A
Account Administrator
Users with an Account Administrator role can make changes to all areas of the account, add new users, create and manage approval workflows, and edit other role permissions. The Primary Account Administrator also has the ability to view and update the account’s billing information. Additionally, if there are ever issues with an account, VelocityEHS will contact the Primary Account Administrator.
Active
The term “active” refers to safety data sheets that have not been Archived.
Administrator
Users with an Administrator (aka Admin) role are able to change system options, create and edit user logins and generally make changes to most areas of the account. Note that the Administrator role is different from the Account Administrator role.
Approval
In the context of VelocityEHS, the word “Approval” has a very specific meaning, referring to customizable workflows and business rules governing the auditable, regimented process by which product SDS must be approved by specific individuals or user classes before being added to their organizational or location’s eBinder. Administrators with access to the Queue and Approval options can view, set up, and implement approval processes by visiting the Queue and Approval menu in Settings. VelocityEHS offers the ability to set up two different kinds of approval: Organization-Wide Approval and Site-Specific Approval. In order to protect the integrity of Approval processes that have been put into place, no changes can be made to the configuration of either Approval type unless the organization’s Queue has been cleared of pending items. See Chemical Approval Tools Overview for more information.
Approved
The status given to safety data sheets in your eBinder that were either approved as part of a workflow or were added without going through a workflow.
Archived
The Archive feature allows Administrators to keep record of a safety data sheet or location without having it appear by default in search results or reports.
See Archiving and Deleting Safety Data Sheets for more information on archiving SDSs.
See Managing Locations for more information on archiving locations.
Archived Icon
The Archived icon indicates that a product or location has been archived and is no longer in use in your organization.
See Archiving and Deleting Safety Data Sheets for more information on archiving SDSs.
See Managing Locations for more information on archiving locations.
Auto Update
An Auto Update is an updated version of an SDS document that is delivered to a customer’s account automatically by VelocityEHS. An Auto Update is delivered when an updated, publicly searchable, SDS document matches all of the VelocityEHS versioning criteria for a product and has a newer revision date or regulatory format. The fields that must match exactly in order for a document to version are Manufacturer, Supplier Name (if applicable) Product Name, Product Code, and Language. (Please note that if any of the data in the versioning fields does not match exactly, an auto-update will not occur.)
B
Banned Icon
A product is considered “banned” if it has been assigned the “Banned Product” flag or if it contains an ingredient that is marked as banned within an organization’s account.
To ban a product see Banning Products.
To ban a specific chemical or ingredient, see Managing and Banning Chemicals using the Master Chemical List.
C
Canadian WHMIS
Regulatory flag in the Chemical Management system that indicates an SDS has properties consistent with WHMIS 1988.
CAS (CAS Number)
CAS stands for Chemical Abstracts Service. CAS Registry Numbers (often referred to as CAS RNs or CAS Numbers) are universally used to provide a unique, unmistakable identifier for chemical substances. A CAS Registry Number itself has no inherent chemical significance but provides an unambiguous way to identify a chemical substance or molecular structure when there are many possible systematic, generic, proprietary, or trivial names.
Categories
Drop-down menu in the eBinder and SDS Search that allows users to search for safety data sheets by specific fields or information.
Chemical Management Project
Chemical Management Project is one of the options in the Source drop-down menu in the eBinder Filters. Safety data sheets with this listed as the source were added to your eBinder as part of an eBinder build project you purchased from VelocityEHS.
Container Icon
The Container icon indicates that containers of that product have been created at that location.
Custom 1
Custom 1 is a field in the product details section of the product summary that can be used to index up to 255 characters. Administrators can change the name of this field in the Product Summary Settings menu to reflect information specific to their organization.
Custom 2
Custom 2 is a field in the product details section of the product summary that can be used to index up to 255 characters. Administrators can change the name of this field in the Product Summary Settings menu to reflect information specific to their organization.
Custom Field(s)
There are several different Custom Fields available for customizing your Chemical Management account. Administrators edit these field names in the Product Summary Settings menu and/or the Inventory and Locations menu.
Custom Module
The Custom Module is an indexing module that can be configured according to your organization’s needs. Administrators can edit this module’s title as well as elements within the Custom Module in the Product Summary Settings menu.
See Setting Up the Custom Module for more information.
D
Discontinued Products
If, during the course of verifying safety data sheets in the Chemical Management database, a manufacturer indicates that a product is discontinued or obsolete, that safety data sheet will be flagged as a Discontinued Product. To determine if you have any products in your eBinder flagged as Discontinued Products, use the Quick Filter option in the eBinder Filters.
Document ID
In the Chemical Management application, a unique document ID is assigned to every individual Safety Data Sheet. This is due to the fact that manufacturers often produce multiple revisions of an SDS for an individual product over time. The assigned Document ID describes a single revision/edition of a Safety Data Sheet, not a single product.
Document Source
In the Queue, the Document Source boxes tell you how a pending document or product came to arrive in the queue. The potential methods by which a document or product could come to the queue are Auto Updates, Requests, Uploads, or SDS Search (aka Library Search). In the eBinder Filters menu, there is a ‘Source’ drop-down that allows you to filter your eBinder by the sources listed above.
E
EU MSDS
Regulatory flag in the Chemical Management system that indicates an SDS has properties consistent with non-GHS European Union regulations.
F
Filters
Button in the eBinder and SDS Search that allows you to further refine your search results.
G
General User
General Users have read-only rights in their Chemical Management account and cannot make any changes to the system. They access their organization’s eBinder either by going to the organization’s Company Link or by signing in using a username and password provided by an Admin. General Users can be provided access to SDSs (via both the eBinder and SDS Search), indexed product and container information, and printable secondary container labels.
GHS SDS
Regulatory flag in the Chemical Management system that indicates an SDS has properties consistent with the Globally Harmonized System (GHS).
Global Navigation Menu
Menu in the upper left-hand corner of your account.
Groups
Also known as Product Groups, this feature allows you to create custom groups by which you can organize and filter your safety data sheets. See Creating and Managing Product Groups for more information.
I
Index
Index or indexing refers to entering information into specific fields, called modules, in the Product Summary for products in your eBinder.
Additionally, VelocityEHS indexes the following fields for all products in your account:
- Product Name
- Manufacturer
- Supplier (if different than the Manufacturer)
- Synonyms
- Product Code
- CAS # (if the product is greater than or equal to 95% or more of the product’s chemical makeup)
- Revision date
- Language
- Regulatory format
Indexing Module
Indexing modules are sections of the Product Summary where information from the safety data sheet can be entered so that it can be searchable, used on secondary container labels, and used on reports.
See Indexing Safety Data Sheet Information for more details.
In Use
Products that are currently being used in a location in your account are designated as In Use at that location. If you are no longer using a product in a location or locations, Admins or Managers can change the status to Not In Use at those locations. See Managing Products in Locations for more information.
Inventory
The Inventory module is an Indexing Module in the Product Summary where a user can view and (depending on their user role) assign products to locations within the location tree. The Inventory module is also where users of SDS and SDS/Chemical Management accounts may (again, depending on user role and account setup) view, create, and edit containers.
L
Last Verified
The most recent date on which VelocityEHS verified with the manufacturer that the safety data sheet is the most current or up to date for that product.
Location Levels
Location Trees can contain up to 10 levels of locations. By default, VelocityEHS accounts are set to 5 levels. The top level is Level 1. The next level beneath Level 1 is Level 2 and so on. Location levels are arranged in a parent/child relationship which each lower level being a child of the previous parent level.
Location Tree
Location Tree refers to the organizational hierarchy of locations in your account.
M
Manager
Users with a Manager role can add and manage safety data sheets in the locations to which they are assigned. Managers cannot make changes to system settings, delete safety data sheets, nor add or edit users.
Map Icon
Modal
A page/screen/window that appears on top of the main window and requires interaction before you can return to the main window.
N
Not Approved
Not Approved is a status given to a product that went through an approval workflow and was added to your company’s eBinder but was not approved for use in your organization.
Not In Use
Products that are currently not being used in a location or locations in your account but were previously being used at that location or locations. Products can be In Use at some locations but Not In Use at others. Products that are marked as Not In Use will have a red dot on the location row where they are Not In Use.
P
PDF Icon
Selecting the PDF icon opens the safety data sheet using Adobe Reader.
Pending
Individual Uploads that are currently going through the Chemical Management quality assurance review will appear in your eBinder with a status of “Pending.”
PPE
Personal protective equipment, commonly referred to as “PPE”, is equipment worn to minimize exposure to serious workplace injuries and illnesses. Personal protective equipment may include items such as gloves, safety glasses and shoes, earplugs or muffs, hard hats, respirators, coveralls, vests, and full bodysuits.
Private
If a Product is marked Private, only people from your company are able to view this SDS. It is not accessible to anyone outside your organization nor is it available in the SDS Search.
Product Code
The Product Code may come from several different sections of the safety data sheet and is assigned by the product’s manufacturer. Manufacturers typically use the product code as a unique identifier for their products.
Product Row
The product row is an individual line item in the eBinder. Clicking on the row launches the summary panel.
Product Status in Location
If you use locations in your account, products can be either In Use or Not In Use at the locations to which they are assigned.
Q
Queue
The Queue is the safety data sheet routing hub for your Chemical Management system. Safety data sheets enter the Queue while they undergo processing by VelocityEHS or when they need to be reviewed or approved before being added to the eBinder. See Using the Queue to Track and Add Safety Data Sheets for more information
R
Regulatory Format
VelocityEHS strives to accurately determine the regulatory format of all safety data sheets that we add to our database. Each safety data sheet VelocityEHS adds will be flagged with one or more of the following regulatory formats: GHS, US ANSI, WHMIS, EU, Other.
Request
If you are unable to locate the safety data sheet you need using SDS Search and you do not have a copy of it available, you can use the Request feature to ask VelocityEHS to contact the manufacturer and ask for the safety data sheet on your behalf. See Requests for more information.
General Users also have the ability to request safety data sheets. Administrators can configure how these requests are routed.
See Editing General User Role Settings for more information.
Row
A row is an individual line item in the eBinder or Product Inventory. Selecting the row opens the summary panel.
S
SDS Search
SDS Search is the master database of millions and millions of safety data sheets you can add to your eBinder.
SDS Search - Filter
SDS Search is one of the options in the Source drop-down menu in the eBinder Filters. Safety data sheets with this listed as the source were added to your eBinder from the SDS Search database.
Search Button
Search Suggest
After a minimum of three characters have been typed into the search bar, the application will begin to suggest potential search queries based on what is being typed.
Select Columns Icon
Selecting the Select Columns icon allows users to select which columns of information appear in their eBinder. See Configuring the eBinder Search Results Display for more information.
Settings Menu
The Settings menu includes sub-menus that allow users to configure the Chemical Management account.
Summary Panel
The summary panel is the section that opens from the right-hand side of the screen when you click on a product row or location row.
T
TDG
TDG stands for Transportation of Dangerous Goods. Canada’s rules for transporting dangerous goods are called the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations (i.e., TDG Regulations). The TDG Regulations have 16 Parts and 3 Schedules.
Unlike the Regulations in the United States, which are called the 49 CFR and only apply to hazardous materials in commerce, Canada’s TDG Regulations apply to everyone. They even apply when someone transports dangerous goods such as gasoline, oxygen, and propane for personal use. However certain exemptions exist for small quantities or for specific situations.
U
UN/NA #
United Nations/North American Hazardous Materials Code. United Nations (UN) Numbers are four-digit numbers used worldwide in international commerce and transportation to identify hazardous chemicals or classes of hazardous materials. These numbers generally range between 0000 and 3500 and are ideally preceded by the letters “UN” (for example, “UN1005″) to avoid confusion with other number codes.
North American (NA) Numbers are identical to UN numbers. If a material does not have a UN number, it may be assigned an NA number; these are usually 4-digit numbers starting with 8 or 9 such as 9037 (or ideally, NA9037), the NA number for hexachloroethane.
You can index the UN/NA # in the Product Details section of the Product Summary page for products in your eBinder.
Upload
If you are unable to locate the safety data sheet you need using SDS Search and you have a PDF copy of it saved on your computer, you can use the Upload feature to submit the document for addition to your eBinder. See Uploads for more information.
US ANSI
Regulatory flag in the Chemical Management system that indicates an SDS has properties consistent with the United States American National Standards Institute.
V
Version
A version is one safety data sheet that is part of a product’s (M)SDS history. For example, a product whose Manufacturer, Supplier Name, Product Name, Product Code, and Language fields all contain the exact same data, may have a 2016 SDS document that is GHS formatted, a 2012 SDS document that is US ANSI formatted, and a 2007 SDS document that is also US ANSI formatted. Under VelocityEHS’s versioning criteria, all of the above safety data sheets will appear as versions of the newest 2016 SDS.
As stated, the data in the Manufacturer, Supplier Name, Product Name, Product Code, and Language fields must match exactly for versioning to occur. Please note that if any of the data in the above-mentioned versioning fields does not match exactly the safety data sheets will not version together. Also, all versions may not display in SDS Search depending on the system settings.
W
Workflow
Workflow refers to the process you set up in your account that requires certain users to answer questions about why they want to add a safety data sheet and requires other users to either approve or not approve that addition.
See Chemical Approval Tools Overview for more information