Hazardous substances register: Obligations, contents and audit-proof management in accordance with Section 6 GefStoffV

According to Section 6 Paragraph 12 of the Hazardous Substances Ordinance (GefStoffV), the employer must keep a list of the hazardous substances used in the company, in which at least reference is made to the safety data sheets. That sounds tight, but the operational effort is not. In a production company with 80 to 200 hazardous substances, the cadastre is constantly out of step when procurement, storage, laboratories and production introduce or exchange new substances without clear rules.

This article explains what information the cadastre must contain, how it relates to the risk assessment and operating instructions, who manages it and how it remains up to date in a way that is audit-proof. The focus is on the obligations according to Section 6 GefStoffV, the supervisory practices of the states and the tools that turn a cadastre from an index card system into a functioning database.

The hazardous substances register is anchored in Section 6 Paragraph 12 GefStoffV. It is not an end in itself, but a prerequisite for the risk assessment according to Section 6 Paragraph 1 GefStoffV, the substitution test according to Section 6 Paragraph 1 Sentence 2, the operating instructions according to Section 14 GefStoffV and the instruction according to Section 14 Paragraph 2. Without a current cadastre there is no data basis for all downstream obligations.

The addressee of the obligation is: Employer. The operational leadership is taken over by the Hazardous Substances Officer, a role that is not directly named in the law but is regularly appointed in practice. The purpose is twofold: firstly, to provide an overview of substances, quantities and places of use for risk assessment, secondly to provide the basis for emergency and fire protection planning. In the event of a fire, the fire department typically uses the cadastre to select responses, extinguishing agents and protective equipment. So timeliness is not just a regulatory necessity, but an operational necessity. Anyone who ticks off the cadastre as a formal, compulsory exercise runs the risk that it will have no connection to reality in an emergency.

The list must contain seven items of information per substance or mixture. First: name of the hazardous substance. Second: Classification or hazardous properties, including hazard class, hazard category, H phrases according to CLP Regulation 1272/2008. Third: the quantity range in which the substance is used in the company. Fourth: work areas in which the substance is used. Fifth: Reference to the safety data sheet, which contains further information. Sixth: Substitution testing, i.e. documentation as to whether a less dangerous substance was tested. Seventh: Reference to the associated risk assessment and operating instructions.

In practice, an Excel sheet is not enough because the link with safety data sheets, risk assessment and operating instructions is alive. The minimum requirement is a versioned data structure with a unique identifier for each substance, creation date, last test and person responsible. The quantity information can be managed as key date quantities or inventory bands, depending on the warehouse logic. Substitution tests, even if they have a negative outcome, must be documented because the supervisory authority often checks exactly this information on a random basis during the audit. Audit-proof, documented, § 6 GefStoffV-proof.

§ 6 Para. 12 GefStoffV allows for many details to be referred to the safety data sheet (SDS) in accordance with Art. 31 REACH Regulation 1907/2006. The SDS contains classification, H-phrases, P-phrases, physico-chemical data, toxicology and measures. Anyone who deposits the SDB in the cadastre formally covers a large part of the mandatory information. The trap: SDBs are not timeless. Suppliers update data sheets, new CLP annexes change classifications, and an outdated SDS in the cadastre defeats the purpose.

SDS management with version date, supplier ID and mandatory check upon purchase is recommended. In practical terms, this means: Every procurement process triggers a check as to whether the SDB is up to date, and every SDB update triggers a reassessment as to whether the classification, operating instructions and risk assessment need to be adjusted. The state supervisory authorities typically proceed as follows during inspections: They take two or three substances from the cadastre, request the SDS, check the version date and compare the information in the cadastre with the SDS. Discrepancies lead to requirements and, in repeated cases, to fines in accordance with Section 22 GefStoffV.

The cadastre is at the centre of a circle of obligations. The risk assessment according to Section 6 Paragraph 1 GefStoffV uses the cadastral data as an input variable, supplemented by the operating conditions. The operating instructions in accordance with Section 14 GefStoffV are created from the risk assessment and the register and are posted or accessible depending on the work area and activity. On the basis of the operating instructions, the instructions are carried out in accordance with Section 14 Paragraph 2 GefStoffV, at least annually, documented with date, signature and content.

Anyone who manages one of these components in isolation will run into inconsistencies. A substance in the register without an associated risk assessment is a finding. Also operating instructions without reference to the cadastre. An instruction that leaves out a substance that is used in the area according to the cadastre, a third finding. Supervisory authorities systematically check this consistency by combining samples from land registers, risk assessments and proof of training. An integrated solution closes these gaps by linking data objects: A new substance in the cadastre automatically triggers a workflow for creating risk assessments and operating instructions, with the person responsible and the deadline.

The GefStoffV does not specify a fixed update interval, but the obligation is implicit: the cadastre must be up-to-date, and in the supervisory context, “current” means that it reflects the real material landscape of the company. In practice, a combination of annual full revision and event-related updating has become established. Triggers for ad hoc updates are: new substance introduction, substance exchange, changed use, changed quantities above threshold, change of supplier, SDB update with change in classification, substitution decision, decommissioning of a plant.

The operational weakness of most companies does not lie in the annual review, but in the chain of events. An order from the research department worth 250 euros introduces a new substance without the warehouse, representative or security management knowing about it. Three months later, the substance appears during an inspection, without a cadastral entry and without a risk assessment. The countermeasure is organisational: Procurement of hazardous substances takes place via a defined workflow with approval from the hazardous substances officer. The appointment certificate, signed, filed, verifiable. Anyone who does not integrate procurement with the cadastre has built the cadastre on sand.

Three models are common in practice. First: Excel tables, often one file per location, with columns for substance name, SDS date, quantity, range. Advantage: low entry. Disadvantage: no versioning, no link to risk assessment and operating instructions, no reminder, no multi-user capability. As soon as more than 30 substances or several locations come together, the model fails. Secondly: specialised hazardous substances software that integrates cadastral, substitution, operating instructions and instruction. Advantage: high level of maturity. Disadvantage: isolated solution, often difficult to fit into the comprehensive compliance system.

Third: integrated compliance platform in which the hazardous substances register is maintained as a component alongside other obligations. The CIVAC Compliance Platform and Officer-as-a-Service provides 490 ready-to-use audit templates, including a cadastral template with mandatory fields according to Section 6 GefStoffV, SDB connection, versioning and linking with risk assessment and operating instructions. The workspace offers a reporting line to the employer, resubmission for SDB expiration and EU data residency. Licence the workspace for your internal representatives, or have our representatives order it. The auditor calls, the evidence is ready.

Supervision is carried out by the state occupational safety authorities of the federal states (e.g. LAGetSi in Berlin, district governments in North Rhine-Westphalia), in the case of environmentally relevant substances additionally by environmental authorities, and by the professional associations as part of their cooperation in accordance with Section 17 ArbSchG. During inspections, the cadastre is usually one of the first points of inspection because further obligations can be derived from it. Typical findings: lack of substitution testing, outdated SDBs, substances without a cadastral entry (shadow inventory), inconsistencies between the cadastre and the risk assessment, missing quantity information or general quantity categories without reference to reality.

Requirements are given deadlines, typically four to eight weeks. Failure to comply will result in penalty payments, orders and fines of up to 50,000 euros in accordance with Section 22 GefStoffV. The consequences of an incident are more serious: In the event of a fire or accident involving hazardous substances, the public prosecutor's office regularly checks whether the obligations under the GefStoffV were properly implemented. An outdated cadastre becomes a question of evidence here. Section 130 OWiG also opens up personal liability for management due to breach of supervisory duty. The deadline begins when we become aware of it, and the company becomes aware of it at the latest when the SDB is updated.

The GefStoffV does not explicitly require the appointment of a hazardous substances officer, but in practice the role is standard as soon as more than a few hazardous substances are used in a company. Tasks: Maintenance of the cadastre, control of the risk assessment, creation and maintenance of operating instructions, training and instruction, interface to the safety specialist, the company doctor, the fire protection officer and supervision.

The order is made in writing and specifies tasks, authorities and reporting line. The reporting line leads directly to management because material findings in the area of ​​hazardous substances can trigger investment decisions (system technology, personal protective equipment, substitution projects). In smaller companies, the security specialist often takes on the dual role; in medium-sized companies, the function is filled independently, internally or externally. Licence the workspace for your internal representatives, or have our representatives order it. For the external variant, CIVAC provides a hazardous substances officer with an appointment certificate within two working days, workspace and reporting line included.

If your cadastre has not been systematically revised for more than twelve months, if some safety data sheets are more than three years old or if procurement and the cadastre are not linked, the need for action is known. The question is whether you continue it internally with Excel and Goodwill or transfer the role and platform into a resilient system.

CIVAC provides the compliance platform and Officer-as-a-Service: Workspace with hazardous substances register template in accordance with Section 6 GefStoffV, SDB connection, versioning, link to risk assessment and operating instructions, audit templates, reporting line and EU data residency. Either with your internal hazardous materials representative or with our appointed representative. Turn reading into a mandate.: Write to info@civac.de or book a 20-minute location assessment using the contact form. You will receive a proposal for migrating your existing cadastre and filling roles within two working days.