What is Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS)?

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In apparel manufacturing this term is widely used when we talk about workplace health and Safety standards. But still newcomers hardly know about MSDS and why it is essential for keeping this sheet? I come across a good document on giz website and I like to share it with you briefly in this article. Factories those use hazardous chemical for the chemical processing like washing, dying and spot removing need to maintain MSDS. A basic MSDS contains information like – Chemical name, chemical formula, how to store, whether it is hazardous for health or not and how to take safety measure if chemical come in contact to body.

An image of MSDS board is shown in the following found in a garment manufacturing factory.


An MSDS of each chemical substance is kept in a central place, where every workers and supervisors can have easy access when needed. The detailed material safety data sheet contains valuable information about
  • characteristics, properties and quality of the chemical having influence on the end product 
  • proper ways of storing and handling chemicals
  • indicates appropriate security precautions and needed controls, including the use of personal protection equipment (PPE). 
  • spells out emergency procedures in case of spills, fire, explosion 
  • indicates steps for first-aid 
  • specifies the hazard level, which gives clues about the possible effects on water, soil and human health
  • specifies the flash point (the lowest temperature at which a chemical releases flammable vapor). The lower the flash point, the more hazardous the chemical is as a source of fuel for fire or explosion. 

For further reading find out following link.
Source: http://www.gtz.de/de/dokumente/Guide_E_300708.pdf

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