Established in 2005, Heritage Testing Limited is an independent commercial science laboratory specialising in building materials testing and analysis, serving the private, public, conservation, commercial, and industrial sectors.

Lead Safe WorldWe are a Lead Safe World partner, and we provide the following lead-related services:-

- Provide lead paint and dust test kits for laboratory analysis.
- Laboratory determination of lead content of soil or water.
- Swab, wipe, and vacuum sampling of lead contaminated carpets and surfaces.
- Lead paint - Analysis for Lead and other toxic metals in paint.
- Lead dust - Residential and commercial survey of lead dust / residual lead in dust.
- Advice on clean-up of lead paint dust that has been inappropriately sanded.
- Lead test - Lead clearance tests following contractor refurbishment or redecoration works.
- Afterclean Leadcheck - Construction dust and after builders cleaning lead check.

Lisa Oestreicher MA MSc is an independent paint analyst with over 20 years’ experience in the field of architectural paint research.

Having studied at the Bartlett School of Architecture and the Architectural Association she worked for Westminster City Council as a Senior Conservation Officer before taking the opportunity to specialise further. In 1994 she began two years of training in architectural paint research with the Victoria & Albert Museum and the Royal College of Art. In 1997 she established her consultancy practice in Bath, England.

The Bath studio combines analytical expertise with specialties in architectural research and listed building legislation. Lisa works with clients to formulate a brief which will meet their needs in the most cost-effective manner. Detailed reports outlining the analytical findings are produced and if required a colour palette and specification for redecoration can be supplied. By endeavouring to understand the needs of the client, and through effective communication of the historical and analytical findings, successful project outcomes are ensured.

The practice has had the opportunity to work on a wide breadth of projects ranging from royal palaces to civic buildings in the UK and abroad. Past projects include Kensington Palace, St. Paul’s Cathedral, William Morris’s Red House, the Victoria & Albert Museum, Knole, Hampton Court Palace, Ham House, the Royal Courts of Justice, Woburn Abbey, Bristol Old Vic Theatre and Hong Kong Central Police Station. Clients include the National Trust, English Heritage, Historic Royal Palaces, CADW, the House of Lords and several national museums, as well as many private property owners.

Lisa Oestreicher has also written articles on architectural paint research and historic interiors for conservation publications, advised museums on exhibition content and shared her knowledge on several televised programmes.

Lisa Oestreicher sits on the committee of The Institute of Conservation (ICON), Historic Interiors Group.

BM TRADA is proud to be part of Element, the market leader in Testing, Inspection and Certification services.

BM TRADA exists to help make certain that the materials, products and processes that we test, inspect and certify for our customers are always safe, quality, compliant and fit for purpose. What we ultimately deliver is Certainty to those sectors where failure in service is simply not an option.
Our Origins

BM TRADA has a long history and heritage that we are justifiably proud of and we can trace our origins back over 80 years to 1934.

We are a global testing, inspection and certification company that delivers critical services in materials testing, product qualification testing, inspection and certification to the Fire and Building Products marketplace, where failure in service is simply not an option.

Everything BM TRADA does is designed to help our customers to develop better products and processes; get their products to market on time; save time and money; and minimize the risk associated with product and process development as well as product production.

Our purpose as a business is a simple one. To help our customers to make certain that all of the materials, products and processes we test, inspect and certify for them, regardless of the industry sectors they operate in, are always safe in their end application; are of marketable quality; are compliant with all relevant standards and industry regulations; and are ultimately fit for purpose.

In 1934, a forerunner of what later became the Timber Research and Development Association (TRADA) was set up, its mission, to promote the use of wood in construction in the face of a growth in the use of alternative materials.

60 years later in the mid 1990s and following a management buyout of TRADA’s operating companies, the testing, inspection and certification services were grouped together under the three brands, BM TRADA Certification, Chiltern International Fire and TRADA Technology.

In 2013, these three businesses came together and rebranded as BM TRADA, part of an exercise to clearly position the organization as a single leading international Testing, Inspection and Certification business.

In 2015, BM TRADA was acquired by Exova, which itself was subsequently acquired by Element Materials Technology.

Today BM TRADA is part of the Element Group, a global network of more than 6,000 engaged experts, operating out of over 200 laboratories, located in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Australia.

We are the fastest growing testing, inspection, certification and calibration business in the world.