Health & Safety at Work Regulations (1974)

The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, Section 6 and the Classification, Packaging and Labelling of Dangerous Substances Regulations 1984, impose duties on manufacturers and suppliers of substances to label substances and inform people on how to use them safely.

Rather than direct control on people handling chemicals, a good deal of regulatory control is focused on manufacturers and suppliers of chemicals to provide accurate warning information and on managers to assess health and safety risks and provide appropriate risk reducing measures.

These form the basis for material safety data sheets which are the only accurate source of information about the hazards for the unique composition of a specific product. Therefore this must be provided by the manufacturer and product supplier. The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations means that this information should be made available to the entire workforce and its representatives.

Chemicals (Hazard Information and Packaging for Supply) Regulations 2005.

These are sometimes also known as CHIP3.

CHIP is the law that applies to suppliers of dangerous chemicals. Its purpose is to protect people and the environment from the effects of those chemicals by requiring suppliers to provide information about the dangers and to package them safely.
CHIP requires the supplier of a dangerous chemical to:

  • identify the hazards (dangers) of the chemical. This is known as ‘classification’;
  • give information about the hazards to their customers. Suppliers usually provide this information on the package itself (eg a label) and, if supplied for use at work, in a safety data sheet (SDS); and
  • package the chemical safely.
  • Companies who sell substances with a MSDS are required to provide that MSDS to the customer the first time the customer purchases the substance.

    • ‘Supply’ means making a chemical available to another person. Manufacturers, importers, distributors, wholesalers and retailers are all examples of suppliers.

    CHIP applies to most chemicals but not all. The details of the scope are set out in the Regulations. Some chemicals, such as cosmetics and medicines, are outside the scope and have their own specific laws. However, biocides and plant protection products had to be classified and labelled according to CHIP from July 2004.

    Control Of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 1999 - COSHH

    “The Regulations seek to control exposure to hazardous substances which arise out of, or in connection with, work which is under an employer’s control. They apply to all work in which persons are exposed, or are liable to be exposed, to substances hazardous to health. Substances not within the scope of the Regulations are listed in regulation 5(1). The Regulations apply to the self-employed, and also to persons not employed but exposed to substances hazardous to health arising from a work activity.”

    Benefits

    Compliance: The system will help you comply with the legal requirements surrounding the trade and use of hazardous materials.

    Electronic library: It allows you to store, distribute and archive MSDSs electronically.

    A bespoke solution: The MSDS solution is tailored to integrate with your existing Lotus Domino infrastructure and resources. If you don’t use Lotus Domino a server can be installed to integrate with your existing email, portal and CMS systems.

    Speed of delivery: Rapid application development capabilities of the Lotus Domino platform ensure that MSDS projects can be delivered quickly and easily.

    Compatibility: The MSDS solution can be deployed onto Lotus Domino version 5 and upwards without the need for the end-user to upgrade the existing platform.

    Web services: Domino 7 extends an enterprise’s ability to use Domino-based data and functionality beyond what is available with previous versions.

    Features

    The system can be designed to suit your organisation’s needs, but it can include any of the functionalities listed below.

  • You can search for MSDSs by criteria suitable to your organisation. For example: by supplier, by part number or by type of substance.
  • You can track an audit trail of when and by whom MSDSs were added, amended or archived.
  • The system can include electronic workflow processes tailored to your business structures.
  • The system can allow CDs of the database to be cut giving users on satellite or remote sites, not connected to your network, access to the full range of MSDSs.
  • Authorised users can manage the solution and can control sheet version, add or edit information and control distribution enabling them to keep information up-to-date despite changes to suppliers/manufacturers or the substances they supply to you.
  • Batches of MSDSs which relate to a specific job role can be printed off for induction of groups of new staff.
  • The system can record the distribution of MSDSs to staff or customers to provide an auditable trail.

    • These are a selection of possible functionalities. The systems for your organisation can be designed to include any or all or the above and to answer any other MSDSs-related pain points you have.

    We will develop and integrate an MSDS system into your existing IBM or Microsoft environment and allow you to experience the benefits for your organisation.

    Philosophy

    We are an IBM Advanced Business Partner, specialising in supplying high quality solutions based upon IBM Lotus technology.

    We aim to improve your business by extracting the maximum value from your technology investment.

    Approach

    Our consultants will come to your site and listen to your business needs. We aim to develop a system which will solve your MSDS-related issues: a system that will work within your existing IT infrastructure and environment.

    We use a structured approach with project management to deliver the required solution. This is achieved by a solid business and technical understanding: combining technical knowledge with the ability to successfully implement a solution into a business environment.

    The benefits to you include:

  • higher value from existing investment,
  • lower direct costs to the business through effective first-time implementation,
  • lower impact of change to the business and
  • faster deployment of new technology.

    • Areas of Excellence

    Our core areas of expertise are centred on providing technical knowledge to help businesses make the correct decisions.

    We achieve this through:

  • A proven track record.
  • Proven experience with skilled expertise in technical infrastructure, sophisticated programming, design and project management resources.

    • Experience
    All of our consultants and developers are qualified to IBM Certified Advanced level. Between them, they have many decades of experience working with IBM Lotus solutions for companies ranging from 100 to 10,000 users.

    IBM Lotus software
    We use and endorse IBM Lotus software to provide robust, enterprise-level, industry-standard solutions. Our consultants are experts in: Lotus Domino, Notes, Sametime, Quickr, Connections, web services, HTML, DHTML, Java and Java Script web programming.

    Project management
    Effective Project Management allows us to deliver projects on time and within budget. We can provide a full Project Management function on any project undertaken for you, using procedures developed in-house based on the PRINCE 2 project management methodology.