As an industry, manufacturing has multiple ways of defining hazards and even more ways of communicating about those hazards. Designed to create a worldwide standard, the Globally Harmonized System for Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS) has evolved in ways that create challenges for chemical producers and shippers.
What is the GHS?
The United Nations adopted the GHS in 2003. OSHA’s revised Hazard Communication Standard has presented manufacturers, formulators, and distributors with the challenge of revising their SafetyClass X capacitors are used in “across-the-line” applications where their failure would not lead to electric shock. Class X safety caps are used between the “live” wires carrying the incoming AC current. In this position, a capacitor failure should not cause any electrical shock hazards, rather, a capacitor failure “between-the-lines” would usually cause a fuse or circuit breaker to open. Data Sheets (SDSs) and the product labels by June 1, 2015. These changes are based on the third revision of the GHS.
The evolution of the GHS has created some challenges, including the mandatory use of red color, the potential need for multiple languages if shipping to other countries, various US state issues like New Jersey’s “Right to Know” that go beyond OSHA’s requirements, and many other regional regulatory requirements for compliance in the global marketplace. The reality is that virtually every label for a hazardous chemical product is subject to change and in many cases will require changes on an ongoing basis into the unforeseeable future.
