Alpha Tracker x ASBpro: Real-Time Asbestos ID in the Palm of Your Hand

If you’ve been in the asbestos game for more than five minutes, you know the routine. You’re out on a site, maybe it's a derelict factory, a busy hospital wing, or a site where someone’s "accidentally" tipped a load of suspicious-looking debris. You spot something. You take a sample. You bag it, tag it, and then... you wait.

You wait for the courier. You wait for the lab. You wait for the results to be typed up. By the time you actually know what you’re dealing with, the project might have stalled, the client is breathing down your neck, and you’ve spent half your life refreshing your inbox.

Well, we’ve been working on something behind the scenes that’s going to change that. Actually, it’s going to do more than change it, it’s going to flip the script entirely.

We are absolutely chuffed to announce a brand-new integration between Alpha Tracker and the ASBpro handheld asbestos analyser from the clever folks at PAS Scientific.

Imagine being able to identify asbestos in seconds, right there on the spot, and having that data flow straight into your Alpha Tracker system before you’ve even left the site. No, it’s not science fiction. It’s here, it’s brilliant, and it’s going to make your life a whole lot easier.

What is this "Magic Wand" anyway?

Let’s talk about the hardware first, because the ASBpro is a bit of a marvel.

It’s a handheld device that uses something called NIR (Near Infra-Red) spectroscopy. Now, don’t let the long words put you off, in simple terms, it shines a specific type of light at a material and looks at how that light bounces back. Because every material (including the different types of asbestos) has a unique "fingerprint" in the infrared spectrum, the device can tell you exactly what you’re looking at.

The best bit? It’s tiny. It weighs about 150g, literally the weight of a smartphone, and fits in the palm of your hand. It’s not some clunky piece of kit that requires a trolley and a degree in nuclear physics to operate. You point it, you scan it, and in about ten seconds, you’ve got an answer.

It detects all the usual suspects: Chrysotile, Amosite, Crocidolite, and the rest. It even takes photos and tags them to the result. It’s essentially a lab in your pocket, minus the white coat and the smell of chemicals.

The Alpha Tracker Connection: Where the Magic Happens

Now, a fancy gadget is great, but if the data just sits on the device, it’s only half the battle. This is where we come in.

We’ve built a direct integration between the ASBpro and Alpha Tracker. When you take a reading with the ASBpro, that data, including the identification result, the spectral data, and the photos, doesn’t just stay on the handheld. It flows directly into your Alpha Tracker system.

If you’re using Tracker Mobile for your surveys, this is a game-changer. You’re already capturing your site data, floor plans, and notes on your tablet. Now, your asbestos screening results can be part of that same digital workflow.

Funnily enough, we often talk about "joining the dots" in environmental compliance, and this is exactly what we’ve done here. We’ve connected the physical world (the material on site) to the digital world (your compliance records) in real-time.

Why Should You Care? (The "Real World" Benefits)

I know what you’re thinking: "Robin, this sounds lovely, but is it actually going to save me money?"

The answer is a resounding yes. Let’s look at a few scenarios where this integration shines:

1. Rapid Screening in Waste Management

Imagine a waste transfer station where a skip-load of "mixed construction waste" arrives. It looks suspicious. In the old days, you’d have to quarantine the whole lot and wait days for a lab result. With the ASBpro and Alpha Tracker, you can screen that load in seconds. If it’s hot, you know immediately. If it’s clear, you can get it processed. That’s a massive saving in time and storage costs.

2. Emergency Response & Disaster Recovery

We’ve seen it happen, fires, floods, or structural collapses where you need to know now if the dust and debris contain asbestos. Emergency services and clean-up crews can’t wait three days for a courier. This tech allows for instant decision-making on the ground, keeping people safe when it matters most.

3. Construction & Demolition Pre-checks

Before the hammers start swinging, a quick scan with the ASBpro can provide an extra layer of safety. It doesn’t replace the full asbestos survey, but it’s a brilliant "sanity check" for contractors to ensure they aren't about to disturb something nasty.

4. Reducing Lab Lead Times

By screening on-site, you can be much more strategic about what you send to the lab. You can prioritise the "maybes" and get the "definites" logged into Alpha Tracker instantly. It streamlines the whole lab sample exchange process.

Let’s Keep Us Honest: The Lab vs. The Field

Now, I need to be clear here, and I’ll keep us honest, this isn’t about replacing UKAS-accredited laboratories.

In the UK and many other regions, the gold standard for legal identification remains polarized light microscopy (PLM) in a controlled lab environment. The ASBpro is an incredibly powerful screening tool. It’s there to give you instant insight, to help you manage risk, and to speed up your workflows.

Think of it like a GP using a quick diagnostic test before sending you for a full hospital scan. It gives you the "what’s what" immediately so you can take action, while the formal paperwork follows through the usual channels.

When you combine the speed of the ASBpro with the robustness of Alpha Tracker’s reporting and compliance modules, you’re getting the best of both worlds: lightning-fast field data and rock-solid, auditable records.

How Do I Get It?

We’re already rolling this out and the feedback has been, well, brilliant. If you’re an existing Alpha Tracker user and you’re interested in adding the ASBpro to your toolkit, give us a shout.

Our support team and sales guys can walk you through how the integration works, how to get the devices set up, and how to make sure the data is landing exactly where you need it in your system.

And if you’re new to Alpha Tracker: firstly, where have you been?: now is a great time to see how our scheduling and mobile apps can transform your consultancy.

Final Thoughts

We’ve always said that Alpha Tracker is "powered by the cloud," but it’s also powered by the needs of our users. You told us you needed faster results and better field tech, so we went out and found the best hardware partners to make it happen.

The ASBpro integration is just another step in our roadmap to keep Alpha Tracker at the very cutting edge of the industry.

So, if you fancy seeing a demo of the "magic wand" in action, or if you want to know how to connect your current kit, get in touch. We’re always up for a chat (and usually a biscuit, if you’re offering).

Keep safe out there, and let’s keep making the asbestos industry a little bit faster, a little bit safer, and a whole lot smarter.

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Key Technical Specs of the ASBpro:

• Weight: 150g (Fits in your pocket!)
• Tech: NIR Spectroscopy (no radioactive sources)
• Result Time: <10 seconds
• Connectivity: Bluetooth/Wi-Fi for Alpha Tracker sync
• Detection: All 6 regulated asbestos types

Andrew is away! Keep your fingers crossed for fair winds over the next few days while he gains distance from the treacherous shoreline

I can hardly believe that I'm writing this... Andrew Bedwell has finally set off on his 3-month world-record breaking trip across the Atlantic! https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3w3jgqj0nno

Andrew alongside his tow boat

Andrew's boat Big C was towed out of Petty Harbour, Newfoundland, and then he set off on an almost unimaginable journey of a lifetime.

You can read all about our connection to Andrew and Big C including the apps we have built so that he can send updates from the boat and everyone can follow his progress.  We have used AI development tools and Alpha TransForm to build the apps.

Scan this QR code to view our web app https://big-c-atlantic-challenge.app and follow Andrew's progress! 

Scan and register to follow Andrew's progress - https://big-c-atlantic-challenge.app

Alpha Tracker support performance update for May 2026

We have updated our monthly support performance figures for May 2026 and, once again, the Alpha Tracker support team has delivered a strong month for our clients.

May was a good month on the Support Desk

During May, we solved 804 support requests, with 758 completed within our target response times. That means 94.28% of all support requests were resolved in time.

For higher priority support requests, the results were even stronger. We solved 171 high-priority requests within target, giving us an in-time performance of 96.07% for those more urgent cases.

Six months of consistent support performance

Looking across the last six months, from December 2025 to May 2026, the team has now resolved 5,184 support requests.

Of these:

• 4,816 were completed within target

• 936 high-priority requests were completed within target

• The overall in-time performance has remained consistently above 91% every month

• High-priority in-time performance has remained above 96% every month

That consistency matters. Support performance is not just about having one good month. It is about being reliable month after month, especially when clients are relying on Alpha Tracker to help manage asbestos, legionella, fire, water hygiene and other compliance work.

May in context

May was another busy month, with more than 800 support requests solved. The overall in-time figure of 94.28% was the best result of the last six months, which is particularly pleasing.

It was also good to see high-priority support remain strong at 96.07%, even with a higher number of urgent requests than in April.

As always, we are grateful to our clients for the clear information they provide when raising support requests. Good detail at the start helps us investigate faster, respond more accurately and keep things moving.

Thank you to the support team

A big thank you to the Start Software support team for another excellent month.

Reliable support is a big part of what makes Alpha Tracker different. Our clients need practical help from people who understand both the software and the industries they work in. These figures show the team continuing to deliver that help quickly, consistently and professionally.

We will publish the next support performance update once the June figures are available.

New feature in Alpha Tracker Mobile. "Add all sentinel outlets" on a water monitoring visit with one tap

This feature has been one of the most frequently requested by our water hygiene Alpha Tracker users!

"Add All Sentinels" - new in Alpha Tracker Mobile

Jack has added a new feature in Alpha Tracker Mobile so that water hygiene technicians can add all sentinel outlets to their job with just one tap - nice!

Start Software's apps for Clean Up Britain appear on ITV's Good Morning Britain

We developed four apps for anti-litter campaign group Clean Up Britain and they have really taken off.

Start Software's apps for Clean Up Britain

Founder John Read was on Good Morning Britain this morning (he's a regular!) to talk about the litter problem in the UK, and so we briefed him on the amount of data the apps have now collected for the campaign.

John Read on Good Morning Britain today

For example, each week our apps collect more than 1,000 reports from road users reporting litter on the roadside.  Mount your phone so the camera is pointing at the verge, and our automated AI-powered "litter dashcam" app takes photos every few seconds and uses AI to grade the litter and log it to our database.  The information gathered is used to feed back to councils & National Highways and informs the national policy discussion.

Our Litter Dashcam app - https://roadside-litter.cleanupbritain.app/

Try the apps for yourself at https://cleanupbritain.app/ or use this QR code:

Scan to use the Clean Up Britain apps

Welcome Keith to the Support Desk!

We have a new member of staff on our Support Desk - welcome Keith!

Keith Saunders taking a call on the Support Desk

Keith has extensive experience of supporting software users and has mainly worked in large organisations such as HRMC.  Working in our smaller team will be a change of pace and approach - and hopefully won't be too "taxing" (see what I did there...).

Alpha Tracker asbestos software users have already been talking to Keith as he starts his training - and they have already benefited from his server and technical expertise.  We'll really pleased to have Keith board - do say hello when you next call.