Leading UK asbestos consultancy Thames Laboratories has published a special asbestos podcast – free to download from their website – to help duty holders get to grips with the new regulations.

In the podcast – an audio file available to download from the web - Kelly Mansfield of Workplace Law Magazine interviews John Richards, Managing Director of Thames Laboratories on the subject of the new Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006. The discussion covers vital areas of the new legislation including:

• changes to Regulation 4 (duty to manage)
• changes to exposure levels
• facilities managers' duty to outside contractors
• employers' responsibility to train staff
• textured coatings
• the meaning of 'sporadic low intensity work'

The new legislation that came into force in November 2006 supersedes three previous sets of regulations - the Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2002, The Asbestos (Licensing) Regulations 1983, as amended, and the Asbestos (Prohibitions) Regulations 1992, as amended - and provides guidelines for work carried out with asbestos and asbestos-containing products.

John Richards commented:

"Thames Laboratories produced the podcast to help duty holders understand the implications of the new regulations. We want to provide the most up-to-date asbestos information in the most accessible manner possible: we felt that a podcast was the best way to do this."

The asbestos management podcast is available to download in full from http://www.thameslabs.co.uk/asbestos/guidance/interview.html.

Further information and advice is also available from www.thameslabs.co.uk, including a free-to-download Asbestos Management Report and new asbestos forum where employers, property owners and asbestos specialists can discuss management and compliance issues.

Notes to Editors

1. Thames Laboratories is one of the UK's leading asbestos consultancies and has been providing a full range of surveying, management, and testing services since 1991. Thames Laboratories has offices in Cambridgeshire, Leicestershire and Wakefield and employs 23 full-time staff. For more information contact:
   
   Thames Laboratories
   The Granary, Brook Farm
   Thrapston Road
   Ellington
   Cambridgeshire
   PE28 0AE
   T: 0800 085 2348
   Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it


2. John Richards has more than 20 years' professional experience in asbestos management, and is an internationally recognised figure in the asbestos abatement sector.
   
   John is available for media comment and public speaking engagements. He can be contacted directly: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it


3. Workplace Law Magazine is one of the fastest growing legal support services in the country with over 50,000 employers and managers relying on their expertise. For more information contact Workplace Law.
   
   T: 0870 777 8881 Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it