Asbestos Surveys
In Birmingham.

Choose A Survey That Fits The Job

An asbestos survey starts with a practical question: how will the building be used or altered? A shop remaining open, an empty warehouse awaiting a fit-out and a house being purchased need different scopes. Tell us what decision you need to make so the inspection can answer it.

A management survey supports normal occupation and routine maintenance. A refurbishment and demolition survey investigates the fabric affected by building work. A general condition inspection or a sample of one ceiling does not replace a survey where the project needs wider investigation.

What The Inspection Covers

The agreed scope should identify the buildings, floors, rooms and external structures to be visited. Existing reports, floor plans and previous removal records help avoid gaps. Roof spaces, service risers, plant rooms and locked stores need their own access arrangements rather than being silently omitted.

The report should distinguish materials that were sampled from those presumed to contain asbestos. Photographs and marked plans should make locations understandable to someone who was not at the visit. Read the limitations alongside the findings, especially when a room, void or roof could not be reached.

Management Surveys And Your Duties

The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 set the framework for asbestos work. Regulation 4 places a duty to manage asbestos on those responsible for maintenance or repair of non-domestic premises, including relevant common parts of domestic buildings. The exact dutyholder depends on the maintenance responsibilities.

HSE’s HSG264, Asbestos: The survey guide, explains survey planning and reporting. A survey is one input to management, rather than the end of the task. Findings need to become a usable register, risk assessment and management plan where the duty applies.

How Your Survey Is Planned

First, describe the premises and why the survey is needed. Include whether tenants are present, whether any areas are vacant and whether contractors have a programme. Provide the previous survey if one exists, even when it looks old or incomplete.

Next, agree access and exclusions before the visit. The surveyor inspects the agreed areas and takes representative samples where appropriate using controlled methods. Laboratory results are linked back to their recorded locations, then the report sets out findings and recommended actions.

Finally, read the report with the person responsible for the building. Resolve unclear location references or inaccessible areas before authorising maintenance. Give relevant information to contractors so that the report becomes part of job planning rather than remaining in an unread folder.

What Affects Survey Cost

Floor area is only part of a survey quotation. The number of buildings, complexity of services, available drawings, access equipment and likely sampling requirements all affect the work. An occupied property may need staged visits or appointments with several keyholders.

A useful quotation explains the survey type, defined scope, laboratory analysis, report format and exclusions. Ask whether return visits to inaccessible areas are included. For building work, send the proposed drawings so that intrusive investigation can be quoted against the actual work area.

Make The Findings Useful

An asbestos register should be easy to consult before a contractor starts. Keep the latest version available to facilities staff, and record changes after repair, removal or further sampling. A positive result does not automatically mean every material must be removed.

For a Birmingham office or workshop, note who will act on each recommendation and how access restrictions will be handled. If your project changes, review the survey coverage before relying on it. New cable routes or a revised layout may enter areas outside the original brief.

For a single suspect material, explore our asbestos testing service. If the work involves opening floors, walls or ceilings, read about refurbishment surveys before arranging an inspection. We can help you identify which starting point fits the information you already have.