face-of-britains-asbestos-catastrophe.php

Figures showing the latest statistics published by the Health & Safety Executive tell the true story of the dangers of asbestos in the workplace, around 4500 workers are dying each year from the ‘hidden killer’.

Training forms an integral part of the Health & safety Executives strategy for reducing the risks and of course reducing the yearly totals of deaths within the UK’s construction and refurbishment industries. Training is often viewed as an encumbrance or an unnecessary expense for any business large or small. This is especially true to day due to the current economic climate where budgets are stretched and cost cutting measures are being put in place. Many employers can then take the decision to put their training budgets and training strategies on the ‘back burner’ or worse again take the il-fated route of the ‘fly by the seat of their pants’ decision, putting workers at risk of exposure to asbestos whilst at work..

The Asbestos Specialists have over 20 years experience in the asbestos awareness and asbestos management training industry, and this experience tells a different story!

Ignoring your statutory duties or simply turning that blind eye to your training requirements is a false economy, especially in the area of asbestos awareness.
A recent case highlighted the case of is the Mercure Goldthorn hotel in Wolverhampton who, according to Wolverhampton City Council, have just been fined £10,000 for exposing their staff to dangerous levels of asbestos. It was reported that the council’s Environmental Health team had successfully prosecuted the owners of the hotel after an earlier inspection carried out in 2012, which identified the presence of asbestos in the hotel’s boiler house. The boiler house had contained asbestos insulation, which was in poor condition, and many staff had had occasion to spend time in the boiler house as part of their normal working duties.

The subsequent result....The owners pleaded guilty under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 to failing to make an adequate assessment of asbestos containing materials and to exposing their employees to asbestos.

Wolverhampton City Council’s Head of Regulatory Services, Andy Jervis, said:

“Being exposed to asbestos puts lives at risks and it is imperative that all employers ensure that their staff are not exposed to such danger”.

In addition to the £10,000 fine, the hotel owners were ordered to pay over £2,000 in costs.

So, the moral of the story is...review your training, the Asbestos Specialists have a full range of services to assist you to keep your training up to date, E-learning, Distance Learning and of course the traditional face to face method. All of our courses are fully approved/accredited and of course our top class customer service comes as standard.

We are running a series of information blogs to make you aware of the legal guidelines which apply to you with regards to asbestos in buildings, our first in the series looks at: Homeowners

The current regulations do not place any legal obligations on domestic homeowners with regard to how asbestos containing materials (ACMs) are handled on your own property. This is true for the owner of the property, anyone living at the property or a friend of a resident acting on his or her behalf, without reward. Most ACMs in domestic premises do not pose a measurable risk, due to the fact that they are made up from composite or cement and fibre mixtures firmly bound within the matrix of the material. Under normal circumstances these materials if left undisturbed pose a very low risk. Here are some examples:

• Cement roofing


• Vinyl floor tiles and flooring


• Sink pads


• Water storage tanks


• Toilet cisterns and toilet seats

Regardless of the age, or type of, the building you live in it is worth finding out what you have and how best to maintain it in good condition. For the majority of materials, following common sense guidance protocols to maintain them in good condition will ensure that you do not expose yourself, or your family, to any health risks or potential complications when selling your property.

If you contract a third party to undertake work on any of the ACMs, you should make them aware of any information you may have about the materials. You should also request information from them with regards to their employees having received a suitable level of training in the handling or removal of ACMs and the use of equipment and PPE used to minimise the risk to them; and of course you, your family and neighbours.

Another useful check is to request that whoever you employ to work on the ACMs is licensed (where applicable) and insured to work with the type of asbestos that you have. Only insulating materials of a low density and therefore friable nature require a specialist HSE licensed contractor and 14 days notification to the HSE prior to removal. Fortunately, these materials are quite rare and only make up of approximately 10% of all asbestos materials found throughout the UK.

Whilst you are legally allowed to work on and remove low-density materials yourself, a trained professional will ensure that it is done in accordance with strict measures to ensure maximum safety.

The purpose behind Workers' Memorial Day has always been to "remember the dead: fight for the living" and unions are asked to focus on both areas, by considering events or memorial to remember all those killed through work but at the same time ensuring that such tragedies are not repeated.

Building trade union organisation, and campaigning for stricter enforcement with higher penalties for breaches of health & safety laws can best do that.

Workers Memorial Day is commemorated throughout the world and is officially recognised by the UK Government.

This year the theme is 'Protecting workers around the world through strong regulation, enforcement and union rights' The TUC believes that we should use the day to highlight the need for strong regulation an national, European and global level. We need to stop companies in the UK from benefitting from the lack of health and safety standards that lead to disasters such as the Bangladesh factory collapse that killed over 1,100 workers. We also need a strong strategy on health and safety from the European Commission which will raise standards throughout Europe, while in the UK we need an end to the cuts in enforcement and regulation and instead action to tackle the huge number of occupational diseases and injuries.