CLP Resources

Again our ’A brief guide to CLP’  will help. Then we suggest you read the ECHA Questions and Answers on CLP. It will enable you to identify your role in CLP and begin to map out the work you need to do. 

If your interest is anything to do with business we now suggest our advice on developing a business plan (see CLP Briefing Note: Making a business plan). We then suggest you now refer to our topic-based webpages and Briefing Notes depending on the subject of interest:

• Classification
• Labelling
• Notification to the Classification & Labelling Inventory

Alternatively if you still want an overview you may want to read the ECHA Introductory Guidance on the CLP Regulation. This is a substantial document and you need to set aside a couple of hours to read and digest it. You may want (but you don’t need) to access the Regulatory text  as well to cross refer as you go along. When you have read this document you should be able to scope your CLP tasks and (with the rest of our guidance) identify the resources required.

For an overview of classification read our Guidance on Classification. After that you need to use both Annex I of the Regulation  and the ECHA Guidance on the Application of the CLP Criteria. But take care! The latter is a long (winded) document with a good deal of expert scientific discussion, some of it highly specialised. It certainly can’t be read at one sitting! The introduction is valuable for its general advice but we regard the rest of the Guide as a resource manual for the expert or for use to progressively learn and expand your knowledge, perhaps supported by some formal training. You will cross refer to Annex I of CLP as you use the Guidance and you should find this Annex a relatively easy read once you have grasped the terms and basic layout.

For an overview go to our Guidance on Labelling.  After that the ECHA Guidancee to Labelling and Packaging  is the document you need. You will need the classification of the product (which you could obtain from an expert colleague) and know its use. You will also need a copy of the Regulation  including the Annexes. With this information you should be able to draft out labels and prepare for practical artwork.

We have prepared both a Guidance document and a practical Online Step-by-step guide on notification. If you want more then read the helpful ECHA Practical Guide 7: How to Notify Substances in the Inventory. This document is straightforward and well written and you should be able to work though it in a couple of hours. You may want to be able to access REACH-IT as you go through the documents.

Then please go to either our FAQs  or the ECHA Frequently Asked Questions prepared by ECHA.

Then ask them by using the list of National Helpdesks  from ECHA. But don’t expect a prompt reply – some of the helpdesks take weeks to respond and in some cases it’s difficult even to ask a question. Most CAs also have websites and some (e.g. France and UK) have helpful newsletters to which you can subscribe.