HAS in Scotland for Network Rail

HAS recently worked on an asbestos removal project for Network Rail in West Lothian, Scotland. The removal work on a Railway Viaduct involved removing an asbestos cement channel boxing in a length of cables. HAS were required to both safely remove and dispose of the 50 metre cable channel from the top of the wall running the full length of the viaduct and down one side. The asbestos material that necessitated removal was asbestos cement containing Chrysotile (white) asbestos. HAS worked over a weekend to ensure the essential work was completed.

To safely remove the pipe channel, it was important to first ascertain how the channel was fixed to the supporting wall. On inspection, it was clear that the channel was held in place with a metal frame fixed to the wall and then a bolt holding the lid down. It was necessary to ensure that the cables were removed from the tray and secured. We were then able to remove the bolts and lift the one end of the channel and bag this in asbestos sacks. These were then safely removed and transferred to the HAS waste trailer. This was repeated on each section of the area. A systematic working method was utilised to ensure that no areas were missed. An operator checked each section carefully before moving on to the next to ensure that there was no asbestos debris or loose asbestos fibres on the floor.

On completion, the site supervisor checked the entire area thoroughly to ensure all asbestos containing cement products had been removed satisfactorily. The work was non-licensed so Orinasal ‘half face’ RPE masks were used, whilst orange hi-viz reflective clothing was required to ensure high visibility for operatives on the railway.