Page 37 - Occupational Health & Safety, January/February 2020

played on GHS labels, this still has the potential to cause confusion.
GHS Chemical Labeling:
How to Find Required Information
There are six required elements for a fully compliant GHS label in- cluding: product identifier, signal word, pictograms, hazard state- ments, precautionary statements and supplier information. All of this information is available on the safety data sheet (SDS) that should be provided by the supplier with the chemicals that are purchased. If the SDS is missing or is in the old MSDS format, the chemical manufac- turer should be contacted to request an updated SDS.
For accurate, compliant HazCom labeling, having an up- dated SDS is crucial. SDS are divided into 16 sections, Section 2 Hazard(s) Identification include all the information needed for creating GHS-compliant HazCom labels. There are also websites and software solutions that can streamline GHS label creation with time-saving, convenient tools that auto-fill GHS information by simply entering the CAS number or chemical name. However, this information should be cross-checked with the corresponding SDS to ensure accuracy.
How Do I Combat Label Wear & Tear in My Facility?
There are no specific requirements for what labels should be made of when used for on-site chemicals. However, HazCom labeling doesn’t do anyone any good if the labels are missing or illegible, which can be a struggle in demanding, heavy-duty work environ-
ments. Standard paper labels designed for office applications sim- ply can’t stand up to the wear and tear of industrial spaces, espe- cially when chemicals are involved.
Durable film-based labels made of materials like polyester with aggressive adhesive helps decrease the chances of being non-com- pliant during an audit and the need to continuously replace labels due to fading, tearing, wearing or falling off. Ideally, industrial la- bels for HazCom should stick to a wide variety of materials such as plastic, glass and metal, and obviously have some resistance to chemicals. Resistance to water, abrasion, UV fading and tearing will also help your HazCom labels stay legible so you don’t have to replace them as often.
To further increase the longevity of your HazCom labels, con- sider making the switch to marine-grade labels engineered for GHS labels used in shipping. GHS labels for shipping chemicals must comply with very strict standards to ensure they remain in- tact during overseas shipping. Labels that are compliant with GHS shipping standards are waterproof, resist chemicals, abrasion, UV fading, tearing and have been tested to stay adhered in seawater for at least 90 days. Look for labels that say BS5609-compliant and have been tested to meet such requirements.
JoAnn Mrgich is a technical & content writer for Avery Industrial, a division of Avery Products Corporation. She writes in-depth ar- ticles that span a wide variety of topics from safety compliance to 5S lean practices.
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