The RICE proficiency testing scheme for asbestos fibre counting operated until 1992 with industrial samples and with reference counts produced by an image analyser (Magiscan). The visual counts produced in RICE by the participating laboratories have now been used to develop a reliable reference count for these industrial samples. Concurrently with the routine participation in RICE, laboratories also counted samples from asbestos clearance operations; these counts were used to develop suitable reference counts and performance limits for this type of sample. The width of this satisfactory performance interval is proportional to the natural variation in the data on the samples and is therefore a fixed interval on the log scale (of sample density) for high density samples and a fixed interval on the square-root scale for low density samples (where counting normally stops after a fixed number of fields). These developments led to the introduction of visual reference counts and clearance samples into RICE during 1992.