Case studies of significant asbestos removal projects in Australia
Prepared by the Rawtec team in collaboration with Reincarnate Consulting and Prensa Pty Ltd for the Asbestos Safety and Eradication Agency.
Summary published
The report documents eleven of the largest asbestos removal projects in Australia. The spend across them runs from about $100,000 to $9 million.
The report’s headline recommendation is about tendering. “Fully intrusive site audits should be undertaken, as far as is practicable, prior to the development and release of tender documentation.” Almost every cost blowout in the set traces back to scope discovered after the contract was signed.
The report also identifies removal at height as a challenge. “Removal of asbestos at height remains a key challenge for the industry.”
Major projects documented
Largest single project, Dallas Brooks Hall
Largest tonnage removed, Dallas Brooks Hall
Contractors managed at BOC Rocklea, zero incidents
What the projects show
Large-scale removals, including a live site
The Amcor Botany Mill removal cost approximately $7.6 million across 4,000 square metres of sheeting and 300 linear metres of pipe insulation. Dallas Brooks Hall removed 1,500 tonnes from a 10,000 square metre site for about $9 million, with 45 removalists at peak.
BOC’s Rocklea facility removed 6,500 square metres for approximately $3.2 million while continuing to operate, coordinating 850 contractors with zero incidents.
CBD, high-rise and remote projects
The former Balfours building in central Adelaide had 1,500 linear metres of sprayed asbestos, 5,800 square metres of materials and 1,300 cubic metres of contaminated items, removed for about $800,000.
199 William Street removed 690 tonnes from a building of more than 20 storeys over 12 months for approximately $4.5 million. Tas Paper dealt with 47,000 square metres of bonded roofing across more than 50 buildings. In both cases access equipment replaced walking on the roof.
Port Lincoln Hospital removed 175 cubic metres over 19 months for approximately $2.5 to $3 million, hauling waste 650 kilometres. Regional projects carry a cost structure metropolitan ones do not.
Method changes and the business case
Ausgrid changed its method on two-pole substations and saved more than $120,000. Glove-bag technique on pipe lagging and aerial work platforms instead of roof access appear repeatedly as method changes made mid-project.
Decisions rest on long-term cost-benefit, the maintenance liability that disappears, and the land or building value that is unlocked. “The most effective way to manage the long-term risks of exposure to asbestos is via its complete removal.”
What the report says to do
The report’s headline recommendation.
“Those projects that have demonstrated effective communications have invested time in detailed communications planning to identify stakeholders, their needs and concerns.”
Engage and consult before works begin rather than after a question is raised on site.
Working inside a bubble enclosure at height compounds two risks. Plan it as its own problem with its own controls.
Ausgrid’s $120,000 saving came from a change made during the project.
The report is explicit that government investment in removal is justified by health and safety benefits rather than direct financial return.
Rawtec collected the information from public and confidential sources, “most provided as secondary information and via stakeholder interviews”. Case studies were shortlisted on relevance, impact on good practice, information availability and stakeholder willingness to participate, so the eleven are not a representative sample of Australian removal projects. Rawtec “cannot accept any responsibility for use or reliance of this report or its contents by any third party”.
The other two ASEA reports
Same client, same team.
The full report runs to about 89 pages with all eleven case studies set out individually.
Working on an asbestos legacy problem?
These three reports document how asbestos removal, remediation and pipe renewal have been managed in Australia. If you are weighing up a removal program, a remediation business case or an asset renewal strategy, we would like to hear from you.