Silica & Engineered Stone SWMS Templates

Yes. Under WHS Regulation 2025 Schedule 3, any construction work involving the disturbance of crystalline silica is High Risk Construction Work (HRCW Category 19), regardless of duration or quantity. A SWMS must be prepared before work starts, kept on site, reviewed when conditions change, and made available to the principal contractor. This applies to concrete cutting, grinding, drilling, tunnelling, stonemasonry and demolition tasks — not just engineered stone. The SWMS must identify controls aligned with the Working with Silica CoP and AS 2985 monitoring requirements.

No new manufacture, supply or installation of engineered stone benchtops, panels or slabs is permitted in any Australian jurisdiction from 1 July 2024 (with transitional contract provisions in some states). Limited exemptions exist for legacy removal, repair, minor modification and disposal of stone installed before the ban — these activities still require a notified fabrication exemption in most states, a SWMS, wet processing only, P3 RPE and health surveillance. The model Code of Practice (2024) sets the controlled processing rules.

The workplace exposure standard (WES) for respirable crystalline silica (RCS) is 0.05 mg/m³ as an 8-hour time-weighted average, halved from the previous 0.1 mg/m³ in 2020 and confirmed under WHS Regulation 2025. Employers must apply the hierarchy of control to keep exposures as low as reasonably practicable, not just below the WES. Air monitoring under AS 2985 is required where there is uncertainty about exposure levels, and health surveillance is mandatory for workers at risk of exposure above the standard.

Yes, if workers are at significant risk of exposure to RCS above the WES, WHS Regulation 2025 r.368 requires PCBUs to provide health surveillance by a registered medical practitioner with experience in occupational silicosis. This includes baseline and periodic respiratory questionnaires, lung function testing and low-dose HRCT imaging in line with the National Dust Disease Taskforce recommendations. Records must be kept for 30 years. The Working with Silica CoP provides triggers based on task, duration and control effectiveness.

A SWMS is the WHS Regulation 2025 document required for any HRCW task involving silica disturbance and focuses on a specific high-risk activity. A Silica Risk Control Plan (or Hazardous Chemical Risk Management Plan under Part 7.1) is a workplace-wide document covering the substance, monitoring program, health surveillance, training, RPE program and emergency procedures. Queensland, NSW and Victoria require both documents for crystalline silica processes. Our templates link the two so site-specific SWMS reference the broader control plan obligations.