AIB stands for asbestos insulating board, and it is the material that turns an ordinary job into a licensable one. It is a soft, low density board of asbestos fibre and a binder, used through the middle of the twentieth century as ceiling and wall lining, as fire protection, as panelling around heaters and windows, and as boxing to structure. Because it is soft it releases fibres readily, and that is the whole reason for the rules around it.
What it looks like
A pale grey or off white board, usually between six and twelve millimetres thick, light for its size, with a slightly fibrous cut edge that can often be marked with a fingernail. It was almost always painted, sometimes many times, which hides all of that. Asbestos cement by contrast is hard, dense and brittle and cannot be marked. The distinction matters enormously and is still decided by analysis.
Where it turns up
Ceiling and wall linings, especially in system built and post war buildings. Soffits and eaves panels. Panels beneath windows and behind electric heaters. Boxing to columns, beams and service risers. Fire breaks above suspended ceilings. Airing cupboard linings. Lift shaft linings. In a building of the right age it is the material a strip out most often meets unexpectedly.
Why removal is licensable
Most work on AIB may only be done by a contractor licensed by HSE, has to be notified in advance, is carried out inside a sealed enclosure under negative pressure, and ends with an independent four stage clearance. Each of those is a cost and each of them is why AIB removal is priced differently from cement sheet removal.
Leaving it in place
AIB in good condition, sealed and undisturbed, is frequently managed rather than removed: recorded in the register, risk assessed, given a re-inspection interval, labelled where appropriate, and pointed out to every contractor. Removal becomes the answer when the board is damaged or when planned work cannot avoid it.
Questions people ask about aib asbestos
What does AIB stand for?
Asbestos insulating board. It is sometimes written asbestos insulation board, which means the same thing in ordinary use.
Is asbestos board the same as asbestos cement?
No, and the difference decides who may work on it. AIB is soft and licensable; asbestos cement is hard and normally non-licensed.
Can I paint over AIB?
Sealing a sound board is a recognised way of managing it. Sanding or preparing the surface first is not, and that is where a decorating job becomes an asbestos incident.