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LEV Testing in Scotland

Independent LEV thorough examination and testing across Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Dundee, Inverness, the Central Belt and the wider Scottish region.

Scotland LEV testing specialists

Armstrong Environmental provides independent Local Exhaust Ventilation testing throughout Scotland.

Our team supports organisations across Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Dundee, Inverness, the Central Belt and industrial locations throughout Scotland.

We work with organisations ranging from individual workshops and laboratories to complex manufacturing sites and large estates containing significant numbers of LEV systems.

COSHH LEV Thorough Examination and Testing

Armstrong Environmental engineer carrying out LEV testing at an extraction hood

LEV Thorough Examination and Testing in line with HSG258

Local Exhaust Ventilation systems must continue to control hazardous substances effectively during normal use.

A thorough examination and test—commonly referred to as an LEV TExT—should establish whether the complete system remains in efficient working order and continues to provide the intended level of control.

Regulation 9 of the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations requires employers to maintain control measures in an efficient state, in efficient working order, in good repair and in a clean condition.

The COSHH Approved Code of Practice and guidance, commonly known as COSHH L5, supports these legal requirements. HSE guidance HSG258 provides further practical guidance on the design, commissioning, testing and management of effective LEV systems.

Most LEV systems require thorough examination and testing at least once every 14 months, although some processes require shorter intervals.

A competent LEV examination considers the complete system—including its hoods, enclosures, ductwork, air cleaners, fan and discharge—together with the process and how the system is used.

Testing can include visual examination, airflow and pressure measurements, smoke visualisation and comparison with commissioning or benchmark information. The report should identify defects, explain their significance and provide clear, prioritised recommendations.

An LEV TExT should provide more than measurements and a certificate. It should help the duty holder understand whether the system remains effective and what action is required where deficiencies are identified.

Experience across Scottish industry

Supporting technically demanding processes

Scotland has a diverse industrial base including shipbuilding and defence, pharmaceutical and life sciences, whisky distilling and advanced manufacturing.

These environments can involve welding fume, wood dust, pharmaceutical powders, vapours, gases and other substances hazardous to health.

Armstrong Environmental has experience supporting organisations across:

  • Shipbuilding, defence and advanced engineering
  • Pharmaceutical and life sciences
  • Whisky, distilling and cooperage
  • Advanced manufacturing and engineering
  • Research and technology centres
  • Universities and specialist laboratories
  • General manufacturing and engineering workshops

 

We understand the requirements of organisations operating complex processes, specialist engineering controls and substantial LEV estates where consistent testing, defensible reporting and long-term COSHH compliance support are essential.

Large and complex LEV estates

Consistent testing across multiple systems and sites

Managing a significant LEV estate requires effective planning, accurate asset information and a consistent approach to examination and reporting.

Armstrong Environmental can coordinate LEV testing programmes across multiple departments, buildings and sites while maintaining the technical quality of each individual examination.

Our approach can include asset verification, planned testing schedules, consistent reporting, prioritisation of significant defects and identification of recurring or site-wide issues.

LEV Tracker® can provide duty holders with clearer oversight of their systems, reports, test dates and outstanding actions.

Workplace exposure assessment and specialist environments

LEV testing and workplace exposure assessment

Our capability covers engineering controls used across manufacturing, shipbuilding, pharmaceutical production, laboratories, distilling and other specialist environments.

Where LEV performance measurements alone do not provide sufficient evidence of adequate control, workplace exposure assessment and air monitoring can help establish the potential exposure of employees.

This can include personal exposure monitoring and static air sampling for substances such as welding fume, wood dust, pharmaceutical powders and other process-generated airborne contaminants.

Results can be compared with relevant Workplace Exposure Limits in EH40 where applicable. Workplace Exposure Limits are only one part of the COSHH framework; employers must still prevent exposure or ensure that it is adequately controlled.

Combining engineering-control expertise with workplace exposure assessment enables Armstrong Environmental to investigate both how the control performs and whether people are being protected as intended.

Worker sanding a wooden cask in a cooperage where wood dust may require effective exposure control

Why Armstrong Environmental?

Independent LEV and exposure-control expertise

Clients choose Armstrong Environmental because we provide:

LEV testing delivered by registered specialists

Our LEV testing is led by BOHS-registered LEV Specialists listed on the BOHS Register of Occupational Hygiene Professionals, which is accredited by the Professional Standards Authority.