What we do

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Having extensive experience and knowledge of all aspects of asbestos legislation, regulation and guidance, the Kordus Senior Management Team have advised and supported many organisations (of every size) to manage their property portfolio and maintain and improve their asbestos compliance. Asbestos regulations are complex, and it undoubtedly reduces business risk if sound, professional advice is obtained. Kordus is committed to building strong, long term relationships with customers and providing good quality and cost-effective consultancy is the best way to do this. Consultancy can cover many topics but the list below gives an indication of what Kordus can offer your business. 

• Compliance gap analysis and asbestos management plan production 
• Asbestos abatement specification production  
• Tender production and bid assessment  
• Compliance reviews and corporate compliance audits  
• Client, consultant and contractor audits  
• Expert witness  

Duty holders have a legal responsibility to manage asbestos in their premises in accordance with Regulation 4 ‘Duty to Manage’ of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 (CAR 2012). An asbestos survey is required to, as far as reasonably practicable, locate where asbestos may be present in a building. The survey will identify the type, condition and extent of any ACMs (asbestos-containing materials) present (within a survey's scope). 

Our surveyors have vast collective experience in the surveying of domestic, commercial and industrial properties and all hold a minimum of the BOHS P402 certificate. 

Kordus can assist with your asbestos management obligations by carrying out UKAS accredited reinspection surveys, management surveys, refurbishment surveys and demolition surveys as required. All of these surveying activities are carried out in accordance with HSE guidance document HSG264: The Survey Guide, and to the highest of industry standards. 

Reinspection Surveys  

In accordance with Regulation 4 'Duty to Manage’ of CAR 2012, it is a requirement to regularly inspect any known asbestos-containing materials and keep records of such materials up to date.  

Kordus delivers UKAS accredited Reinspection Surveys to ensure your site(s) remain(s) safe and compliant. When undertaking reinspections, we will provide you with an up to date asbestos register, new photographs, updated line plans and recommendations for safely managing each material. 

Management Surveys  

Kordus delivers UKAS accredited Management Surveys to aid the safe and compliant management of your site. This type of asbestos survey allows duty holders, owners and occupiers to safely manage asbestos in accordance with Regulation 4 'Duty to Manage’ of CAR 2012.  

The purpose of a Management Survey is to locate the presence and extent of any asbestos containing materials (ACMs) in a building which could be damaged or disturbed during normal occupancy, and to assess its condition. Wherever possible, all areas of each building should be included as part of a management survey. 

Refurbishment Surveys  

Kordus delivers UKAS accredited Refurbishment Surveys to aid the safe and compliant management of your site and to support planned project work. A Refurbishment Survey is required under CAR 2012 prior to any refurbishment work and is necessary to locate all ACMs in the area where the refurbishment work will take place. The survey will be fully intrusive and involve destructive inspection to gain access to all areas wherever possible. 

Prior to any refurbishment survey we will undertake a detailed planning process to ensure that the scope of works is clearly defined and that the entire scope of the refurbishment is catered for during the survey. All areas of the building which may be affected by the refurbishment should be included as part of the refurbishment survey. 

Demolition surveys  

Kordus delivers UKAS accredited Demolition Surveys to aid the safe and compliant management of your site and to support planned demolition work. A Demolition Survey is required prior to the demolition of a building, or parts of a building, and is undertaken to locate and describe all ACMs in the area where the demolition is planned. The survey will be fully intrusive and will involve destructive inspection to gain access to all areas wherever possible. 

Detailed discussions with a client will be required so that unhindered and safe access can be gained to all areas being demolished. More complex demolition surveys may require a phased approach due to the level of available access at different stages of the demolition process; this will be discussed during the survey planning process.  

Third party survey audits  

As part of an organisation’s quality control procedures, policies may be in place that require the checking of asbestos survey data which has been completed for them by an outside source. Alternatively, a client may have doubts, or may have lost confidence in the survey data they already hold. If required, Kordus can be appointed to review and assess accuracy, currency and suitability of existing survey data. 

Air monitoring is carried out to identify the presence of fibres within the air and can be undertaken for a number of reasons if asbestos fibres are thought to be present. Qualified and experienced Kordus analysts carry out UKAS accredited air monitoring in accordance with HSE guidance document HSG248: The Analysts’ Guide and to the highest of industry standards.
 

Kordus provides the complete range of site-based air monitoring and clearance testing services including: 

• Reassurance testing - Conducted in certain circumstances (eg after removal work) to confirm that residual fibre concentrations are not elevated
• Background testing - Conducted to establish prevailing fibre concentrations before any activity which may lead to airborne asbestos contamination 
• Personal monitoring – To check the suitability of RPE for the task being used, the effectiveness of control measures for a specific short-duration activity (SSDA), medical surveillance, 4 hour time-weighted  average for assessment against the Control Limit of 0.1f/ml and 10 minute assessment against the short-term exposure limit (STEL) of 0.6f/ml
• Near-source monitoring - To assess the release and spread of asbestos fibre concentrations near to a potential source of release (eg inside enclosures, work without an enclosure and simulated disturbance activities)
• Far-source monitoring - To assess the perimeter of a site where there may be other workers, public access or buildings
• Clearance testing as part of the four-stage clearance process and issue of the Certificate of Reoccupation - On completion of asbestos removal to confirm and certify that it has been undertaken to the required standard 
• Enclosure integrity testing and leak testing- To confirm that there is no fibre release from an asbestos enclosure used during the removal of asbestos materials
   

All Kordus’ Analysts participate in our internal quality control scheme as defined in UKAS document LAB30 and the external quality control scheme RICE (Regular Interlaboratory Counting Exchanges) administered by the Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL).  

Our UKAS accredited laboratory testing service deals with the analysis of suspect samples when a material is thought to contain asbestos. These samples can be collected during Kordus’ surveying and site-based activities, or they may be delivered to the Kordus laboratory from any number of outside sources. 

Qualified and experienced analysts carry out the bulk analysis of suspect materials in accordance with HSG248: The Analysts’ Guide, and to the highest of industry standards.

Our Analysts participate in our internal quality control scheme as defined in UKAS document LAB30 and the external quality control scheme AIMS (Asbestos in Materials Scheme) administered by the Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL). Our ability to deliver consistently high standards of quality and detection rate is due to our highly effective quality control systems and the extensive experience and ability of our Laboratory team. 

Kordus Analysts have extensive experience of working on a vast array of asbestos removal projects, ranging from the smallest of abatement jobs to the largest and most complex projects spanning months or even years. This level of experience and knowledge leaves Kordus best placed to produce specifications for large, complex projects and tender the asbestos removal on behalf of our customers, ensuring that their business is protected. The benefits to customers when using this service include: 

• Access to Kordus’ audited Approved Contractors Scheme allowing the delivery of multiple quotes, scope of removal approval and best value procurement for your asbestos removal project  
• Achieve certainty of cost control and take the guesswork out of bid assessment 
• Tackle the primary concern when reviewing multiple asbestos removal bids; ensure you are comparing 'apples with apples'.  
• Authorise staged payments based on audited and approved invoices  

Kordus is an Acclaim Health & Safety Accredited Body as a Designer to the requirements of the CDM Regulations 2015. Our staff have extensive Project Management experience spanning a vast array of projects from the smallest asbestos abatement jobs to the largest and most complex projects spanning many months or even years. Kordus staff hold a range of Health & Safety and CDM specific qualifications and memberships including NEBOSH Diploma in Occupational Health and SafetyGradIOSH Member of the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health.

Kordus provide a complete CDM 2015 compliant project management service, adopting the Designer or Principal Designer roles for your project. If required on larger asbestos abatement projects, semi-permanent laboratories with a designated team of Analysts can be set up providing a constant level of analytical support. The benefits of our CDM service are:

• Full-service Project Management of any project involving asbestos abatement, to include expert guidance on Client duties and the appointment and management of roles under CDM
• Multi contractor, CDM compliant management of your project  
• Project tracking, progress reviews and regular project meetings  
• Clear reporting on cost and milestone tracking  
• Full management of, or assistance in the management of, project finances to include progress assessment and approval of staged payments
• Guidance on and the undertaking of F10 notification to the HSE in accordance with the notification triggers under CDM 2015
• Advising the Client on the client brief and pre-construction phase process (including pre-construction information)
• Co-ordination of other Designers, the Principal Contractor and other Contractors
• Guidance on and management of the appointment of the right people at the right time
• Management, update and delivery of the Construction Phase Plan and Health & Safety File

Kordus’ breadth of experience and industry knowledge means that it is ideally placed to deliver high-quality training that will cater for your individual compliance needs. Within the Kordus team we have qualified trainers who are experienced in delivering training courses to a wide variety of organisations. Some of the training courses Kordus offers are below, but bespoke course material can be produced and tailored for the specific needs of your business. 

• Asbestos Awareness training  
• Organisation, Project or Task-specific training  
• Toolbox talks  
• 'Self' (or in-house) asbestos survey and reinspection training  
• Quality management system training  
• Risk assessment training  
• IT system, surveying software and compliance software training

As well as asbestos related site services, Kordus also offer a range of other hazardous substance testing capabilities included in the below list. These services can be offered alongside our asbestos services or can be delivered in isolation. 

• Contamination assessment  
• Mercury contamination assessment  
• Contaminated land assessment  
• Asbestos in Soils investigation
• Anthrax contamination assessment
• Ground investigations  

With specific in house skills and experience in IT systems and programming, Kordus are perfectly positioned to help clients with systems training and development relating to asbestos and hazardous substances.

• Systems and process reviews (administrative, management and technical)
• Bespoke systems development
• Remote assistance
• Bespoke software development