COSHH Module

Manage Your Hazardous Substances and their Use to Comply with COSHH Legislation and Communicate to your Staff

• Templates guide you through the COSHH assessment process
• Manage corrective actions through the action tracker and reminder emails
• Instant dashboards provide a high-level overview of the assessments
• Reminder review emails to keep your assessments up to date

Two Approaches Depending on Your Needs for COSHH

Safety Organiser’s COSHH module will enable you to manage your hazardous substances and produce assessments to comply with the legislation and communicate the findings to your staff.

We have developed, through working with a diverse range of sectors, two approaches for managing substances and COSHH assessments:-

1. Substance Safety Data Sheet (SDSs) are entered into a chemical database where the full 16-point content is recorded. COSHH assessments select substances from this database and import the text and exposure limits plus hazard/precaution data.
2. COSHH assessments are produced by using content from the supplier’s substance Safety Data Sheet. SDSs can be uploaded as PDF documents to the program and attached to the assessments.
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Approach 1

Substance Safety Data Sheets (SDSs)

The SDS section allows you to maintain an up-to-date database of all the hazardous substances used in your organisation.

Safety Organiser includes background listings of EH40 and their Workplace Exposure Limits (WELs), Hazard and Precaution statements from GHS (Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals).

The module allocates inhalation, skin and eye hazard bands for the Hazard Statements taken from COSHH Essentials (HSE). This will calculate overall hazard bands for the substance.

PPE recommendations from the substance manufacturer are selected from your library of protective equipment.

Supplier PDF copies of the SDS can be uploaded to the record.

Review dates are set for the SDSs to ensure that they are kept up to date. The author of the SDS within Safety Organiser will be reminded via monthly email notification when the substance requires review.

COSHH Assessment

The assessment defines the task you are assessing, exposure time, method of application and people at risk. You will then select the substances being used from the chemical database. This will introduce the Exposure Limits (EH40), Hazard Categories, Hazard and Precaution statements and text for the assessment. The Hazard statements will display the inhalation, skin and eye hazard bands and are used to develop a risk rating for the assessment.

A question set will guide you through the risks, controls and a series of control checks before a risk rating is calculated.

PPE recommendations are also added from the substance record although this will require review depending on your usage of the chemical.

Corrective actions can be added to reduce the level of risk. These can be updated through the action tracker and managed through the automated email reminder system.

Documents can be uploaded for the assessment and are available for users when viewing it.
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Approach 2

Substance Safety Data Sheets (SDSs)

SDS documents are uploaded as PDF files to a library for quick and easy access.

COSHH Assessment

The assessment defines the task you are assessing, exposure time, method of application and people at risk. Hazard categories, Hazard/Precaution statements and text such as hazards and first aid are taken directly from the SDS document.

This assessment works well for single substance assessments where the requirements of COSHH are not too complex.

Corrective actions can be added to reduce the level of risk. These can be updated through the action tracker and managed through the automated email reminder system.
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Other Features

DSEAR Assessments

The COSHH module includes an assessment to cover the Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations (DSEAR).

The assessment guides you through identifying the nature of substances involved and situations where flammable atmospheres can occur. You will consider sources of ignition and control measures.

A question set covers control measures for the process/activity, workplace, storage, emergency procedures, waste disposal and training. Additional controls for each of these areas can be added.

Electronic Assessment Authorisation

Electronic authorisation ensures an independent person approves the assessment prior to it being made a live document.

Assessment Sign-Off

This can be handled in different ways through the program.

In its simplest form the output report can include a final sign-off page.

Alternatively, users and groups of users can be attached to the assessment. They will receive an email when the assessment has been authorised to prompt them to view and acknowledge that they have read and understood the document. They will need to sign-off the assessment again when the assessment is reviewed, and will be emailed with a fresh link to do so.

Reporting allows assessors and managers to quickly see who has signed off individual assessments and the assessment sign-off status for a user.

Change Requests

Users can contact COSHH risk assessors via the change request process if they notice that an assessment requires modification. The assessor can reply to the person that raised the request. This provides an audit trail against the COSHH assessments of all comment from the users.

Email Alerts

Users can be attached to individual assessments to be informed when they are reviewed and re-authorised.

Assessment Review

A full history of an assessment is retained with older versions being copied into an archive.