Commercial Audits
Asbestos and Hazardous Material Audits
Prior to the refurbishment or demolition of commercial or residential buildings in Victoria, you are required under the OHS Act 2004 to obtain a Division 6 Audit of the property.
This is a document that identifies the location and extent of asbestos and can include other hazardous materials, in order to ensure the health and safety of any contractors, construction, and demolition workers that may work on that building site.
For more information about Division 6 demolition and renovation requirements for residential buildings, head over to our Residential Division 6 page.
Commercial Division 6 Audits
Prior to any refurbishment or demolition of commercial buildings in Victoria, you are required under the OHS Act 2004 to obtain a Division 6 Asbestos Audit of the property. Due to the destructive nature of refurbishment and demolition works, the Division 6 is an intrusive process that requires extensive sampling of the building materials of all areas where works are proposed to be conducted.
The Division 6 audit report is used by the workers on site as a guide to where exposure to hazardous materials may occur and indicates what materials require removal before demolition. Depending on the specific requirements for the site other hazardous materials can be included on the report.
Greenlight Environmental Services specialises in performing Division 6 audits in structures throughout Victoria. Division 6 Assessment reports are often relied upon by demolition and refurbishment contractors when preparing quotations. As such, the quality and integrity of these reports is crucial in ensuring that demolition and refurbishment projects are completed safely, in time and within budget.
When & Why Do You Need a Division 6 Audit?
Due to the destructive nature of demolition and refurbishment work, the possible exposure to asbestos and other hazardous materials increases significantly. Before any demolition or refurbishment work of a structure or building takes place, it is a legal requirement to have a trained professional carry out a Division 6 Audit.
In order to reduce the exposure to, or disruption of these materials, the Division 6 audit will identify the hazardous materials present and their location.
The document facilitates the removal of hazardous materials where required by the regulations (as for asbestos materials and Ozone Depleting Substances) or for their appropriate control during demolition or refurbishment works. This action is essential to reduce the risk of exposure to these materials for construction workers, contractors, and anyone else who may be present on the site.
What is the Division 6 Audit Used For?
The Division 6 audit is used by contractors, construction workers and asbestos/hazardous materials removalists as a reference to ensure they know the location of any hazardous materials that may be present in a workplace.
For asbestos and hazardous materials removalists, the Division 6 Audit report allows them to easily identify all locations of these materials. Greenlight reports clearly identify locations with inline photos and colour coded reports with extents noted in square metres. This will allow asbestos removal companies to easily quote for removal works on an item by item basis.
Above all, the Division 6 Audit provides information that increases the safety and safe practices of the worksite. The comprehensive report will identify all locations of hazardous materials, thus significantly reducing the risk of accidental disturbance of and exposure to these hazardous goods for anyone who will be present on site.
What are Hazardous Materials?
As part of the Division 6 Audit, a consultant will aim to identify all hazardous materials present on a site in addition to asbestos. Some of the hazardous materials that may be identified during a Division 6 audit include:
- Asbestos Containing Materials (ACMs)
- Synthetic Mineral Fibre Products (SMF)
- Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs)
- Lead (lead paint, lead in dust or metallic lead)
- Ozone Depleting Substances
What is Involved in a Division 6 Audit?
A division 6 audit with Greenlight includes the following:
- A physical inspection of the worksite where proposed demolition and/or refurbishment will take place.
- Collection of samples of all relevant areas of the worksite, structure or building where works will take place.
- Testing of samples collected in a NATA Accredited lab.
- Comprehensive report that identifies the location and type of hazardous materials in your worksite
Our consultants will take samples as needed where proposed demolition or refurbishment will be taking place. As demolition and refurbishment works are usually destructive in nature, a division 6 audit can be somewhat intrusive and invasive as we need to collect samples of the relevant materials and areas where the works will take place. This will include gaining access to areas such as the roof cavities, floor spaces, and examining behind tile materials and underneath floor covers.
Who is Responsible for a Division 6 audit?
It is a requirement of the contractor engaging in works of a site, structure or building who must ensure that a Division 6 asbestos register is in place prior to any works commencing.
Works cannot start until the hazardous materials register is in place and any asbestos materials have been removed. The cost of the audit can be passed onto the owner of the workplace.
Non-compliance can result in fines up to $30k.
Our Process
Obtaining a Division 6 Audit for your workplace, business or property is easy with Greenlight. A tertiary qualified consultant will come to your site and conduct a visual inspection and collect samples. Once samples have been obtained, they will be tested in our NATA accredited laboratory and analysis will be conducted.
Once analysis has been completed, we will prepare a Division 6 report that will include the Asbestos or Hazardous Material Type and the location within the site.
Our report will be ready within 3 business days of our investigation.
To organise your Division 6 Audit, call us on 03 9048 4411, emails at [email protected], or book using the button below.
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