What Can an Asbestos Project Designer Do in New York — and Why Does the Credential Matter?

If you work in asbestos in New York, there are jobs that simply cannot move forward without a certified Project Designer on the team. That's not a preference — it's a regulatory requirement.

Most asbestos professionals know the core certifications: Handler, Supervisor, Inspector, Project Monitor. The Project Designer credential is less common, and for many contractors, it sits in the "someday" category. Here's why it shouldn't.

The Variance Problem

Asbestos abatement doesn't always follow the standard playbook. Site conditions change, building configurations create access problems, project timelines conflict with permit sequencing, and real-world projects regularly require deviations from code-required procedures. When that happens, both New York State and New York City require a variance - and in both jurisdictions, only a certified Asbestos Project Designer can file one.

Under NYS Industrial Code Rule 56, a currently trained and DOL-certified Project Designer who works for a DOL-licensed asbestos contractor must prepare and submit each variance petition. There is no workaround. If your project needs relief from an ICR-56 requirement, the variance application does not move without this credential attached to it. 

In New York City, the requirement is the same. Variances under 15 RCNY Chapter 1 must be submitted by a project designer and authorized by the building owner or authorized agent. The application must include a description of the deviation, a description of the hardship preventing required procedures from being employed, and a professionally prepared drawing - a sketch is no longer acceptable. 

What does that mean practically? A contractor without a Project Designer on staff (or readily available) cannot file a variance. The project stalls, the client waits, and the work goes to someone who can.

What Else Requires an Asbestos Project Designer

Variance filing is the most visible gap, but the credential does more:

• Abatement project design and specifications. Project Designers develop the detailed scope of work, phasing plans, abatement methods, and written specifications that abatement contractors are legally required to follow. On complex or large-scale projects, this isn't optional.  It's the document package that governs the entire project.

• Abatement drawings. Project Designers produce the drawings that identify asbestos-containing material locations and planned abatement work. For complex or multi-phased projects in New York City, these drawings are submitted to both DEP and DOB examiners as part of the project review process. 

• Bidding documents. For projects going out to competitive bid, the Project Designer prepares the specifications and documentation that qualified abatement contractors respond to. Owners and construction managers on institutional, municipal, and larger commercial projects routinely require this.

  
  

Who Should Get This Certification

If you're already working as an asbestos supervisor, contractor, or inspector in New York, the Asbestos Project Designer certification expands what your firm can offer. Contractors who hold it can handle variance-dependent projects without subcontracting the filing to an outside consultant. Inspectors who add it position themselves for design and specification work on larger projects. For anyone building a full-service asbestos practice in New York (where complex renovation and demolition projects are the norm) it's a credential that pays for itself the first time a variance is needed.

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Get Certified at CNS Environmental

CNS Environmental offers the NYS approved Asbestos Project Designer Initial course, taught by instructors with direct field experience in NYS and NYC asbestos projects. Don't let a missing credential hold your project up.

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