Asbestos is heat resistant and an excellent insulator and as such, it was used extensively used in industry throughout the 20th century. This increased use, particularly in the building industry after the Second World War, increased the exposure of workers to asbestos in the course of their employment and a large increase in asbestos-related disease in the subsequent years.

Although the use of asbestos has been banned since 1999, the ban only means that it would not be used in future products and it does not address the massive “legacy” of asbestos material already in situ.

As a result, people will still be coming into contact with asbestos now, many years or even decades after the asbestos was put in place. This makes it all the more important to have appropriate measures in place to recognise the presence of asbestos and to deal with the same in a safe manner.

Examples of the type of products in which asbestos can be found are:

• Cement sheets and wallboards, electrical housings, work surfaces
• Cement pipes (water, gas, sewage, special fluids)
• Asbestos thread (textiles, tape seals, friction discs, flexible hose)
• Asbestos cloth (mattresses, sheeting, clothing, gloves, aprons)
• Asbestos felt (noise insulation, roofing)
• Corrugated asbestos sheets (roofing)
• Friction materials (brake & clutch linings)
• Asbestos card (insulation, coating, cladding)
• Asbestos Board (flame proof cladding, soffit board, seals for chemical containers)
• Raw asbestos (mixed with water and other substances, used as lagging on pips and sprayed onto surfaces, such as ship hulls, metal girders)

If you have worked with any asbestos products, whether historically or more recently, you are at risk of having been exposed to asbestos fibres, which can lead to developing an asbestos related disease. If the product containing asbestos is intact, they pose very little risk. However, if asbestos containing products are damaged or disturbed in some way, fibres may be released and breathed in by those nearby.