OSHA & MSDS Requirements: Easier Alternatives to the Big Binder!

By R. Bruce Wright, CPCU

Recently I met with a couple of utilities in our program who reported that they are using outside services to provide their employees with access to Material Safety Data Sheets, commonly known as MSDS sheets (yes, I know it’s redundant, but that is the most commonly heard phrase) so that they no longer have to create, manage and maintain their own paper copies in a loose leaf binder. My response was to wonder aloud why more utilities don’t do this. It must be inertia, since it has to be cheaper and easier to use a vendor for this mandatory task. Let’s look at the issue a bit more closely.

I assume that everyone reading this knows that the law mandates that all employees have both a need and a right to know the hazards and identities of the chemicals they are exposed to at work, and that OSHA requires that employers address this right by making sure that MSDSs are made available to all employees for every such chemical in their work environment. Most employers spend considerable time identifying all substances that can be found in the workplace, obtaining hard copy of the MSDSs from the manufacturers, and organizing the sheets in a binder that is kept in a designated spot in the office and warehouse, or in designated spots in all of the offices and warehouses for those with multiple locations.

Keeping these collections up to date is an ongoing problem for employers, since the binders must be updated to reflect any and all additions of new substances, as well as new formulations of substances already in use. Binders kept in easily accessible spots (as they should be) can be frequently handled, even tossed around, resulting in pages coming loose as hole punches tear through, making a further challenge to keep them in good, legible condition. But what is the alternative?

It may surprise you to learn that employers have options available that can eliminate the need to constantly maintain this type of MSDS reference binder. The statute as interpreted by OSHA requires that employers must ensure that the MSDSs are readily accessible during each work shift to employees when they are in their work area(s). 1910.1200(g)(9) reiterates the above and allows MSDSs to be kept in any form. The OSHA Web site describes one fully complainant alternative this way:

MSDSs must be readily accessible to employees when they are in their work areas during their workshifts. This may be accomplished in many different ways. You must decide what is appropriate for your particular workplace. Some employers keep the MSDSs in a binder in a central location (e.g., in the pick-up truck on a construction site). Others, particularly in workplaces with large numbers of chemicals, computerize the information and provide access through terminals. As long as employees can get the information when they need it, any approach may be used. The employees must have access to the MSDSs themselves - simply having a system where the information can be read to them over the phone is only permitted under the mobile worksite provision, paragraph (g)(9) of this section, when employees must travel between workplaces during the shift. In this situation, they have access to the MSDSs prior to leaving the primary worksite, and when they return, so the telephone system is simply an emergency arrangement. (Full text available at- www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_id=10104&p_table=standards)

In addition to this, a further clarification is provide in response to an inquiry, as follows:

… The Agency has interpreted the MSDS availability requirement to allow the use of computers or telefax or any other means, as long as a readable copy of the MSDS is available to the workers while they are in their work areas, during each workshift. The key to compliance with this provision is that employees have no barriers to access the information. This can be accomplished by the employer maintaining a hard copy of the MSDS itself on-site, or, again, by using a computer or telefax system capable of producing the same readable copy on-site. (Full Text of the Clarification can be found at- http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=INTERPRETATIONS&p_id=20032)

So you see, you have alternatives to spending hours of management time on the identification, collection and maintenance of your own MSDS binders. Instead, there are a number of vendors who offer this service, on line or by return fax, that comply with the OSHA standards, have a complete library of MSDSs, and will provide the service for a reasonable fee. In fact, unless you are certain that your survey of chemicals is 100% complete, short, and nearly unchanging I suspect that an honest assessment of the costs to maintain your individual binders is higher than what you would have to pay for this service. Two vendors that I know are being used by utilities in this program are the 3E Company and MSDS online. A quick look using your favorite Web browser will locate their Home Pages, along with any number of other suppliers who would be interested in more customers.

Last but not least, don't forget that providing access to MSDSs is just one of the three requirements of the right to know regulations. The other legs of the stool are individual product labels (Chemical manufacturers and importers must provide advisory labels on their products.) and information and training (Employers are required to train workers by December 1, 2013 on the new labels elements and safety data sheets format to facilitate recognition and understanding.)

The purpose of this article is to share ideas, management concepts, and information which may be of interest to rural electric utilities companies. The ideas and concepts contained in these articles come from various sources and authors and are, therefore, individual opinions and/or conclusions, and should be viewed by the reader as such. Any information provided by the editors and companies responsible for these articles is believed to be accurate at the time of publication. The editors, contributors, and companies who collaborate to produce these articles assume no liability or other responsibility for the accuracy of the information or the results (or lack of results) which may be experienced by the readers in applying or using any ideas or opinions contained in the article.