Chemical Management for the Oil and Gas Industry

Chemscape’s experience in the oil and gas industry is extensive. Our Alberta roots and head office location in Calgary has provided Chemscape with natural growth in all oil and gas sectors including upstream, midstream and downstream. Health and safety are top of mind in the oil and gas industry, and Chemscape has been a partner to provide chemical management solutions that meet the unique needs and demands of the oil and gas industry.

Trusted SDS Authoring for Oil & Gas

Chemscape’s origins began as an MSDS, and now SDS Authoring company known as Deerfoot consulting that has a reputation as a best in class SDS Author with extensive experience authoring for the Oil and Gas Industry. Our registered SDS authors can sort through the regulatory landscape across North America to author an SDS that you can have confidence in its accuracy and trust. Our expertise to classify crude and navigate Canadian TDG regulations has earned Deerfoot a reputation as an Author that will properly classify your product and allow you to avoid potential fines.

Oil & Gas Chemical SDS Management Solutions

Chemscape’s sdsBinders product has been the SDS Management software of choice for the 1 in 3 Canadian oil and gas companies. Chemscape’s sdsBinders product is used for oil and gas companies who explore, drill, upgrade, process, store, market and transport crude oil, natural gas, natural gas liquids and sulphur. Most of these companies are based in Calgary, although their activities extend across the country, into the United States and internationally.

WHMIS Compliance & Chemical Safety with sdsBinders

Compliance is critical to the operations of our Oil and Gas customers and having an SDS Management Service that is responsive to their needs makes sdsBinders their SDS Management Software of choice. Many features in sdsBinders have been developed based on feedback from our oil and gas customers, such as:

• The sdsBinders mobile App which keeps SDS available to their truck drivers while hauling crude and hazardous products in remote areas like the Rocky Mountains. 

•  The Oil and Gas industry’s focus on continuous training inspired sdsBinders’ free library of tool box talk health videos on working safely with chemicals.  

• The sdsBinders’ hazard communication SmartChart® was designed for use in high hazard tasks like refinery turnarounds.  

• The sdsBinders custom binder was designed to allow oil and gas companies to distribute their own SDSs to their customers through a link on their website.

WHMIS & TDG Training Unique to Oil & Gas Industry Needs

Based on Chemscape’s knowledge and experience in chemical management and safety data sheet authoring, our Oil and Gas customers requested Chemscape to author and produce a high-quality WHMIS to meet their requirements and needs.  WHIMS and Transportation of Dangerous Goods (TDG) training is essential for employees in the oil & gas industry. Due to the environmental and physical risk associated, it is imperative that precautionary measures be taken to keep the workplace & transportation of dangerous materials safe.

Controlling Chemical Hazards with a Chemical Management Plan

As Chemscape evolves with the Oil and Gas sector, the next generation of chemical management is here with Chemscape’s Chemical Hazard Assessment Management  Program (CHAMP). Industry demand for tools and technology to centralize chemical management control within organizations and generate chemical health hazard assessment data to make decisions. CHAMP is used to assess chemical hazards and assign controls as a strategy to control how chemicals are used, handled and stored in operations for the largest oil and gas companies in North America. CHAMP has been used by many drilling companies in Northwest BC to develop Exposure Control Plans and Chemical Management Programs for their drilling fluids as well as for designated substances including benzene, silica, methane and NORM.

Chemscape will continue to evolve with the innovative needs and best-in-class expectations of our oil and gas customers who look for cost-effective and reliable technology solutions to keep their operations going.

When do I sample my crude oil? Do I need an SDS for produced water or blends?

Chemscape’s sister company Deerfoot consulting has provided SDS Authoring for the Oil and Gas Industry for the past 15 years. Our registered SDS authors can sort through the changing regulatory landscape across North America to author an SDS that you can have confidence in its accuracy and trust. Our expertise to classify crude oil and navigate Canadian TDG regulations has earned Deerfoot a reputation as an Author that will properly classify your product and allow you to avoid potential fines. Here are answers to common questions on SDS Authoring for Oil and Gas products. 

• How often do I need to sample my crude oil and reauthor my Safety Data Sheet? 

  Companies frequently asked us how often they should be testing their crude oil. Deerfoot recommends a best practice of sampling your crude oil at least annually. A new well, formation, or process change can trigger the need for resampling. A production change, well stimulation in the depth of drilling can also trigger the need for sampling. The samples need to be sent to an accredited lab, with experience in the oil and gas industry. TDG regulations are separate from WHMIS classifications and changes in the composition of the crude oil may require updating the TDG classification. Aside from seasonal variations to composition and blending most crude products are retested for TDG purposes on an annual basis; significant changes may warrant SDS reauthoring.  A TDG proof of classification document is recommended to provide the result according to the last sample date.

• Do I need a Safety Data Sheet for produced water?

  Typically, produced water is non-hazardous. If it is determined that your produced water is a hazardous material (e.g., corrosive, toxic, flammable), then an SDS is an appropriate means of communicating the hazard to workers, haulers and the product receivers. It is certainly best practice to have a Safety Data Sheet for TDG purposes even if the product is not classified for TDG, to prove to inspectors this has been considered.

• Do I need a Safety Data Sheet for oil blends?

  Blends are mixtures, GHS has a whole section on the classification of mixtures. In absence of analytical data on the blended product, you need to consider the toxicity of the parent components and combine or assume the hazards of the most hazardous components. The producer of a product is responsible for communicating the hazards of their product; they do this through their SDS. If you change the composition of the product by blending it with other materials, you are responsible for communication the hazards of the new material.