PURCHASING CHEMICALS AND HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES
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2.0
INTRODUCTION DEFINITION OF A HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCE
List of Exceptions
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3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5
PROCEDURE
Engineering Chemical Stores Purchase from the School of Chemistry Donation from an Internal or External Supplier Purchase from an External Supplier Disposal Notes:
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Introduction
The procedure described below has been developed to ensure the safety of all personnel involved in the processing and handling of deliveries of hazardous substances. Additionally, it provides a mechanism for tracking the use and disposal of hazardous substances in the School of Engineering and Electronics. It is expected that all staff will adhere to its provisions and while the procedure cannot be foolproof against those who deliberately set out to avoid or bypass it, any such individual may be referred to the Head of School for possible disciplinary action.
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Definition of a Hazardous Substance
Many chemicals are hazardous substances, but some chemicals are regarded as presenting no hazard. For the purposes of the purchasing procedure a hazardous substance is defined as any substance that presents a hazard to health and may be assessed against the criteria given below. • Any substance that is supplied in a container or packaging bearing one of the black on orange hazard pictograms. Such substances are listed in part one of the Approved Supply List as dangerous for supply. Items in the exceptions list in section 2.0 below are exempted from this procedure and can be acquired without using any special procedures. • A substance which has been assigned a Maximum Exposure Limit (MEL) by the Health and Safety Commission or has an Occupational Exposure Standard (OES) approved by the Commission.
A biological agent. A dust of any kind, when present at a substantial concentration in air; Any other substance which creates a hazard to health comparable with the hazards above. A full description can be found in the “NOTES TO FORMS HS1 AND HS2” on the University Health and Safety Department web site at http://www.safety.ed.ac.uk/safenet/risk_assess/COSHH_Notes.html. If the full HS1 form is required it can be downloaded from http://www.safety.ed.ac.uk/safenet/risk_assess/HS1_word.doc. Many commonly used substances are hazardous and ease of acquisition should not be regarded as a reliable guide. In cases of doubt about whether an intended purchase should be considered a chemical, caution should always be exercised and a search for safety related data should be made by the intended order originator in the first instance. If the uncertainty subsequently remains the Chemicals Safety Specialist should be consulted for advice. • • •
2.0 List of Exceptions
Small quantities of the following substances are exempt from the purchasing procedure. A small quantity would be an amount sufficient for use by one person. • Adhesives • Thread locking agents Exemption from the ordering process does not absolve the originator or user from the need to prepare a COSHH HS2 form and risk assessment relating to the substance. Maintenance of stocks of a chemical substance in the stores does not absolve the user from the need to comply with the procedure, although it will probably imply that there are no significant storage precautions required. Aerosol solvent switch and circuit board cleaners would be good examples of such items.
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Procedure
Chemicals may be bought or obtained by four recognised routes: • Withdrawal from Engineering Chemical Stores. • Purchase from the School of Chemistry using a “Store Card”. • Purchase from an external supplier by use of a purchase order. • Donation from an internal or external supplier at no cost.
3.0 Engineering Chemical Stores
Before obtaining any chemical or hazardous substance, the supplies held in the Engineering Chemical Stores should be checked. If the substance required is held in stores, the Stores Controller can release the substance on production of a completed COSHH HS2 form for the substance. Information on completing HS2 forms can be found
at: http://www.safety.ed.ac.uk/safenet/risk_assess/COSHH_Notes.html. If the substance withdrawn is from stock returned to stores by a previous user because it is no longer required, no charge will be made.
3.1 Purchase from the School of Chemistry
Chemicals bought from the School of Chemistry must be declared immediately to the Engineering Stores. A COSHH HS2 form and a Non-Purchase Order Chemical Acquisition Form (http://www.see.ed.ac.uk/admin/safety/NPOAF.pdf must be produced before the chemical is used and an internal code and label will be supplied (see section 3.3 below). Information on completing HS2 forms can be found at: http://www.safety.ed.ac.uk/safenet/risk_assess/COSHH_Notes.html. An exemption from this procedure may be obtained for chemicals regularly purchased in bulk from the School of Chemistry stores. Such an exemption must be agreed with the Chemicals Safety Specialist. The HS2/MSDS must be lodged in stores when the exemption is agreed giving the locations of storage and use and a file of such exemptions will be maintained by the stores. Exempted chemicals will be those that can be safely and easily disposed of by the user and are therefore also exempted from the disposal procedure in section 3.4 .
3.2 Donation from an Internal or External Supplier
All chemical donations must be declared immediately to the Engineering Stores. A COSHH HS2 form and a Non-Purchase Order Acquisition Form (http://www.see.ed.ac.uk/admin/safety/NPOAF.pdf) must be produced before the chemical is used and an internal code and label will be supplied (see section 3.3 below). Information on completing HS2 forms can be found at: http://www.safety.ed.ac.uk/safenet/risk_assess/COSHH_Notes.html.
3.3 Purchase from an External Supplier
1. The order originator must select the “chemicals and gases” category on the electronic order form. All hazardous substances requiring a COSHH assessment must be ordered using this category and deliberate attempts to avoid it will be treated very seriously. 2. The originator provides the stores controller with a fully completed COSHH HS2 form (available from http://www.safety.ed.ac.uk/admin/safety/HS2.doc) and guidance notes from http://www.safety.ed.ac.uk/safenet/risk_assess/COSHH_Notes.html), or HS2 form with Manufacturer’s Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) attached. (In the case where an MSDS is attached the HS2 form must include the intended storage location and place of use, but the remainder of the HS2 can be left blank.) 3. The order will not be released from stores until the fully completed HS2 or HS2 with attached MSDS has been received. 4. Upon delivery of the chemicals order, the stores controller issues a code number for each item in the order based on the date of issue and the order reference number. An additional indentifier will be added where a single order contains multiple items.
5. Based upon the code, two labels displaying the code number and the order originator are generated for each item. One is permanently fixed to the chemicals container (and remains so as long as the item is stored within the School), and the other is fixed to the HS2 form relating to the order. The HS2 and label are then filed in date order in the stores. 6. When any chemical or substance with such a label has been exhausted, the container is returned to stores. The relevant HS2 and label is moved from the file of chemicals currently in use to an archival “used” file. 7. Chemicals beyond their useful life, surplus to requirements or no longer required for any reason are to be disposed of by returning them to the stores (after first consulting the stores controller). Part of the disposal process is the transfer of the HS2 from the file of chemicals currently in use to an archival “disposed” file. 8. If the storage location or place of use is changed, the HS2 filed in stores must be updated concurrently. The user and originator are responsible for ensuring that this happens.
3.4 Disposal
When a substance is no longer required, it should be returned to stores if for disposal or storage. If the substance is subject to special storage or handling requirements the stores controller or chemical safety specialist should be consulted prior to delivering the substance to stores. If necessary arrangements will be made to collect the substance directly from the user’s laboratory at the time of disposal. If a sufficient amount remains and it is storable, it will be stored until required by another researcher. Otherwise it will be disposed of via the correct route. Chemicals regularly purchased in bulk from the School of Chemistry stores may exempted from the formal purchase procedure described in section 3.1. Such chemicals may be disposed of by the user following the manufacturer’s recommended safe disposal procedure from the MSDS. Note: safe disposal by the user is a condition of exemption being granted and if for any reason it becomes unsafe for the user to dispose of the chemical the exemption will be withdrawn.
3.5 Notes:
A charge of £5 per item is levied against all chemical orders brought into the School and registered with the Engineering Chemical Stores. This sum covers administration charges, storage and disposal and is reviewed annually. The levy will not be charged against chemicals purchased from the School of Chemistry stores and which are exempted from the formal purchase procedure – see section 3.1. Chemicals returned to stores because they are no longer required, which can be safely stored in the chemical stores and have sufficient shelf life, can be withdrawn from stores by other users as described in section 3.0 above. There will be no charge made for such withdrawals. Undergraduate students are not permitted to place orders for chemicals. Where chemicals are required for undergraduate project work the supervisor (or nominated deputy) places the order personally.
Revised: 24-11-03.