Supplier SDSs written for their own market
Foreign SDSs often have the wrong format, classification or language for the market you sell into.
Customers or inspectors find the gaps before you do.
You import products and take on the supplier duties.
Bring imported products into compliance. Before they reach your customers.
In Canada, a company that imports hazardous products for workplace use is a supplier, with the same SDS and label duties as a manufacturer. In the US, the label and SDS must name a responsible party with a U.S. address. We check what your suppliers send and fix what does not meet local rules.
The problem
What usually goes wrong and what it costs you.
Your company is not named
Canadian SDSs and labels normally need the Canadian manufacturer or importer. Since the 2024 HazCom update, US labels and SDSs need a responsible party with a U.S. address and phone number.
A foreign manufacturer's details alone are no longer enough.
Documents needed at import
In Canada, the importer must obtain or prepare a compliant SDS on or before importation.
Products can be held up while documents are fixed.
How Hazline solves it
Three services, one specialist behind them.
Start with the one you need now. They are built to work together, so nothing has to be redone when you add the next.
SDS audits
Check incoming SDSs with an audit
Supplier SDSs reviewed against the rules of your market, with the gaps listed and the fix for each.
Explore the service SDS and label authoringFix or re-issue them with authoring
Local SDSs and labels with your company as the supplier, in English and French for Canada.
Explore the service Regulatory gap assessmentKnow your duties with a gap assessment
What an importer or distributor must do in each market, including notifications and registrations beyond the SDS.
Explore the serviceHow it works together
From first email to documents you can stand behind.
- 1Collect supplier SDSs
Send us what your suppliers provide, with where each product will be sold.
- 2Review
Each SDS checked against the target market, with a clear verdict.
- 3Re-issue
Compliant SDSs and labels in your company's name where needed.
- 4Check new arrivals
New products and supplier updates checked as they come in.
What you receive
- A review of each supplier SDS with a verdict
- SDSs and labels naming your company as the supplier
- A list of your duties in each market
- A simple process for checking new products
Every file reviewed and signed off by a regulatory specialist.
Rules that apply
The requirements behind this solution.
Each one links to a plain-language guide with the sources.
Guides
All articles Read more on this topic.
Importing chemicals into Canada: what WHMIS requires from importers
An importer is a supplier under the Hazardous Products Act. What you need before the product arrives: a Canadian SDS and label in English and French, the right supplier details, and six years of records.
Read article
OSHA HazCom label requirements for shipped containers
The six elements OSHA requires on a shipped container label, the new U.S. address rule, small-container options, bulk shipments and when a label has to be updated.
Read article
Can you use a US safety data sheet in Canada?
Both systems are based on the GHS, but a US SDS is rarely enough on its own for WHMIS. The differences that matter, and how to cover both markets.
Read articleIndustries where this comes up most:Importers and distributorsCleaning and janitorial productsCoatings, inks and adhesives
Is it right for you?
Common questions
Can we pass on the manufacturer's SDS as it is?
Only if it already meets the rules of your market, which is rare for a product made elsewhere. The review tells you which ones can be used as they are.
What if the supplier will not share the full formula?
We work from what they disclose and ask them for the missing information directly, under an NDA if needed. Gaps are listed in writing, never guessed.
Do you check products before every shipment?
We check each new product or supplier SDS once, and again when the supplier issues a new version or the rules change.
Bring us the problem.
Send one SDS or a short description. A specialist replies within one business day with what it would take.
Other solutions
Your SDSs and labels were written for another market.
Selling in Canada
Sell in Canada without SDS or label surprises.
See the solution A rule changed and your SDSs have a deadline.Meeting a rule-change deadline
Update your SDSs before the deadline, not after.
See the solution You plan to sell in a country you have not sold in before.Entering a new market
Know what a new market requires.
See the solution