Questions and answers
Questions and answers about Workplace Safety
Here you will find answers about implementation, everyday use and documentation in Workplace Safety. Choose a topic, or go straight to the question you want answered.
Safety data sheets and access
What do we do when a safety data sheet is missing from the database?
You can upload your own safety data sheets as PDF files in Workplace Safety. The files are digitised automatically, so the content can be used in the chemical inventory. That also lets you add documents you have received directly from the supplier.
Which languages and country-specific safety data sheets are supported?
Workplace Safety has Norwegian, Swedish and English as system languages. The SDS database contains documents in several languages, and versions adapted to different countries. The correct document must be chosen for the product and for the country where it is used; a different language does not in itself mean the document is adapted to local requirements.
What happens to earlier SDS versions and chemicals taken out of use?
When a safety data sheet is replaced by a new version, the previous version is moved to the archive. The archive is kept for as long as you are a customer, so earlier versions remain available. Administrators can delete safety data sheets from the product page, and a deletion can be reversed. When a chemical product is retired, its linked risk assessments are retired automatically.
How do employees reach safety information without an internet connection?
Employees can use Workplace Safety on a phone or a tablet, either in the browser or in the app. Offline mode still gives access without an internet connection, and data is synchronised automatically once the device is connected again.
How do we register dust, fumes and other hazards without a supplier safety data sheet?
The chemical inventory must also cover hazards that have no supplier safety data sheet, such as dust and fumes from work processes. In Workplace Safety you can add an information sheet for such hazards and for chemicals without a safety data sheet, so they take their place in the inventory like any other product.
Can we produce chemical labels, QR codes and location labels?
Yes. Workplace Safety supports chemical labels, QR codes that give access to chemical information, and location labels showing hazards and required measures. The labels can be used to make relevant information easier to reach where chemicals are stored and used.
Getting started, access and integrations
Where is the data stored, and how do we control user access?
Workplace Safety uses roles with associated rights. During setup, access is matched to the tasks people actually do: an HSE manager may need an overview and editing rights, while an operator needs access to safety information for the chemicals in the job. The allocation of roles is part of setting up the solution.
The data in Workplace Safety is stored in a private cloud in Netpower’s own data centre in Norway.
Which API integrations and single sign-on options are supported?
Workplace Safety supports the common single sign-on solutions, including SAML 2.0 and Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD). The solution has a documented API. The standard product has no pre-built, named integrations, but we have built integrations with ERP systems such as SAP and with other HSE systems. Integrations are scoped to your needs.
What do we contribute at start-up, how long does it take, and what training do we get?
Start-up covers a review of existing data, import and quality checking, organising the chemical inventory and setting up user access. You contribute chemical data, the location structure and decisions about responsibility. How long it takes depends on scope and data quality. Workplace Safety offers guidance at start-up, user support, a customer portal and webinars.
Documentation and data
What documentation can we export for audits and inspections?
The reporting function collects information from the chemical work, including risk assessments, substitution and exposure. You can create and save reports, use your own report templates and retrieve specific data. Dashboards give an overview of key figures and of developments over time.
Which data can we export, including if we end the agreement?
Reports and overviews can be exported to PDF, and the solution has a documented API for retrieving data. If you end the agreement, we help you get your data exported from the system.
Chemical work and collaboration
How do we follow up risk assessments, measures and review deadlines?
In Workplace Safety you can link risk assessments to the chemical inventory, use templates for work operations and get suggestions for protective measures. A measure can be given an owner, and the system gives an overview of review deadlines and notifies you when a review is due. Assessments and measures can be documented in reports. The assessment must be built on how the chemical is actually used and on the exposure conditions that apply.
How do we find and document safer alternatives when substituting?
Workplace Safety helps you prioritise chemicals for substitution and compare alternatives. The function supports suggestions based on AI and on environmental certifications, warns about matches on hazard lists and lets you save reports. The suggestions are a basis for your own assessment of suitability, exposure and risk in the actual use.
How is exposure recorded and linked to chemicals and work operations?
Workplace Safety has an exposure register where you can record exposures and document recurring work operations. The register can be linked to the chemical inventory and to risk assessments, and reports can be created. Which employees and which conditions to record must be decided from the actual exposure and the requirements that apply.
How are access, disclosure and long-term retention handled in the exposure register?
Employees can see their own entries in the exposure register. The register is retained, and access to it is recorded, in line with the regulatory requirements of the relevant country.
In Norway, the requirements follow from chapter 31 of the Regulations concerning the performance of work. Information on employees exposed to carcinogenic or mutagenic chemicals, asbestos or hazardous substances in rock work must be kept for at least 60 years after exposure ends. For reproductive toxicants the minimum is five years, and for biological agents at least 10 years (up to 40 years in special cases). For chemicals, asbestos and rock work, the register may not be destroyed without permission from the Norwegian Labour Inspection Authority, and the register must be transferred to the Authority if the business closes.
Can we share registers of approved chemicals with operators, suppliers and contractors?
Yes. Both Workplace Safety with HUB and ChemCenter support sharing registers of approved chemicals between operators, suppliers and contractors. That gives the parties a common basis for finding chemical information and planning the work.
In Workplace Safety, chemical products and work operations can be linked to projects independently of the fixed locations in the chemical inventory. When the HUB sharing platform is enabled, the parties involved can get a shared overview of the chemicals and tasks in the project.
For oil and gas companies that need chemical applications and approval of use on a particular installation, this is described in more detail on the ChemCenter page.
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