Controll of Substances Hazardous to heath
As a simple rule of thumb, a COSHH will be required if the material is supplied with a triangular warning label of the type depicted below with a yellow background, black border and black pictogram.
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If not, then it probably does not need assessing and a useful guidance to COSHH can be found on this specific HSE website (or follow link to the right), or a brief introductory guide to COSHH assesment methods is availble here as a ".pdf" file, or follow the link to the left
Please remember that both the Engineering School and WMG H&S policy requires that a COSHH assessment is completed BEFORE the purchase of any material can be authorised.
It is always best to err on the side of caution therefore, as a general guide, if your proposed purchase is dealing with a quantity, volume or weight the chances are a COSHH may well be required
A Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) relates to the bulk material and therefore will only form part of a COSHH assessment as this will also require information regarding who, how, when and where it is going to be used as well as the methods of disposal . Consequently, one COSHH form may contain information gleaned from several MSDS where the risk assessment should mostly relate to the most hazardous material used
Before you complete a COSHH form it will be useful to access the School of Engineering H&S SEARCH pages (click to follow link or use the SEARCH option to the right) and see if any previous COSHH has been completed that may be useful in completing you own assessment and also to give you an idea of the format required.
It is perfectly allowable to cut and paste from previous forms but DO REMEMBER that environments, locations and people change so even very similar COSHH forms will not be entirely applicable to your current needs.
Either open the COSHH TEMPLATE, or use the link to the left and COPY to your computer, memory stick etc., before entering any data, or copy the blank COSHH form (click to follow link or use the COSHH page option to the right) to a word document or similar. Using either method complete the form "off line" so that alterations can be made by you, your tutuor or project supervisor or to include information from other available sources.
Please remember that once the form has been submitted it cannot be altered.
Once the form is completed it can be "cut and pasted" back into the on line blank COSHH form for elctronic submission to the School's safety office, please print two copies for your tutor or project supervisor to sign, one of which will be passed onto the safety office and the other you will keep.
You must keep a copy to be attached to your laboratory document. This is a legal requirement.
Help is always available either from your tutor, your project supervisor or from John Pillier, the H&S deputy who is available on ext. 23945 and is located in the Engineering hall of the IMC building.
