Overview
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) requires that employees be provided information about the physical and health hazards of the chemicals they use or are potentially exposed to in their work area. Safety Data Sheets (SDS) are the primary communication tool that provides the most basic, essential information about a hazardous substance or mixture. Under the HCS, it is required of manufacturers to author an SDS for any hazardous chemical or product. The College’s Global Harmonization – Hazard Communication Program is available for review in Section 8 of the VPCC Health, Safety, and Risk Management Guidelines.
Access VPCC and VCCS Safety Data Sheets
Use this link or scan the QR code below to search the VPCC SDS database.
The VPCC Department of Police, Safety, and Security and Facility Services Department are in partnership with the Virginia Community College System to provide the VPCC community with access to a searchable web-based SDS database. The SDS database is maintained online through a Velocity EHS MSDSOnline eBinder.
From your search, you can view, download and/or print any SDS. You are only encouraged to print an SDS in case of emergency in order to provide a copy to responding public safety officials. SDS can change and the online database will have the most up-to-date version; therefore, printing should be limited to prevent out-of-date versions of the SDS from being reviewed.
Alternate SDS Access
You can also access the VPCC SDS database by selecting the VPCC SDS Search tile on the Gator Ready Mobile Safety App.
Brief SDS eBinder Tutorial Video
This brief tutorial video covers basic SDS eBinder navigation.
How to Read an SDS
Always read an SDS prior to working with that material. It is here that you will learn invaluable information on how you can work safely: the hazards (health and physical), how to protect yourself from exposure (controls and PPE), signs and symptoms of exposure, proper handling and storage, and more. Familiarize yourself with the format; A standardized 16-section format was a result of the 2012 HCS revision that adopted the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS).
This format is required of all chemical manufacturers in the United States and many countries world-wide. A short description of each section can be found here.
Information For Supervisors
Federal law requires that an SDS for all of the hazardous chemicals used at a location must be readily accessible to employees. Electronic access is permitted as an alternative to paper copies as long as no barriers to immediate employee access are created (i.e. An employee asking a supervisor for access to an SDS constitutes a barrier. If computer access is not provided for an employee, accessible paper copies are required.)
Those responsible (supervisor, researcher, instructor) for a given work area must ensure that the needed SDSs are available to employees, that employees understand how to access their SDSs, and that access to the SDSs is barrier-free.
The VPCC SDS database is accessible online from any internet connection.
Unit and Department Safety Data Sheet Responsibility
Each department or unit is responsible for ensuring up-to-date SDSs are available for the hazardous chemicals used in their workspace. All chemical shipments are supposed to arrive with an SDS or access to the SDS for each chemical shipped. Upon arrival, the SDS should be checked against the MSDSOnline eBinder database to ensure that the most current SDS is available in the system. If the SDS received is newer than the SDS in the eBinder, or the SDS is not in the eBinder, email the PDF version of the SDS to the Director of Safety and Security indicating that the chemical is in use in your department or unit and that the SDS needs to be added to the eBinder.