Safety Data Sheet

The 16-section document a manufacturer must supply describing a hazardous chemical's hazards, handling and properties.

A safety data sheet is the document a chemical manufacturer or importer must provide for each hazardous product. Under GHS it follows a fixed 16-section structure, so the same information appears in the same place on every sheet regardless of who wrote it.

The sections run from identification and hazard identification through composition, first aid, firefighting, handling and storage, exposure controls, physical properties, stability, toxicology, ecology, disposal, transport and regulatory information.

For compliance purposes Sections 1, 2 and 3 do most of the work: they give the product and supplier, the GHS classification and hazard statements, and the composition with CAS numbers.

Related terms

• SDS Section 2Hazard identification: the GHS classification, signal word, hazard statements and pictograms.
• SDS Section 3Composition: the ingredients, their CAS numbers, and concentration ranges.
• GHSThe UN system that standardises how chemical hazards are classified, labelled and described on safety data sheets.
• HazComOSHA's standard requiring that chemical hazards be classified, labelled, documented and communicated to workers.
• MSDSThe pre-GHS predecessor to the safety data sheet, replaced in the United States in 2015.

A plain-English explanation, not legal advice. Figures are the federal baseline; your state may differ, so see the state-by-state requirements.