Material Safety Data Sheets
(Laboratory Workers and Hazard Communication Workers)
Internet MSDS Sites
http://ccinfoweb.ccohs.ca/msds/search.html - Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety - "MSDS plus CHEMINFO Search"
http://siri.org/msds/index.php - The "national MSDS site".
http://hazard.com - A mirror of the SIRI site.
http://msds.ehs.cornell.edu/msdssrch.asp - The Cornell University MSDS site.
http://www.ilpi.com/msds/index.html - Where to find MSDSs on the internet - from Interactive Learning Paradigms Incorporated. This is an excellent site that contains numerous links to other MSDS sites, including a link to a glossary of terms used on MSDSs.
http://www.phys.ksu.edu/area/jrm/Safety/msds.html - The Kansas State University MSDS site.
http://physchem.ox.ac.uk/MSDS/ - The Oxford University MSDS site.
http://www.vwrsp.com/catalog/ - VWR Scientific Products - The current Cornell "preferred vendor".
http://www.fishersci.com - Fisher Scientific.
http://www.sigmaaldrich.com/suite7 - Sigma-Aldrich.
http://www.msdssearch.com/msdssearch.htm - MSDS Search - a national repository.
http://www.msdsprovider.com/ - MSDS Provider - manufacturer-direct MSDS's.
Other Chemical Hazard Information Sites
http://msds.ehs.cornell.edu/tscasrch.asp - Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Chemical Substances Inventory (maintained by Cornell University).
http://www.epa.gov/enviro/html/emci/chemref/index.html - EPA Chemical Fact Sheets.
http://web.doh.state.nj.us/rtkhsfs/indexfs.aspx - New Jersey Chemical Fact Sheets.
http://ull.chemistry.uakron.edu/erd/ - Hazardous Chemical Database at the University of Akron.
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/chemical-safety/ - National Institute for Occupational Health (NIOSH)
http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/ - NIH, National Library of Medicine, TOXNET, a cluster of databases on toxicology, hazardous chemicals, and related areas.
http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxfaq.html - Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ASTDR) ToxfAQs
http://www.inchem.org - International Program on Chemical Safety - access to internationally peer reviewed information on chemicals commonly used throughout the world.
Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS's) are required as part of Cornell's Laboratory Safety Program (Chemical Safety for Laboratory Workers) and the Hazard Communication Program to meet compliance with the OSHA Laboratory Standard, and the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard.
Supervisors, including Principal Investigators and Laboratory Managers, are responsible for ensuring their employees have access to Material Safety Data Sheets for all hazardous chemicals used in the workplace or laboratory. Material Safety Data Sheet information must be accessible for employees during all shifts, including laboratory personnel. Access to MSDSs can mean access to paper copies or electronic access via the internet.
EH&S is recommending a “rule of thumb” that an employee must be able to produce an MSDS for any hazardous chemical in their workplace or laboratory within 5 minutes.
EH&S strongly recommends paper copies be kept in the workplace or laboratory, however, having MSDS websites bookmarked is acceptable as long as all employees in the workplace know where to find the MSDS and are trained on the use of computers to access MSDSs. Some departments maintain three ring binder “Big Red Books” with MSDSs. See your Department Safety Representative for the location of the departmental MSDS collection.
Keep in mind that any accidents involving a chemical will require an MSDS being provided to emergency personnel and to the attending physician so proper treatment can be administered.
MSDSs are now available for most chemicals from most manufacturers at numerous Internet World Wide Web sites. If you cannot locate the manufacturer specific MSDS, you can contact EH&S to assist you in obtaining one or you may use a "generic" MSDS.
There are also special requirements for laboratories creating hazardous chemicals or intermediate products in chemical reactions. For more information, see the Cornell University Chemical Hygiene Plan at: http://www.ehs.cornell.edu/lrs/LSM/LSM_CHP.pdf
How to Obtain an MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet)
Our recommended protocol for obtaining an MSDS is as follows:
1) Keep and use the MSDS which is shipped to you with a chemical, or use the MSDS which is forwarded to you or your department from the EH&S office.2) Use WWW Internet access to find an MSDS for a chemical or product. MSDS information is now widely available on the World Wide Web.
3) Use your department's MSDS collection, often in a large, red three-ring binder in your department's library or other common use location, to find an MSDS for your chemical or product.
4) If you still can't locate an MSDS, you may request one from Czora Pagsolingan at 395 Pine tree Road, Suite 210 or by e-mail (cpp5@cornell.edu), by phone (254-8300), or by using the Right-to-Know Chemical Information Request Form.