Covering the Asbestos Challenge with Marley Alutec

While the use of asbestos has been banned for over 20 years, many buildings, especially those built in the 1950s and 1960s, still have asbestos within the roofing structure.

It is generally accepted that asbestos – particularly white asbestos at eaves – poses little or no risk in left intact. Local authorities are therefore often weighing up the cost of asbestos removal against the risk posed by leaving asbestos in situ.

Built in the 1950s, South Holderness Technical College was constructed with a flat roof using asbestos cement roof decking. The roofing system used continuous asbestos cement sheets to form both the internal ceiling finish and the external soffits, so removal of these boards was not an option.

Safely managed to overcome the asbestos problem

Whilst they are perfectly safe if undamaged and intact, the soffits had been painted and cross-contamination had occurred between the paint and asbestos, meaning any flaking paint was a risk to the students and staff. The building surveyors within the Infrastructure and Facilities team at East Riding of Yorkshire Council, therefore, took steps to eliminate the potential risk of future exposure to the site users by using a soffit support system designed by Marley Alutec to encapsulate the existing soffit system, leaving it undisturbed.

Marley Alutec has provided similar solutions for local authorities in the midlands, south-west and north-west.

Marley Alutec provides technical advice and support from planning through to installation – to discuss your project please do not hesitate to contact us on projects@marleyalutec.co.uk or call us on 01234 359438.

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