Do You Need a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS)?

If your business deals with hazardous materials in any way, you need to familiarize yourself with the information that must be listed on a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS). In our technological

age, more and more materials that you work with are potentially hazardous and should be treated with care. Businesses are required to use Material Safety Data Sheets in order to comply with government regulations.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires that business owners have a MSDS for every potentially hazardous material they come into contact with in the course of their daily business activities. The intention is to protect employees, employers, and emergency responders from the effects of materials that may endanger their safety and health. The Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) outlines the standard that businesses must follow to be in accordance with federal regulations.

A form of the MSDS has been around since the early 1900s. Originally, the Public Health Service provided chemical safety sheets; in the 1940s, the Manufacturing Chemists Association made available sheets for a variety of chemicals used in business. In the 1960s the maritime industry brought the first government regulations regarding MSDSs.