Workplace Dust Monitoring in Stoke-on-Trent
UKAS-accredited COSHH air sampling for Stoke-on-Trent workplaces. Personal IOM-head inhalable and cyclone respirable methods, analysed at a UKAS-accredited laboratory. Chartered consultants covering Staffordshire.
COSHH dust monitoring for Stoke-on-Trent employers
Stoke-on-Trent remains the world capital of ceramics, from large producers (Wedgwood, Steelite, Churchill, Dudson) to dozens of mid-sized potters, refractory manufacturers and tile makers. Respirable crystalline silica from clay body preparation, glaze spraying and fettling is the single largest occupational dust exposure across the city — and the HSE has a long-running focus on the Potteries sector.
We work routinely with Stoke ceramic, brick, tile and refractory employers, providing UKAS-accredited personal cyclone sampling for respirable crystalline silica plus IOM-head sampling for inhalable dust, lead and other substance-specific limits as required.
At Air Dust Odour we carry out personal breathing-zone sampling and fixed static monitoring across Staffordshire. Filters are sent to a UKAS-accredited laboratory and every result is compared to the relevant Workplace Exposure Limit in HSE document EH40. Surveys are planned and signed off by Malcolm Pounder CEnv MIAQM, a Chartered Environmentalist with two decades of hands-on air-quality experience.
Our Stoke-on-Trent Dust Monitoring Services
Every survey uses the correct sampling head per HSE methodology and is analysed by a UKAS-accredited laboratory.
Wood Dust Monitoring (IOM head)
Personal sampling of hardwood and softwood dust at Stoke-on-Trent joineries, sawmills, kitchen-fitter workshops and on-site carpentry. WEL 3 mg/m³ 8-hr TWA — one of the lowest dust limits in EH40 and frequently exceeded.
Inhalable & Respirable Dust
IOM-head inhalable and Higgins-Dewell cyclone respirable sampling for the general WELs (10 and 4 mg/m³). Routinely used at Stoke-on-Trent ceramic factories, joineries, brick and tile makers and engineering workshops.
Respirable Crystalline Silica
Cyclone sampling per MDHS 101 with UKAS-accredited XRD analysis. WEL 0.1 mg/m³ — critical for Stoke-on-Trent stonemasons, engineered-quartz worktop fabricators, concrete cutters and quarrying operations.
Flour, Grain & Food Dusts
Inhalable food dusts including flour (WEL 10 mg/m³) and grain (WEL 10 mg/m³). Important for Stoke-on-Trent bakeries, food manufacturers, animal-feed mills and grain stores.
Gas & Indoor Air Quality (CO, CO&sub2;, VOCs)
Direct-reading multi-gas monitoring for Stoke-on-Trent offices, schools, plant rooms, underground car parks, confined space and construction sites. Calibrated electrochemical, NDIR and PID sensors for carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, total VOCs, NO&sub2;, H&sub2;S, O&sub2; and LEL against EH40 WELs and BREEAM Hea 02 benchmarks.
Stoke-on-Trent & Surrounding Areas
We cover Stoke-on-Trent and the wider Staffordshire, with no per-mile travel surcharges.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need workplace exposure monitoring in Stoke-on-Trent?
If your Stoke-on-Trent site generates dust, fume or vapour from processes such as ceramics, brick and tile manufacture, joinery, food production or metal fabrication, you have a legal duty under COSHH Regulation 10 to assess and control worker exposure. Where there is no obviously low-risk exposure, monitoring with personal sampling pumps is normally the only defensible way to demonstrate compliance with the relevant Workplace Exposure Limit in HSE document EH40. Stoke-on-Trent sits within HSE Midlands HSE jurisdiction, and inspectors increasingly expect to see recent, UKAS-analysed personal sampling data on file.
Which industries in Stoke-on-Trent most commonly need dust monitoring?
Stoke-on-Trent is the historic and present-day centre of UK ceramics — pottery, sanitaryware, refractories and tableware. Respirable crystalline silica from clay-body preparation, glaze spraying and fettling is the dominant occupational exposure, with general respirable dust, inhalable dust, wood dust in joineries and lead dust in some traditional glaze operations also routinely monitored.
How much does a workplace dust survey cost in Stoke-on-Trent?
A typical baseline survey for Stoke-on-Trent covering 4 to 8 workers with personal IOM-head sampling starts from around £750 to £1,200 plus VAT, with UKAS laboratory analysis at a UKAS-accredited laboratory charged at £35 to £85 per filter depending on the analyte. Travel from our base is included in the quoted fee — no per-mile surprises. See our cost breakdown page for worked examples across different industries and survey sizes.
How quickly can you survey a Stoke-on-Trent site?
For most Stoke-on-Trent sites we can usually be on site within 2 to 3 weeks of a confirmed booking, with sampling carried out over a full representative shift. Filters are dispatched same-day to a UKAS-accredited laboratory; results typically take 5 to 10 working days, and the written report follows within a further week. Where HSE has issued an Improvement Notice we can usually expedite the visit.
Do you cover Stoke-on-Trent for COSHH wood dust and silica monitoring specifically?
Yes. Wood dust (hardwood and softwood, WEL 3 mg/m³ inhalable) and respirable crystalline silica (WEL 0.1 mg/m³) are two of the most commonly monitored substances on Stoke-on-Trent sites — particularly in joineries, kitchen-fitter workshops, stone masonries, engineered-quartz worktop fabricators, and any construction or demolition site cutting concrete or brick. We carry both IOM heads and Higgins-Dewell cyclones on every visit and can combine the two sampling regimes on the same shift.