---
id: KB-CS-030
url: https://app.codecontract.io/help/use-cases-by-sector/safety-data-sheets-and-dangerous-goods
idioma: en
categoria: casos-por-sector
subcategoria: quimica
audiencia: usuario
nivel: intermedio
actualizado: 2026-08-13
tambienEn: [es]
relacionados: [KB-NO-002, KB-CS-004]
citadoPor: [KB-LG-018]
---

# Safety data sheets and dangerous goods

_The document that has to be where the product is, not on a server._

**Responde a:** up to date safety data sheet · adr dangerous goods transport paperwork · sending safety data sheets to customers · version control for safety data sheets

A safety data sheet has one feature that sets it apart from almost any other document: having it is not enough, it must be in the hands of whoever handles the product, in their language, in the current version. A correct file on your server complies with nothing if the customer is still working from one three years old.

## The three moments where it breaks

| Moment | What fails | What prevents it |
| --- | --- | --- |
| First supply | Sent once, by email, and left there | A recorded send, with proof of delivery |
| Version change | Updated without telling previous buyers | A record of who received each version |
| Transport | The driver leaves without complete paperwork | Shipment documentation closed before loading |

> [!IMPORTANT]
> The second row is where real liability comes from. If a product's classification changes and there is no record that you told the customers who already had it, the update does not protect you: it places you.

## How to organise it

1. **One sheet per product and version, not a drawer** — With an effective date, so you know which was current at any past moment.
2. **Sending with proof** — Record who received it, when, and which version. That record is what counts.
3. **Automatic notice on version change** — To everyone who received the previous one, without having to remember.
4. **And transport paperwork alongside the shipment** — Consignment note, instructions and driver training, in the same file.

> [!WARNING]
> Mind the language. The sheet must be in the language of the country where the product is used: sending the Spanish version to a Portuguese customer is a breach even if the content is identical.

## What an inspection can ask for

**En corto**

- Which version was current on a specific date.
- Who it was sent to and when they received it.
- Training records for handling staff, up to date.
- And the transport paperwork for one specific shipment.

> [!NOTE]
> All four are questions about the past, not the present. So what matters is not having today's document filed correctly, but being able to reconstruct which one was right at each moment.

**Is a link to the website enough instead of sending the file?**

As a supplement yes; as the only delivery, you lose proof of which version they saw.

**How often should they be reviewed?**

When something relevant about the product or its classification changes, not on a calendar.

**What about products we no longer make?**

Keep them anyway: someone may hold stock for years.

## Ejemplos

**A manufacturer reclassifies a product and updates the sheet on its website.**

- Sends the new version to every customer who received the previous one
- Keeps delivery proof for each

→ Facing a claim, it can show who was told and when, not merely that it published the change.

**A lorry sits at the bay because the safety data sheet travelling with it is out of date.**

- Records each sheet's validity on receipt
- Checks the sheet before accepting the load
- Carries the sheet accessible from a phone as well as on paper

→ The lorry leaves with what it should, and a lost paper stops halting a job.

**The supplier changes the formulation and the sheet stays the same.**

- Asks them to communicate any change

→ The sheet describes what travels.

**A client asks for one specific product's sheet.**

- Checks that reference's file

→ You answer without phoning the supplier.

**The sheet is in a language the destination does not accept.**

- Asks about the requirement before shipping

→ The shipment is not held at destination.

**A load is accepted without checking its classification.**

- Checks the sheet before accepting

→ The decision is taken with the document in view.

**A raw material problem must be contained.**

- Checks which production runs used it

→ Scope narrows to what is affected.

**The sheet expires with product in the warehouse.**

- Records expiries per reference

→ The warning arrives before it is used.