Merry Christmas to all. The last months my devoted elves and I have been very busy trying to satisfy all the children’s wishes. We have been working long hours manufacturing toys and care articles for children aged 12 and younger. It may seem like an easy job, but it has a lot of responsibilities to the users, the community and the environment. It doesn’t matter that I am Santa Claus; I am obliged to follow the GHS/ OSHA requirements about safety in manufacturing and transportation of my products.
Thereby, we try not to use any hazardous chemical materials during the manufacturing process. In case a toy does contain something potentially dangerous for the employees, the children or the environment, we use the appropriate labeling on the product with warnings and pictograms on the package so that the parents can request a MSDS, if necessary. We, also, maintain the required safety data sheets according to GHS/or OSHA rules. Both Safety Data Sheets (SDS) in the GHS and Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) in OSHA’s HazCom Standard provide information about the potential hazards, handling, storage and protective measures of the materials we use. A few years ago, we used to store them in folders easily accessible to employees, but now that our factory has a new computer center, we have them in electronic form and we should maintain them for 30 years.
The Safety Data Sheets are related to products and not specific to workplace. However, they enable us to create an efficient plan of worker protection measures, including training, which is determinate to our workplace and take action about how we can protect the environment.
So we implement the specific SDS 16 heading- format to provide information about the hazards of a potential dangerous substance or mixture:
1. Identification
2. Hazard(s) identification
3. Composition/information on ingredients
4. First-aid measures
5. Fire-fighting measures
6. Accidental release measures
7. Handling and Storage
8. Exposure controls/personal protection
9. Physical and chemical properties
10. Stability and reactivity
11. Toxicological information
12. Ecological information
13. Disposal considerations
14. Transport information
15. Regulatory information
16. Other information
We comply with the GHS/OSHA Standards in order to enhance human health -of our employees and children- and protect the environment. All manufacturers who use or import dangerous chemicals shouldn’t forget the deadline of June 1, 2015 to implement the GHS labeling and SDS requirements. I wish you a Happy and Safe New Year.
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