Asbestos is a naturally occurring fibrous material that has been
a popular building material since the 1950s. It is used as an
insulator (to keep in heat and keep out cold), has good fire
protection properties and protects against corrosion.
Asbestos, from the Greek work “unquenchable” is a group of
natural minerals which are fireproof and remarkably resistant to
acids and alkalies. It was also discovered that asbestos was a very
efficient insulator and could bind together other materials to
produce a product of greater strength.
Because asbestos is often mixed with another material, it's hard
to know if you're working with it or not. But, if you work in a
building built before the year 2000, it's likely that some parts of
the building will contain asbestos.
Asbestos is found in many products used in buildings, including
ceiling tiles, pipe insulation, boilers and sprayed coatings.
Asbestos - common uses
Asbestos was extensively used as a building material in the UK
from the 1950s through to the mid-1980s. It was used for a variety
of purposes and was ideal for fireproofing and insulation. Any
building built before 2000 (houses, factories, offices, schools,
hospitals etc) can contain asbestos. Asbestos materials in good
condition are safe unless asbestos fibres become airborne, which
happens when materials are damaged.
Some of the more common uses of asbestos in buildings
include:
-
Sprayed coating: asbestos is found as fire protection on
structural supports like columns and beams. It is a high hazard
asbestos product and can generate very high fibre levels if
disturbed.
-
Pipe Insulation: asbestos thermal pipe lagging is a high hazard
asbestos product.
-
Asbestos insulating board (also referred to as AIB) ceiling and
door panels: AIB is a high hazard asbestos product and can generate
high levels of fibres if the board is cut or drilled.
-
AIB window panel: like other AIB, this is a high hazard asbestos
product, and if in good condition should be left undisturbed.
-
Floor tiles: vinyl (PVC) or thermoplastic tiles contain
asbestos.
-
Asbestos cement roof sheeting: asbestos cement sheeting is often
found on industrial building roofs and walls.
-
Textured decorative coating (such as Artex): textured coatings
contain a small amount of asbestos. The asbestos is well bonded and
fibres are not easily released. However, it is still an asbestos
product, and as such, needs to be worked with safely.
Types of asbestos
The three most common forms of asbestos used in the UK were:
- Chrysotile (white asbestos)
- AmositeAmosite (brown asbestos)
- CrocidoliteCrocidolite (blue asbestos)
White asbestos
White asbestos was mined mainly in Quebec, South Africa and
Central Russia. This contains the softest asbestos fibres which
under a microscope will appear curly and flexible. The individual
fibres are less carcinogenic than blue or brown asbestos
fibres.
Blue & Brown Asbestos
Blue asbestos and brown asbestos were mined mainly in South
Africa. The fibres appear very sharp, stiff and needle-like. Blue
asbestos is the most carcinogenic and was often used for insulating
naval vessels. Due to its excellent resistant properties to acids,
it was mixed with cement to produce asbestos cement sheets that
were designed to be exposed to chemicals.
A further form of asbestos is known as Tremolite, which can be
found in the earth’s crust, but has only been mined commercially on
a small scale. Traces can be found in some industrial talc.
Asbestos was used as an insulation material from the early part
of the 19th Century because of its heat resistant properties. It
could be fashioned into a paste, into sheets or rope. The real
increase in the use of asbestos in the UK occurred after the 1930s.
It was used for corrugated roofing, insulation around pipe work, in
sheet form to box in pipes, on ships, in houses, in factories, in
power stations, and in public buildings such as schools and
hospitals. It was mixed and cut. In addition, asbestos was often
stripped from pipes and boiler work to maintain valves and pipes
underneath.
Who may have been exposed to asbestos?
|
Worker |
Why? |
| Insulation engineers or
laggerslaggers |
stripping old and applying new asbestos lagging |
| Shipyard
workers |
often breathing in asbestos dust as a result of working
near laggers or insulation engineers who were stripping asbestos.
Sprayed asbestos was often used on board ships and exposure was
particularly intense because areas within ships were generally
confined spaces |
| Dockers |
carrying raw material in Hessian sacks from ships entering
the ports from Canada and South Africa |
| Lorry drivers |
transporting raw materials to factories |
| Factory workers |
there were a number of factories in Britain that fashioned
the raw material to make pipes, sheets and insulation powder,
including Cape Asbestos at Barking, J W Roberts of Leeds, Universal
Asbestos of Uxbridge and Turners Asbestos Cement of Erith |
| Carpenters |
sawing, drilling and fitting asbestos sheets |
| Electricians |
installing electrical equipment on lagged pipes or
equipment |
| Plumbers |
stripping lagging |
| Pipe Fitters |
knocking off wet or sectional lagging which contained
asbestos to replace sections of pipes and joints |
| Mechanics |
servicing and replacing brake linings and brake and clutch
shoes, which often contained about 55% white asbestos, blowing out
the asbestos dust using a compressed airline |
| Boiler Scalers |
cleaning the inside of boilers and stripping asbestos from
joints |
| Council Workers |
repairing asbestos guttering and bath panels in council
houses |
There have also been cases of incidental exposure such as
teachers working in schools near deteriorating lagging,
doctors/nurses using tunnels underneath hospitals containing
exposed lagging in poor condition and fire-fighters taking down old
buildings. We have had cases of those living near asbestos
factories or those exposed to asbestos from their father’s,
husband’s or brother’s overalls. We have even had a case of a
barber who contracted asbestos cancer from cutting the hair of
employees who worked at an asbestos factory.
If you think you have been exposed to asbestos and would like
legal advice, contact a member of our mesothelioma and asbestos claims team on
freephone 0800 358 3848 or email personalinjury@ffw.com