Service Makes it Easier for Employers to Meet Health and Safety Responsibilities and Help Workers Work Safely With Chemicals

HAMILTON, ON – December 2, 2004 – A new MSDS Management Service from the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) makes it
easier and affordable to communicate chemical safety information in work places. Thousands of hazardous substances are used in workplaces every day –
from gas and cleaning products, to the toner used in photocopiers. Under occupational health and safety law, employers are required to keep workers
informed on the hazards of chemicals found in the workplace. The MSDS Management Service makes it easier for employers to be WHMIS compliant, and
for workers to easily access important safety information when they need it.

As part of the right-to-know (WHMIS), employers must make Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) available for each hazardous substance in the workplace. MSDSs contain information about health hazards, handling and storage,
personal protection, spill and disposal procedures, and first aid. Keeping track of MSDSs that are usually in a paper format, and ensuring they are up-to-date can be a major undertaking.

CCOHS’ new online MSDS Management Service draws on the extensive CCOHS MSDS database as the primary source for the most current records from more than 1200 manufacturers and suppliers. The Service enables customized, organizational subsets of MSDSs to be created. Users can then search from a smaller collection tailored to their specific requirements, giving them quick and ready access to MSDSs. As chemical suppliers produce new
MSDSs, CCOHS automatically updates the database, and informs users of the changes by email.

In addition, CCOHS provides a complete turnkey service for organizations that do not have the resources to set up and maintain their own MSDS collection. With the MSDS Management Plus! Service, CCOHS takes care of
the set up and uploading of MSDSs to create custom collections, and to help organizations manage their MSDSs.

As Canada’s national source of occupational health and safety
information, CCOHS bundles other content rich, complimentary products and services as part of the MSDS Management Service. These include CHEMINFO, a database
of more than 1300 chemical profiles; a Chemical Notification Service that informs subscribers when new information is released on chemicals in which they are interested; a database of WHMIS chemical classifications, and a
wealth of other relevant materials.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Eleanor Irwin, Manager – Marketing, Sales and Communications
Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS)
905/572-2981, Ext. 4408 mailto:eleanori@ccohs.ca
Visit CCOHS on the web: http://www.ccohs-cchst.gc.ca

About CCOHS
The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS), formed in 1978, is a Canadian federal government agency based in Hamilton, Ontario. CCOHS provides Canadians with unbiased, relevant information and advice that
supports responsible decision-making and promotes safe and healthy working environments. CCOHS makes a wide range of occupational health and safety information readily available, in language that is appropriate for all users, from the general public to the health and safety professional. Internationally, the Centre is renowned as an innovative, authoritative
occupational health and safety resource. CCOHS partners and collaborates with agencies and organizations from Canada and around the world to improve the quality and quantity of resources and programs, as well as expand
the breadth of usage of occupational health information to many different segments of society.