- noellie@2hem.com.au
Welding generates hazardous fumes that can contain toxic metals, gases and ultrafine particles. In workplaces where welding, cutting, brazing or grinding occurs, monitoring exposure levels is essential to protect workers’ respiratory health and demonstrate compliance with NSW WHS regulations.
2HEM provides professional welding fume testing and workplace air monitoring services across Wagga Wagga, Albury, Riverina, Southern NSW, Victoria and ACT, including Canberra helping businesses identify risks, improve controls and create healthier, safer work environments.
Testing provides accurate, real-world exposure data that shows exactly what welders are breathing during typical work tasks. Rather than relying on assumptions or generic guidelines, air monitoring measures the true concentration of hazardous metal fumes and gases present in your specific workshop environment. This allows you to identify risk hot-spots, tasks that produce unexpected spikes in fumes, and areas of the workplace where contaminants accumulate due to poor airflow or ineffective controls.
Once these insights are captured, testing also reveals whether your current control measures are performing as intended. Local exhaust ventilation, extraction arms, filtration units, general workshop ventilation and PPE may appear effective, but only proper monitoring can confirm their real efficiency under normal operating conditions. This evidence-based approach allows businesses to target improvements, reduce worker exposure, and maintain full compliance with WHS expectations in Wagga Wagga and across NSW.
Welding fume exposure is now recognised as a Group 1 carcinogen, meaning it is proven to cause cancer in humans. Alongside long-term health impacts, welding fumes can also contribute to:
Welding fumes consist of a complex mixture of airborne metal particles and gases produced when welding or heating metal. Common components include:
Iron oxide
Manganese
Chromium (including hexavalent chromium in stainless steel welding)
Nickel
Aluminium oxide
Gases such as ozone, nitrogen oxides and carbon monoxide
In Wagga Wagga’s large manufacturing, fabrication and agricultural sectors, welding is performed daily—making proper monitoring essential to prevent harmful exposure.
We provide a comprehensive suite of occupational hygiene services tailored to welding environments, including:
Personal Exposure Monitoring
Measuring exposure levels for individual welders during typical tasks, using calibrated sampling pumps and filters.
Static Air Monitoring
Ideal for workshops, fabrication bays, training facilities, sheds and confined work areas.
Fume Hood and Extraction Efficiency Testing
Testing whether local exhaust ventilation (LEV), extraction arms and filtration systems are performing effectively.
Risk Assessments & Control Evaluation
Assessing welding processes, consumables, ventilation and PPE to identify improvements.
Detailed WHS Reporting Reports include:
Wagga Wagga’s industrial and agricultural profile means welding is common across many sectors. We provide welding fume testing for:
Fabrication workshops
Engineering companies
Manufacturing facilities
Agricultural machinery repair businesses
Metal and steel workshops
Automotive repairers and exhaust shops
Heavy plant maintenance
Construction and civil contractors
TAFE and welding training facilities
Wherever welding or hot works occur, monitoring is required.
Our testing follows SafeWork NSW and Australian Standards for occupational hygiene and air monitoring. The process generally includes:
Initial WHS consultation to understand tasks, materials and exposure concerns
Site inspection & hazard assessment
Selection of workers/tasks for monitoring
Placement of personal or static sampling pumps
Sampling throughout a typical work shift
NATA Accredited Laboratory analysis of collected samples
Interpretation of results and compliance assessment
Delivery of a detailed WHS report & action plan
We ensure minimal disruption to your operations while providing highly accurate results.
Under the NSW Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011, businesses must:
Identify welding fume hazards and assess risks
Conduct air monitoring if unsure whether exposure exceeds Workplace Exposure Standards
Implement effective control measures such as LEV, ventilation and PPE
Keep monitoring records
Provide health monitoring if exposure to specific metals (e.g., hexavalent chromium, cadmium) is reasonably foreseeable
Testing helps employers demonstrate compliance and avoid penalties for uncontrolled exposure.
Local occupational hygiene expertise
Accurate NATA-aligned laboratory analysis
Fast reports and practical recommendations
On-site assessments for all welding tasks
Experience across workshops, manufacturing & agricultural sites
Affordable monitoring packages for small and large businesses
Our goal is to support healthier workplaces and safer welding practices throughout Wagga Wagga, Albury and the Riverina.
Typically every 1–2 years, or whenever processes, consumables, ventilation or workshop layouts change.
Yes. Testing verifies whether LEV systems effectively capture fumes and protect workers.
Common metals include iron, manganese, chromium (including Cr(VI)), nickel and aluminium — depending on the materials welded.
Yes — we provide practical advice, WHS documentation and improved control strategies.
2HEM provides high-quality occupational hygiene and environmental consulting services across Wagga Wagga, Albury and the Riverina.
