Safety tips, webpages, ideas, anything safety-wise that you may need.
Chemical Inventory Management
Earth and Environmental Science Department will no longer be using the Vertere system (through the Chemistry Department) for our chemical inventory management. We will be transitioning to MI Safety Portal (MISP) through EHS. All chemical inventories will need to be migrated to MISP before January 2022.
Many of you will already be familiar with the MISP data management system through management of your lab's EHS compliance and monthly inspections. Maintaining chemical inventories via MISP will assist emergency response during incidents on campus as well as facilitating U-M compliance with the US Department of Homeland Security’s Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS). MI Safety Portal also assists lab directors in coordinating the storage and use of their chemicals, which will ultimately assist Hazard Communication (HazCom) and Chemical Hygiene Plan (CHP) compliance, chemical ordering, and chemical “trading.” Not only will labs have complete access and control of their own inventory, but you will be able to search through all chemicals in the department in the event that you may need a small quantity of something, rather than having to purchase a large container and being left with excess chemicals in your lab. There are several other benefits to this system, such as tracking expiration dates, that will aid labs in their safety and management.
There are two ways to migrate your chemical inventory to MISP:
1. If you have ≥100 inventory items, you can fill out the Excel Inventory Load Template (found here) and email it to the MISP staff. They will upload it for you.
2. If you have <100 items, you will input them manually into the inventory in MISP.
To make this process simpler, we have compiled the current chemical inventories of all labs. You can find the inventories according to the PI's last name in this Google Drive Folder. Prior to migrating the inventory to MISP, each lab will need to sort through the chemicals currently present in your lab and update these lists accordingly. Many of the inventories have inaccuracies—some depleted chemicals were not removed from lists and some new chemicals were never added.
MISP is easy to navigate with clearly marked columns and categories. You can find helpful instructions here. In addition, more detailed instructions can be found by clicking the "Help" button in the top right corner of your screen when you are in the Inventory section of MISP.
Know your LabSC
Each lab has a contact person that is responsible for keeping all other lab members informed about procedures and reagent inventorying. They should be able to help or to direct you in the right direction. Click here for the list of the current LabSC.
Building Immediate Response Team (BIRT)
General Information:
Your Lab's Chemical Hygiene Plan (CHP)
Get familiar with the Department of Environmental Health & Safety (EHS) Chemical Hygiene Plan (CHP), which you can find HERE. You no longer need to keep a hard copy of the entire CHP in the lab. Only the customizable sections, which carry information specific to each lab, are now required in print in the Blue Binder.
New Academic Laboratory and Research Safety Policy
The University has launched a new safety policy that seeks to foster and consolidate a culture of safety in the research community. Take a look at the document Academic_Lab_Research_Safety_Policy.pdf if you want to be informed of the changes associated with this initiative.
Reporting Incidents 101
All reporting is non-punitive. It is an important tool for the UofM community to learn from each other and improve safety practices across the board.
Types of events:
(1) Anything that affected a person or property is an incident.
EHS would like to know about anything that happens in labs. When an event carries a health risk or produced property damage, reporting is critical. These are the steps:
- Call 911 if it is an ongoing emergency and follow your emergency procedure.
If no hospital visit was required:
- Fill out your local paper form and submit it to Maria Marcano's mailbox.
If a hospital visit was required:
- Fill out an Illness or Injury Report Form for Risk Management Services/Work Connections.
- Fill out a Laboratory Incident and Near Miss Report Form for EHS.
Click HERE to access a pdf to print the local form.
Click HERE to access Work Connections and EHS forms.
(2) Anything that could have affected a person or property under other circumstances is a near-miss
These events are important to report for learning and corrective purposes. These types of occurrences can be reported only locally.
