Updated Safety Sheets Now Required

Posted January 22, 2016 at 12:41 pm

As a reminder to laundry operators and suppliers: as of Dec. 1, 2015, all companies that come under OSHA’s Hazardous Communications Standard are now required to display the streamlined “Safety Data Sheets” (SDS) that provide information about hazardous chemicals in a plant.

Announced in 2012, the SDS are a simpler, easier-to-read version of the Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) that were used in plants for many years, according to news reports.

MSDS are documents accompanying hazardous chemicals providing safety information about the particular item. The sheet, which can consist of many pages, warns users about dangerous effects, safe exposure, interactions and health information and first aid procedures. Handling, storage and disposal instructions are included in the MSDS too, as well as all information useful to those who handle the materials and those who respond to emergencies where these things are located.

The new SDS format includes pictograms showing symbols for various types of hazards applicable to specific materials. It features three sections that must contain data that’s consistent with the United Nation’s globally harmonized system of classification and labeling of chemicals. 

For more information on the SDS system, click here. 

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