Our occupational hygiene consultants carry out workplace exposure monitoring & air sampling in manufacturing, engineering, construction, food production, automotive and industrial environments across the UK.
Workplace exposure monitoring measures airborne hazardous substances to determine whether employees’ exposures are above safe limits. Synergy’s uses personal and area sampling to confirm control measures are working, ensure compliance with WELs in EH40, and protect the workforce from respiratory and chemical health risks.
We assess what employees are actually breathing in during normal working conditions — including dusts, welding fumes, solvents, vapours, metalworking fluids and other airborne contaminants — and compare exposure levels against Workplace Exposure Limits (WELs) under COSHH.
Our consultants find that in many workplaces, exposure issues are not obvious until monitoring is complete. We regularly identify problems such as ineffective LEVs, poorly controlled cleaning activities, inconsistent RPE use and elevated short-term exposures during maintenance, mixing or production tasks.
Using calibrated personal and static sampling equipment, we help employers understand whether existing controls are genuinely protecting workers or whether further action is required.
Under COSHH Regulation 10, employers are required to carry out exposure monitoring where there is a significant risk to employee health or where Workplace Exposure Limits (WELs) apply. In practice, we are often asked to monitor exposure where processes have changed, production levels have increased, employees report respiratory symptoms or existing controls may no longer be performing effectively.
Monitoring is particularly important in environments where exposure levels can vary significantly throughout the working day or where hazardous substances such as welding fume, silica, solvents or isocyanates are present.
Monitoring must be carried out by a competent person and results must be recorded, interpreted and acted upon.
Synergy’s consultants measure airborne contaminants generated during day-to-day operations to determine whether employees are being exposed above acceptable levels.
Our consultants typically undertake:
Our consultants carry out both personal and area exposure monitoring depending on how contaminants are generated and where employees are most at risk. This may include full-shift personal sampling, short-duration task monitoring, static sampling around higher-risk processes and assessments of LEV performance under normal operating conditions.
Typical monitoring activities include:
In many cases, we find exposure peaks occur during short-duration tasks that are not fully considered within standard COSHH assessments.
Substances We Commonly Measure
We monitor a wide range of airborne contaminants including:
Different substances behave very differently in the workplace. For example, we often see short-term welding fume peaks in enclosed fabrication bays, while flour dust exposure frequently increases during charging and cleaning operations in food production environments.
Personal monitoring measures substances workers inhale during normal tasks.
Area monitoring evaluates airborne contaminants in specific locations, processes or zones.
We find that using both methods provides a complete view of workplace health risks.
We are commonly asked to carry out exposure monitoring following process changes, installation of new equipment, increased production output or concerns about existing control measures. In many workplaces, exposure risks increase gradually over time as extraction systems deteriorate, production demands change or working practices drift away from original COSHH controls.
Monitoring is particularly important where:
We begin by reviewing your processes, substances, SDS sheets and existing controls. Then we conduct representative personal and/or area sampling using calibrated equipment. Samples are laboratory analysed and compared to WELs. You receive clear reporting with prioritised actions and practical control recommendations.
During monitoring, we frequently assess both long-term exposure levels and short-duration peak exposures against EH40 Workplace Exposure Limits. WELs define the maximum allowable concentrations of hazardous substances in workplace air. They are expressed as time-weighted averages over 8 hours (LTEL) or 15 minutes (STEL). Exposure monitoring ensures your workplace remains within these limits and highlights where improvements are necessary.
Your report will include:
Exposure monitoring gives employers real evidence about how hazardous substances behave under day-to-day operating conditions. In many workplaces, monitoring identifies problems that are not obvious during visual inspections alone, particularly where short-duration exposure peaks occur during cleaning, maintenance or material handling activities.
Accurate monitoring helps employers:
To obtain representative results, monitoring should normally be carried out under typical operating conditions rather than unusually quiet or restricted production periods. Before attending site, we usually ask clients to provide SDS sheets, COSHH assessments and details of any recent process changes that may influence exposure levels.
To help the survey run efficiently:
Preparation helps us capture the most representative data.
What makes Synergy different is our ability to support the full COSHH compliance cycle rather than delivering isolated services. Many companies can carry out exposure monitoring or LEV testing independently, but Synergy can deliver integrated support across COSHH Regulation 6 through to Regulation 12.
Our consultants regularly work with clients on COSHH assessments, workplace exposure monitoring, LEV examination and testing, control verification, Occupational Health and ongoing compliance management as part of a connected Occupational Hygiene approach. This means we do not simply produce reports — we help employers understand how hazardous substances behave in real workplaces, where controls fail and what practical actions are needed to keep exposure levels under control long-term.
Most personal sampling requires one full work shift; area sampling may be shorter.
Dusts, welding fumes, solvents, vapours, mists, gases, isocyanates, biological aerosols and many others listed in EH40.
We provide priority control recommendations—such as improving LEV, changing processes, upgrading ventilation or PPE—and guidance on follow-up actions.
Typically every 1–3 years, or sooner if processes, equipment or exposure levels change.
Yes. Monitoring verifies whether LEV and ventilation are controlling contaminants effectively under real working conditions.
Reducing Employee Exposure to Airborne Metalworking Fluid Aerosols During CNC Machining Operations
BIE Magnum specialises in surface treatments, paint finishing, engraving, CNC machining and screen printing operations. During CNC machining activities, employees were potentially exposed to airborne metalworking fluid (MWF) mist, presenting both respiratory sensitisation and dermal exposure risks under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations 2002.
Synergy Environmental Solutions carried out a comprehensive COSHH exposure assessment in accordance with current HSE and BOHS guidance to evaluate employee exposure to airborne MWF aerosols and assess the effectiveness of existing control measures.
The assessment included the use of Tyndall lighting techniques to identify airborne mist generation and direct-reading aerosol monitoring to evaluate the performance of machine enclosures and containment controls during normal operating conditions and operator access activities.
A detailed audit of existing engineering and procedural controls was also undertaken, reviewing enclosure integrity, local exhaust ventilation (LEV), spindle operating speeds, mist clearance times, fluid management procedures, cleaning methods, PPE provision and statutory health surveillance arrangements.
Following the assessment, Synergy Environmental Solutions provided BIE Magnum with a site-specific action plan designed to reduce employee exposure to as low as reasonably practicable (ALARP) and strengthen COSHH compliance.
The recommendations enabled immediate implementation of practical improvements, including enhanced fluid management checks, enclosure maintenance and health surveillance measures, while supporting updates to process risk assessments and long-term exposure control strategies.
Improving Dust Control Measures During GRP Cutting Operations
G & B (North West) Ltd manufactures Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP) roofing systems. As part of the production process, large cutting saws are used to trim GRP products to size, generating significant levels of airborne dust during operation.
Synergy Environmental Solutions carried out personal workplace exposure monitoring in accordance with COSHH Regulation 10 to assess employee exposure to airborne particulate generated during cutting activities.
The assessment reviewed existing engineering controls, operator working practices and the effectiveness of respiratory protective equipment (RPE) currently used on site. Monitoring identified opportunities to further improve exposure control measures, including enhancements to saw enclosure arrangements, optimisation of local exhaust ventilation (LEV) systems and improvements to operational procedures.
The survey also identified the use of compressed air cleaning and dry sweeping as potential contributors to secondary dust exposure through the resuspension of settled particulate. Synergy Environmental Solutions recommended the implementation of safer cleaning methods, including wet cleaning techniques and industrial vacuuming where appropriate.
In line with the COSHH hierarchy of control, Synergy Environmental Solutions provided practical recommendations covering engineering, administrative and PPE controls. This included guidance on enclosure and LEV improvements, controlled handling of waste offcuts and the correct selection and use of RPE in accordance with HSE guidance.
Additional recommendations included face fit testing requirements, clean-shaven policies for tight-fitting RPE and user training to improve respiratory protection compliance and effectiveness across the workforce.
Need workplace air monitoring or COSHH-compliant sampling? We provide fast UK-wide service with clear, practical reporting.
Fit testing verifies whether masks and respirators form an effective seal against the face.
Noise Assessment and Monitoring Services to measure the personal noise exposure of your workers.
Using biological sample like blood, urine, or breath to assess exposure to hazardous substances.
