Package ready for shipping with a GHS-compliant label
GHS compliance: The pressure is on
Communicating information about hazardous materials and shipments is important for compliance and keeping your employees safe. Getting all the right information in the right place can be a challenge. And, with the changing government regulations, the pressure is on.
Lexmark, as a manufacturer, faced the same challenge of creating GHS-compliant labels efficiently. It turned to its enterprise software division, a team with a deep expertise and technology for publishing shelf-edge signage in the retail industry.
It all began with a question: Can we deliver a solution for designing and printing GHS-compliant labels that is integrated, automated and flexible?
Are your GHS labels automated and accurate?
Information changes, and it’s your job to make sure the data on your GHS labels is accurate and up to date. When all of that information lives in different databases (MES, SDS, marketing libraries, etc.), it becomes difficult to pull together and keep track of every moving part. Instead of manually creating labels and managing a library of PDF files, what if you had a system that integrated with your backend systems and automated label composition at the time of print? It would save both time and money, eliminate the headache of version control and reduce compliance risk.
Dynamic label composition makes it possible to create and print labels when and where they’re needed. And, you can be sure that all the information you need on the label gets there … automatically.
Labels automatically compose using information from integrated databases and systems
Color printing: Certified for every environment
There’s a common misconception that color printing is expensive. But that’s just not the case today. With the affordability of color toner and ink, printing color in-house is more affordable than relying on third-party printers or pre-printed labels. And, it has surprising savings by eliminating the need to print, store and manage color label stock.
Raising the standards: Color coding
Previously, color labels were not a requirement, but new GHS regulations require color labels that feature standardized pictograms. Opting for color printers is the logical way to be compliant with this regulation. Choose a color printer that is proven for the manufacturing environment.
John Gagel Corporate Manager Sustainability Environmental, Health and Safety LexmarkBy printing in color on blank labels, we eliminate the need to keep track of multiple types of label stocks as well. The Lexmark GHS Label Publishing solution strikes the perfect balance between flexibility and oversight. That is a huge win.
Colors and patterns used for GHS-compliant pictograms
Lexmark multifunction product X792de: One of two Lexmark printers certified to create labels for maritime transport
Ready for maritime shipping
Not every label is certified for maritime shipments, but if you ship overseas, you need labels that are. Labels printed on specific stock using Lexmark color printers have passed the IMDG* standard evaluation and are certified for all sections of BS 5609*. The certification includes marine use of printed pressure-sensitive labels, seawater immersion (section II) and image permanence (section III) including abrasion resistance.
Find out more about our color printers for GHS label printing:
- Newest, high performance color printing with the Lexmark CS820 and Lexmark CS725
- Flexible, robust color printing with the Lexmark C792de
- Unbeatable color performance with the Lexmark X792de multifunction product
*Full certification for International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) code and the British Standard (BS) 5609 Marine Immersion Label Testing Standard for international shipments of hazardous materials complete April 2016.
Lexmark’s First Customer Program
Because Lexmark is a manufacturer, we also faced compliance regulations surrounding hazardous material labels. Our plant managers, safety and health professionals, and software engineers teamed up to apply our own technology to the task of publishing GHS labels. As our own first customer, we implemented this solution internationally.
Lexmark employee revises and prints a GHS label from a nearby computer for shipping
The results? Handling labeling tasks is now automated—and agile. With our solution, we can now:
- Localize label content to support compliance across the globe
- Spend less time and money when a change to a label is made
- Automate label composition using smart templates
- Streamline operations with integrated and automated processes
- Print fewer labels using blank label stock and eliminate the need to maintain pre-printed inventory
Agility is key: With great flexibility comes great power
Would a flexible, integrated system for creating and printing hazardous material labels improve your operations?
Flexible integration
There are lots of pieces of information involved in GHS labels. And, this information changes over time. Manually managing that information to ensure each label is accurate and compliant is not something your teams should do by hand.
When it could mean the difference of thousands of dollars in fines, you need a solution in place that ensures accuracy and saves time. Choosing a GHS solution that is integrated with the systems that hold all of that information—a solution that automatically pulls from those systems to compose each label—makes it easier to automate processes and leave behind the manual task of updating individual files.
For each label alone, there are six GHS requirements for information, all of which can come from different databases and backend systems: Supplier identification, product identifier, signal word, hazard statements, precautionary statements and pictograms.
Flexible production
Labels come in all shapes and sizes. But, you still have get all the information on the label—regardless of the size. Printing to differently sized labels doesn’t have to be a hassle.
With a templated solution, you can automatically reformat and resize label content to fit on the correctly sized media without worrying about information being truncated. Instead, data is scaled appropriately so that it’s legible and clear, no matter how big or small.
Flexible operations
A flexible operation gives people access to the right tools precisely when and where they are needed. With blank label stock and dynamic publishing, your employees can print the labels they need on any networked printer across your organization—be it in the back office or on a loading dock. And, you can choose where to print: From a desktop computer, initiated by the system that runs your operations, from a mobile device or directly from a Lexmark multifunction product (MFP). The choice is yours.
Seamlessly print labels from a mobile device, a Lexmark MFP or a computer—you choose how and when to print based on your needs.
Facts about GHS
65+ countries have adopted GHS
Six requirements for each label
Nine GHS pictograms
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If you’re ready to know what Lexmark Manufacturing solutions can do for you, contact us now.