At Chemwatch, we are world leaders in the SDS management industry, with our state-of-the-art, customer-built Chemical Management System (CMS).

We have over 140 Million Vendor SDS in our database, which is updated continuously with the latest SDS. Having access to a high volume of SDS allows you to create a purpose-built library to suit your organisation’s needs.

As well as sourcing Vendor SDS, Chemwatch also writes Vendor SDS, ensuring that you have an SDS for all your hazardous chemicals. Clients can also access Chemwatch Gold SDS. These have the same content as a Vendor SDS, but as they have not been written on behalf of the manufacturer or supplier, they can only be used internally. 

All Chemwatch-written SDS are Elastic SDS, ensuring your needs are met, whether you’re an educator, researcher, toxicologist, or anyone in between.  

From Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) to Safety Data Sheet (SDS)

In 2012, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) branch aligned with the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS) to rename—and standardise—the MSDS process. The GHS system is used across the European Union, so this change was enacted for consistency across the region.

In addition to dropping the M—to name it Safety Data Sheets (SDS), the formatting of the reports were also regulated. Prior to 2012, regulations regarding the order and contents of a MSDS differed across jurisdictions. The introduction of SDS came with layout regulations, including a standardised, user-friendly 16-section format.

Companies had three years to complete the change from MSDS to SDS.

Why do you need a Safety Data Sheet (SDS)?

SDS safeguard users of hazardous chemicals. In most jurisdictions, employers are legally required to provide the relevant SDS to their staff to ensure they know how to properly handle any substances that are deemed hazardous. The SDS needs to be current to enable staff to perform their work safely and without risk to their health. 

SDS can vary depending on the provider, but they must all contain the same critical information, including data on hazardous ingredients, health effects, exposure limits, physical properties and emergency procedures. 

Obtaining Safety Data Sheets (SDS)

Our SDS Chemical Management System (CMS) makes your life easy and your chemicals safe, by organising your SDS, ensuring they’re accurate and up-to-date. When you receive them, all the work has been done for you.

Chemwatch uses proprietary software to crawl the web, tracking and highlighting any changes in your SDS to ensure they are always up to date and relevant. 

For more information about a free trial of our SDS management system, click here. If you would like to author your own SDS, click here for your free trial.