The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently updated the requirements for the labeling of hazardous chemicals under a new Globally Harmonized System of classification (GHS). The primary goal of GHS is to ensure better protection of human health and the environment.
In accordance with OSHA regulations, as of December 1, 2015, new Safety Data Sheets (SDS) will be used. The Safety Data Sheets will replace the current Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS). The SDS’s are required to include the following headings: Identification, Hazard Identification, composition/information on ingredients, first aid measures, fire-fighting measures, accidental release measures, handling and storage, exposure controls/personal protection, physical and chemical properties, stability and reactivity, and toxicological information.
Edmer Sanitary Supply Company has been working with our manufacturers to ensure our products will comply with OSHA’s new standards by the December 1st, 2015 deadline. We will be supplying all of our customers with the new SDS’s of the products they order. As an employer, it will be your responsibility to make sure these new safety data sheets are readily accessible to your employees. You have until June 1, 2016 to update your workplace hazard written plans and provide any additional training for newly identified hazards.
In addition to the new SDS requirements, the following information will be required on product labels: pictograms (if applicable, see chart below), a signal word, hazard and precautionary statements, the product identifier, and supplier identification, to alert the users of the chemical hazards to which they may be exposed.
Edmer Sanitary Supply offers compliant Safety Data Sheets for our aerosol cleaning supplies; liquid cleaning supplies, including carpet cleaning products, floor cleaners, and disinfectants; and other chemical products, including drain openers, funiture polish and auto & truck wash. Call our Long Island headquarters in East Meadow, New York at 516-794-2000 for more information.