Theatre Design & Technology - Summer 2000 - 19

document 174), which divides the required information into eight sections, and indicates the
minimlim information required for compliance with the standard. Use of this fOl11lat is
ShicOy voluntary. Many manufacturers have
adopted Olis format, but just as many have chosen
not to, and have developed Oleir own MSDS layouts. Some manufacturers chose to include
only the nlinimum information necessary for
compliance, others decided to share evelY
scrap of data about their products. As a result,
two different manufacturers of the sanle basic
chemical product can generate radically diffel~
ent MSDS for that product; one MSDS nlight be
a single, succinct page, willie the other nlight
fill eight pages or more. As I mentioned before,
Olere is considerable room for confusion.
In an effort to improve the situation, the
Chemical Manufaclllrers Association (now
called the American Chenlistl)' Council) began

to develop a standardized MSDS format that
would improve the completeness, accuracy,
and consistency of information being prO\~ded
about chenlical products. Tllis new format was
adopted in 1993 by the American National
Standards Institute ( NSI) and became AJ\lSI
Standard Z400.1-1993. Tllis standard established a very specific MSDS layout, di\~ding the
information about the chenlical product into
sLxteen sections, and requiring the manufacnlrer to proVide more detailed information
than before. OSHA has approved this format
for use in the U.S., but it is still a voluntary
standard, and manufacturers are not obligated
to adopt it in order to be in compliance with
the requirements of the HCS.
In my experience, most MSDS (between
eighty and ninety percent) follow either the
OSHA or the AJ\lSI format, and many manufacturers who pre\~ously had used their own for-

Figure 1

OSHA-Suggested Format

ANSI-Approved Format

SECTION I

SEmON 1

Product / Company Identification

SEmON II
Hazard Ingredients Infarmation

SEmON III
Physical/Chemical Characteristics

SEmON IV
Fire / Explosion Hazard Data

SEmON V
Reactivity Data

SEmON VI
Health Hazard Data

SEmON VII
Safe Handling / Use Precautions

SEmON VIII
Control Measures

Product / Company Identification

SEmON 2
Composition / Ingredient Information

SEmON 3
Hazards Identification

SEmON 4
First Aid Measures

SEmON 5
Fire Fighting Measures

SEmON 6
Accidental Release Measures

SEmON 7
Handling / Storage Precautions

SEmON 8
Exposure Controls / Personal Protection

SEmON 9
Physical and Chemical Properties

SEmON 10
Stability and Reactivity

SEmON 11
Toxicologicollnformation

SEmON 12
Ecological Information

SEmON 13
Disposal Considerations

SEmON 14
Transport Information

SEmON 15
Regulatory Information

SEmON 16
Other Information

mats are changing their forms to follow one of
these standards. Even so, the MSDS can still be
a confusing beast.
Take another look at the thirteen categories of information that OSHA requires manufacturers include on their MSDS. Figure 1
shows a comparison between how the OSHA
and NSI formats categorize the necessaIY information about chemical products. As you
can see, there is quite a bit of difference. And,
again, as both are voluntalY standards, a
manufacturer may choose to alter the order of
sections and how the information within a section is orgaruzed.
Knowing all tltis, how does one go about
reading an MSDS and finding the information
needed to work safely WiOl a potentially hazardous chemical product? In the follo\\~ng
paragraphs I will outline the process I use
when reading an MSDS for the first time. For
the purposes of tltis article, I will be referring
to and shOWing examples from two different
MSDS, both for acetone, one written following
the suggested OSHA format, the other complying with the NSI standard. Acetone was selected as an example because it is a common
chenlical found in the inventOlY of most theater shops, and I felt most readers would be
fanliliar with it.
Now, here's the disclaimer: tllis process
works for me in the scene shop where I work
and teach. You may find after reading tltis a1~
ticle that you are able to develop a different
strategy that will work better for you in your
pmticular workspace. Or unusual circumstances
slllTounding a palticular chentical product or
shipment of a product may cause you to de~-
ate from your normal procedure. That's fine.
What is important is that after reading tltis a1~
ticle you are comfortable with the idea of reading an MSDS, and have the tools necessalY to
find the information that is important to you.
So, a container of an unfanliliar chentical
product arrives at my loading dock, and included with the packing slip is all MSDS. The
first thing I do is check the condition of the
container: is it in good condition, with no obvious ruptures or material leaking from it? If so,
my next step is to compare the Product Identity
a1ld Manufacturer Information from the MSDS
(Section 1) with the corresponding information on the container label. If they match, and
both indicate that the contents of the container
are the acetone I ordered, I accept the shipment and am ready to learn more about the
product. If not, the container stays on the dock
and I start making telephone calls to find out
TZl&T

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Summer 2000