Product Safety and Hazard Communication

With the intention of protecting worker and consumer health, as well as the environment, many jurisdictions around the world have set in place hazard-communication legislation which requires classification of chemicals, and if deemed hazardous, labelling and preparation of other documentation [including: Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS/SDS), labels and shipping papers]. 

This hazard-communication legislation includes the following workplace, consumer and transport legislation: the U.S. Occupational Safety & Health Administration's (OSHA) Hazard Communication Standard; the Canadian Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS); the European Union Dangerous Substances and Preparations Directives (DSD/DPD) and the new Classification, Labelling and Packaging (CLP) legislation; the Australian National Occupational Health and Safety Commission's (NOHSC) Model Regulations for the Control of Workplace Hazardous Substances; the Canadian Consumer Chemicals and Containers Regulations (CCCR 2001); and the Canadian Transportation of Dangerous Goods (TDG) Regulations.

Intertek Cantox offers the following hazard-communication and product-safety services to the producers, suppliers and users of industrial, commercial and consumer chemicals:

• Interpretation of Hazard-Commication Legislation from both a scientific and regulatory perspective;
   
• Classification of Substances and/or products to determine the need for, and nature of, labelling and documentation required;  
   
• Authoring, Maintenance, and/or Review of MSDS and Labels (in both English and French) to meet the requirements of many jurisdictions worldwide;
   
• Canadian Trade-Secret Support for Confidentiality Claims under the Hazardous Materials Information Review Commission (HMIRC), including pre- and post-submission consultation with the government;
   
• MSDS and Label Preparation and Classification Workshops;
   
• Conducting Literature Searches to obtain relevant data relating to: chemical toxicity, environmental impact, physical and chemical properties, safe handling, transportation and waste disposal as they relate to hazard-communication requirements;
   
• Design, Implementation, and Stewardship of Testing Programs, if required, including the development of test protocols, and placement and monitoring of studies within qualified contract laboratories to support hazard-communication initiatives;
   
• Auditing MSDS and Labels to confirm compliance with relevant legislation;
   
• NEGOTIATING WITH FOREIGN SUPPLIERS to prepare or obtain jurisdiction-compliant MSDS, labels and compositional disclosure, as required; and
   
• OUTSOURCING OF YOUR FULL PRODUCT-SAFETY PROGRAM to our knowledgeable, experienced and friendly staff.

Contact our Chemicals Consultants:  chemicals@cantox.com