The Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) has rolled out an initiative designed to streamline the safety data sheet (SDS) process required by law under which chemical information is provided by suppliers to retailers.

Retailers require detailed information to safely handle chemical products in accordance with various regulations promulgated by federal agencies such as the OSHA, U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). An SDS template produced by RILA aligns with the sixteen-section format prescribed by OSHA’s Hazard Communication (HazCom) Standard which became effective May, 2012. 

“The recent changes to the HazCom Standard provide an opportunity for the retail industry to upgrade requests for chemical information since chemical manufacturers must rewrite their SDS’s based on the global harmonization criteria,” said Lisa LaBruno, senior vice president of retail operations for RILA. “Consistent retailer requests will enhance supply chain efficiency and communication regarding chemical information, as well as assist retailers in properly handling chemical products for the benefit of customers, workers, communities and the environment.”

Leading retailers and providers of product safety compliance and information services helped drive the SDS initiative forward.

Jeffrey Starr, vice president of marketing at 3E Company, said the RILA SDS template will be valuable to retailer and manufacturers “as they strive to achieve conformance, mitigate risk and enhance workplace safety.” 3E is a founding sponsor of RILA's SDS Working Group.

Click here for details about RILA’s SDS initiative.

RILA is the trade association whose members include 200 large retailers, product manufacturers, and service suppliers.