3. MATERIAL SAFETY DATA SHEETS
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A Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) is a technical bulletin detailing
health and safety information about hazardous substances. An MSDS tells
employees about the hazards of substances used in their work locations and
the safety precautions that should be taken when handling them. Copies of
data sheets for all hazardous substances to which The University of the
South employees may be exposed are available at a central locations designated
by the supervisor of each department or the EHS office.
3.1 Obtaining MSDS's
The Department Safety Coordinator shall be responsible for obtaining all
data sheets and distributing copies to designated locations. The Department
Safety Coordinator reviews incoming MSDS's to assure that they are complete.
If an MSDS is not received or is incomplete, he/she will send a written
request for a complete MSDS to the supplier and document attempts to obtain
it.
Employees can find a list of all hazardous substances used or stored at
their work locations in posted notices. Employees who are unable to find
a posted notice should contact their Supervisor or the EHS office at 598-1916
for assistance. When a new substance is introduced to a work location, the
purchaser of the substance is responsible for notifying the Department Safety
Coordinator. The Department Safety Coordinator will obtain an MSDS for review
by the affected employees and send a copy to the EHS office.
3.2 Preparing MSDS's
The University is not a "chemical manufacturer," as defined by
the Standard, and does not offer substances produced in the research laboratories
for resale. Therefore, the University has no responsibility to prepare an
MSDS.
3.3 Access to MSDS's by Employees
Sets of all MSDS's are available for examination by employees in various
central and accessible locations. Contact your supervisor or the EHS office
if you do not know where MSDS's booklets are located.
To obtain individual copies of MSDS's, employees should submit a request
to the Department Safety Coordinator. Copies will be provided within 15
days of the request. Upon written request, MSDS's will be provided to an
employee's designated representative, provided that the designated representative
has written authorization from the employee to act on the employee's behalf.
After completion of an inventory of each department a set of the MSDS's
will be kept in the EHS office for use in emergency situations.