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Jan 15
0

Job Vacancy: Asbestos Analyst

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North Star Environmental seeks a qualified Asbestos Analyst to join its ambitious team based in Wirral.

At this time, we will only consider applications from candidates who have attained one of the following groups of qualifications:

  • BOHS P403 & P404
  • RSPH Level 3 in Asbestos Air Monitoring and Clearance Procedures

As part of our analytical team, the successful candidate will undertake different forms of asbestos air monitoring, such as background; leak; reassurance; visual; personal and four-stage clearance for Certificates of Reoccupation.

In particular, experienced Analysts are invited to apply, and the offered salary is dependent on experience.

All Analysts receive a company vehicle and fuel card for business mileage; mobile phone; electronic tablet; and hotel expense cards for working away.

Job Type: Full-time

Salary: £25,000.00 to £30,000.00 /year

To apply for this position, or to learn more about the role, please contact Ryan Ferguson, Commercial Director – ryan@nse.direct

Please note that we will not review applications from unqualified candidates. This is not a trainee position.

Feb 14
0

Job Vacancies: Asbestos Analysts/Surveyors

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North Star Environmental seeks Asbestos Analysts and Surveyors to join its ambitious team based in the North West.

Please see below for a detailed breakdown of these excellent opportunities.

Job Title: Asbestos Analyst(s) and Surveyors(s)

Location: North West, working out of Cheshire Head Office

Duties: This role will involve conducting asbestos analytical and surveying works for a range of clients based in Liverpool, Lancashire, Manchester, North Wales and the surrounding areas. Duties depend on skill level, qualifications and experience.

Hours: Full-time, Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm

Requirements

  • BOHS P402 Surveying and Sampling Strategies for Asbestos in Buildings or equivalent
  • BOHS P403/P404 Fibre Counting and Air Sampling of Asbestos or equivalent
  • At least 3 years of experience in asbestos surveying and analytical work

Package

  • Negotiable salary depending on qualifications and experience
  • Company van and fuel card
  • Company mobile phone
  • Company electronic tablet

In general, North Star seeks applications from candidates with the following attributes:

  • Working hours flexibility – This is not a typical 9-5 job, and the scheduling of work can lead to fluctuating shift patterns. Nevertheless, North Star does everything to allocate jobs in a fair and understanding manner.
  • Strong work ethic – The successful candidate must have a selfless determination to work hard for the betterment of themselves and the company.
  • Excellent communication skills – Both written and verbal communication skills are essential to this job, enabling transparent liaison with clients and colleagues.
  • Team player – At North Star, we have a philosophy of working together to achieve constant progress, on a business and personal level. A willingness to work for the good of the team is pivotal.

North Star Environmental is one of Britain’s leading consultancies, holding UKAS accreditation for testing and surveying activities. Our reputation as an industry powerhouse is well established, and this is a wonderful opportunity for a career-minded individual to join our growing team.

To discuss this role in greater detail, or to lodge initial interest, please send an email to Ryan Ferguson, Commercial Manager – ryan@nse.direct. This email should express your interest, tell us a bit about yourself, and include a CV for our inspection.

North Star Environmental. Where excellence meets integrity.

Jul 19
1

Unlikely Uses of Asbestos: Fake Snow and The Wizard of Oz

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Guest Post

By Nathan Ferguson

For centuries, the useful properties of asbestos have lent themselves greatly to commercial exploitation. Contrary to the typical industrial use of asbestos, the material has appeared as fake snow in many largely successful movies – most notably the 1939 film version of The Wizard of Oz.

Since the late 19th century, people have attempted to create artificial snow from asbestos for many purposes, including for use in movies, theatres, and even in department stores and private homes.

In The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy (played by July Garland), along with the Scarecrow, the Cowardly Lion, and the Tin Man, were snowed on by chrysotile (or ‘white’) asbestos fibres, whilst Dorothy lay unconscious in the film’s famous poppy field scene.

In the modern day, there is a wealth of knowledge about asbestos at our disposal, compared to the limited knowledge of asbestos in centuries gone by. However, despite the fact that the health concerns of asbestos were known for several years prior to the filming of The Wizard of Oz, (as far back as 1897, to be precise), the decision was still taken to use asbestos fake snow in one of the movie’s key scenes.

The fake snow created contained 100% industrial-grade chrysotile asbestos fibres, and anybody who came into contact with this material inhaled it in quantities similar to those working in asbestos mines.

Primarily used in construction materials, this type of asbestos is different from “blue” and “brown” asbestos (known as crocidolite and amosite, respectively). However, exposure to all kinds of asbestos fibres can cause serious health problems, including mesothelioma – a rare and deadly form of cancer.

Fortunately, asbestos fake snow was a seasonal product, thus resulting in limited exposure. Nevertheless, any level of exposure to asbestos can have serious health consequences. This begs the question: Why exactly was asbestos used to create fake snow, as opposed to other, less-harmful substances?

From the mid-1930s until the 1950s, asbestos was seen to be a highly versatile substance, with very little knowledge of the true, perilous underbelly of the material. At the time, the material was very inexpensive to use for prop production. It also did not pose much of a fire hazard, and demonstrated a great resemblance to real snow. Resultantly, many manufacturers took advantage of this, selling the product under trade names such as Pure White, White Magic, and Snow Drift.

Until the late 1920s, cotton batting was the main component of fake snow. This is a relatively harmless material, but the mild fire risk posed by cotton batting led a firefighter to advise against the use of this material in fake snow. Instead, the firefighter recommended the use of chrysotile asbestos as an alternative.

Interestingly, it was only the outbreak of World War II that brought a halt to the use of asbestos in fake snow, with the material being in high demand for military operations, including for use on ships, planes, and tanks. Manufacturers then reverted to cotton as the main component in fake snow, which is, overall, a lot less harmful and hazardous than using asbestos in fake snow.

Although none of the main actors in The Wizard of Oz are believed to have died from any asbestos-related cause, it is sadly worth noting that Jack Haley Jr, an award-winning director and son of Jack Haley (who played the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz), died after experiencing ‘respiratory failure’ in 2001, at the age of 67. This raised question marks over whether it could have been mesothelioma, caused by his father bringing home asbestos dust during the filming of The Wizard of Oz.

The Wizard of Oz was not the only blockbuster movie that saw the use of asbestos fake snow. This also occurred in another film of that era – 1954 movie Holiday Inn, starring Bing Crosby, with the film’s final scene showing heavy snowfall (created from asbestos fake snow), as Bing sang White Christmas.

Modern fake snow products no longer use asbestos. With the great depth of knowledge that we currently possess about asbestos and the risks it poses, plus legislation banning its use, commercial exploitation of the resource is becoming less prevalent, and rightfully so.

Jul 06
0

North Star Attains UKAS Type C Licence for Asbestos Inspections

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North Star Environmental is delighted to announce its attainment of a Type C Licence under UKAS accreditation ISO 17020.

This licence grants us permission to perform a full range of asbestos inspections to third party organisations.

Within the industry, dutyholders can often overlook the Type C licence, or view it as somehow implied. However, only a select group of analytical companies possess this award, having proven their expertise under scrutiny from the United Kingdom Accreditation Service.

The attainment of a Type C Licence proves the competence, quality and consistency of North Star Environmental’s work. It distinguishes us from our rivals, and further consolidates our position as a powerhouse within the asbestos industry.

We also remain accredited by UKAS to standard ISO 17025, enabling us to test materials for the possible presence of asbestos within mobile and in-house laboratories.

This makes North Star Environmental an even more well-rounded consultancy, and validates our ethos of constant progress through ethical means.

If you require asbestos inspections, surveys, air monitoring, management or any other elite service, then look no further.

North Star Environmental. Where excellence meets integrity.

Jul 03
0

What Actually is Asbestos?

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The subject of asbestos has been open to rumour, conjecture and hearsay for generations. With so many horror stories appearing on television and in newspapers, it can be difficult to penetrate the urban myth and discover the facts about this hazardous substance.

So, what actually is asbestos, after all?

The term refers to a set of six naturally occurring silicate materials that all share a similar structure of long, thin crystals. Asbestos fibres are invisible to the human eye, but are potentially fatal when inhaled after disturbance.

The substance has been mined for thousands of years, with various generations creating different uses for it, typically within the construction trade.

The Ancient Greeks, Romans and Egyptians all experimented with asbestos in some form, extolling its virtues as a phenomenal insulator. Later, asbestos use soared in Britain during the Industrial Revolution, with a surge in machinery and steam power necessitating controls on heat generation.

In subsequent eras, asbestos was mixed into thousands of different products, from cements and insulating boards to textured coating sprays and beyond. The relative cheapness of asbestos, coupled with its many desirable qualities, made it extremely popular. The substance has a phenomenal tensile strength and is resistant to electricity. For many decades, people hailed it as a ‘wonder substance,’ until knowledge of its toxicity became widespread.

When disturbed, asbestos becomes extremely dangerous. Inhalation of airborne fibres can cause many different diseases, while a long latency period can affect people up to 60 years after exposure.

Asbestos is a carcinogen, and is strongly linked to two types of cancer: mesothelioma, a fatal disease of the lung lining, and asbestos-related lung cancer.

Asbestosis, a scarring of the lungs, is also attributable to asbestos. So is diffuse pleural thickening, where membranes within the lungs and chest wall expand.

The battle to outlaw asbestos was long and winding. The first documented death relating to the substance occurred in 1906, but regulations to limit exposure were not enacted until decades later. A final United Kingdom ban on the supply and use of asbestos came in 1999.

Nevertheless, estimates suggest that nearly 2 million properties across the land may still contain asbestos. The material could be present in any building built or refurbished prior to the final ban, so effective identification and management remains a pivotal priority.

That’s where North Star Environmental plays an indispensable role in the fight for a safer world. Using over a century of combined industry experience, our staff provides expert advice and elite services.

From asbestos surveys and air monitoring through to accredited laboratory testing and management consultation, plus much more, we pride ourselves on delivering a personalised yet professional service.

We push the boundaries of innovation in compliance with all domestic legislation and the highest international standards, acting as a crucial linchpin in the quest for environmental harmony.

To learn more about asbestos, or to arrange a no obligation quote for comprehensive services from an industry powerhouse, contact our dedicated team today.

North Star Environmental. Where excellence meets integrity.

Jun 30
0

The Tragic Tale of Nellie Kershaw

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The reporting of asbestos related deaths has sadly become commonplace in the modern age. However, there was once a time when very little was known about the substance and the maladies it can spawn.

To learn about the evolution of asbestos knowledge, a journey back in time is required. The year is 1924. The town is Rochdale, Greater Manchester. Nellie Kershaw, a 33-year old textile worker, dies on 14th March after a harrowing illness. Her passing sparks an inquest that will change the world forever.

Born in 1891, Kershaw left school at the age of 12 to work in a cotton mill. She later moved into the asbestos industry, transferring to Turner Brothers, a local firm, in 1917. There, she worked as a factory rover, spinning raw asbestos fibre into yarn. That trade would eventually truncate her life in tragic circumstances.

Kershaw first encountered health complications aged 29. Nevertheless, she continued to work with asbestos until 1922, when illness finally thwarted her. The National Health Insurance certificate declaring her unfit for work referred to ‘asbestos poisoning,’ a rather generic term betraying the rudimentary knowledge prevalent in society at that time.

As this was not a recognised occupational disease, Kershaw failed to qualify for any significant benefits. To compound the problem, Turner Brothers refused to make any financial contributions, leaving Kershaw to spiral towards destitution as her illness deteriorated.

After a harrowing struggle, Kershaw died at 6.30 am on the aforementioned date. Again, Turner Brothers accepted no liability for her injuries, paid no compensation to her family, and even refused to help out with her funeral expenses.

Details of Kershaw’s death were recorded in the British Medical Journal. Perhaps more importantly, EN Molesworth, coroner for Rochdale, launched a formal inquest into Kershaw’s case, kick-starting the journey to industry regulation.

Dr FW Mackichan completed an autopsy and returned ‘pulmonary tuberculosis and heart failure’ as the cause of Kershaw’s death. However, the inquest was subsequently adjourned to allow for a closer inspection of the lungs. After completing that process, Dr William Edmund Cook testified that “mineral particles in the lungs originated from asbestos and were, beyond reasonable doubt, the primary cause of the fibrosis of the lungs and, therefore, of death.”

Walter Joss, the man who made the initial diagnosis of ‘asbestos poisoning,’ contributed a written testimony to the inquest. He explained how “previous experience of such a lung condition for many of his patients who were asbestos workers” contributed to the diagnosis, and said that up to twelve cases per year came before him.

As such, when Nellie Kershaw’s death certificate was issued on 2nd April 1924, it cited ‘fibrosis of the lungs due to the inhalation of mineral particles’ as the cause of death. Three years later, in a more detailed reporting of Kershaw’s case by the British Medical Journal, Dr Cook gave the disease a name that will echo for eternity: ‘pulmonary asbestosis.’

Following Cook’s paper, Parliament launched an inquiry into the effects of asbestos dust. The resultant report – Occurrence of Pulmonary Fibrosis & Other Pulmonary Affections in Asbestos Workers – concluded that asbestosis was irrefutably linked to the inhalation of asbestos dust. It also contained the first significant health study of asbestos workers, and found that 66% of those employed as such for more than 20 years suffered from asbestosis.

In turn, such shocking discoveries led to the first Asbestos Industry Regulations, which came into effect in March 1932.

More than seven decades later, in April 2006 – seven years after a final ban on the supply and use of asbestos in Britain – a relative of Kershaw unveiled a memorial stone to all asbestos victims around the world. It was a fitting tribute to the first publicly-known victim of asbestos, and a timeless reminder of its horrific consequences.

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