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Eddy  
#1 Posted : 07 January 2016 10:08:55(UTC)
Rank: Forum user
Eddy

Guys

Could anyone offer me advice on a system for managing COSHH assessments. I am aware of Sypol. Is there any other system on the market that would automatically do my COSHH assessments for me if giving product name. Also can anyone advise me if I need a COSSH assessment every time we ship a product in a road barrel. Appreciate help. Thanks
A Kurdziel  
#2 Posted : 07 January 2016 10:26:02(UTC)
Rank: Super forum user
A Kurdziel

Eddy
First thing is to get yourself on proper COSHH assessor course so you understand what COSHH is about and why you need to do the assessments and when. In particular, you should appreciate that assessments are not substance based but (like all other RA’s) process based. So if you have a standard process for moving barrels across the road and you do it repeatedly, you will not need an assessment for each time you do it (unless of course you do something different each time).
descarte8  
#3 Posted : 07 January 2016 13:17:46(UTC)
Rank: Super forum user
descarte8

Even assuming the product name can correctly idenitfy the hazards (I would recommend using the MSDS), you would still need to input how the product is used into any such system, have you tried the HSE's online one for free?

You could also use the exposure scenario for your specific use / PROC, and the related RMM's and OC's as a basis for determining (not only legal compliance) but also correct control measures required to manage the risk

Des
walker  
#4 Posted : 07 January 2016 13:46:28(UTC)
Rank: Super forum user
walker

Sypol is good if you have lots of substances
It does not "do" the RA for you but it does take on the drudgery so you can concentrate on the important bits of COSHH RA.
And COSHH RA requires a higher level of competence than most things us H&S folks come across, don't be tempted unless you are competent.
walker  
#5 Posted : 07 January 2016 13:53:36(UTC)
Rank: Super forum user
walker

forgive the typos
chris.packham  
#6 Posted : 07 January 2016 13:56:29(UTC)
Rank: Super forum user
chris.packham

I would be cautious about using the Safety Data Sheet(SDS) as the basis for assessing the real hazard of the product. Firstly the reliability of the SDS is questionable. A study by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), the organisation responsible for REACH, found that of 1,181 companies they inspected in 29 countries, mostly ‘downstream users’, i.e. formulators, regarding compliance with REACH, 52% were producing safety data sheets described in the study as ‘deficient’. - ECHA – REACH-EN-FORCE2
Secondly the SDS will generally only list those substances for which a hazard statement exists. There are thousands of chemicals that have never been so classified but that can, in contact with the person (and particularly the skin), result in damage to health. For example, in his reference work on skin sensitisers de Groot lists 4350 chemicals known to dermatologists as sensitisers and which are sufficiently well known for a patch test protocol to exist. Only a small minority of these will have been identified as H317.
Thirdly, the SDS only lists the constituents of the product ‘as supplied’. When used it is very common for there to be changes in the product and thus the hazard. Identifying the true hazard present when a chemical is used for a particular task is one of the more difficult aspects of risk assessment for COSHH. This can only be established by a combination of workplace investigation to establish exactly what happens to the chemical and evaluation of how this affects the hazard. This is why systems such as Sypol cannot, in my opinion, be considered a true risk assessment.
Chris
Eddy  
#7 Posted : 11 January 2016 10:10:18(UTC)
Rank: Forum user
Eddy

Folks

Thank you for all your replies. Can you recommend anyone who would visit our three sites in Crawley, Liverpool and Basingstoke and talk to our guys and carry these COSHH task based assessments for me. I have a very basic understanding of COSHH but I just don't have ENOUGH experience in COSHH or even the time. A consultant did carry these out before, however a visit showed they fell below what is required. Help be appreciated.Eddy
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