How do I ensure compliance with EU REACH and ISO 45001?

Short answer: REACH tells you what you must know and do about each chemical you use; ISO 45001 tells you how to run the management system that proves you know and do it. Compliance with both comes down to a small set of connected records: a hazardous substances register with current safety data sheets and GHS/CLP classification, activity-based risk assessments, training and competence records, permits and operational controls, incident investigations with corrective actions, a legal register, and an audit trail. Keep those records in one system and both audits become routine.

REACH in one paragraph for most companies

Regulation (EC) 1907/2006 (REACH) puts most obligations on manufacturers and importers. Most industrial companies are downstream users. Your duties are:

1. Hold a current safety data sheet (SDS) for every hazardous substance or mixture (REACH Article 31; extended SDS with exposure scenarios where applicable).
2. Use substances within the identified uses and apply the risk management measures in the SDS (Article 37).
3. Classify, label and package correctly under the CLP Regulation (EC) 1272/2008, which implements GHS in the EU.
4. Check the Candidate List of substances of very high concern (SVHC), the Authorisation List (Annex XIV) and restrictions (Annex XVII), and act on substitutions or authorisations.
5. Inform workers about hazards and controls. In Germany this is reinforced by the Hazardous Substances Ordinance (GefStoffV) with its own register and instruction duties (§6 and §14).

ISO 45001 in one paragraph

ISO 45001:2018 is the management-system standard for occupational health and safety. An auditor checks whether you have: understood your context and legal requirements (4, 6.1.3), leadership and worker participation (5), hazard identification and risk assessment (6.1.2), objectives and KPIs (6.2), competence and awareness (7.2, 7.3), documented information (7.5), operational controls including permits and management of change (8.1), emergency preparedness (8.2), monitoring and internal audit (9), incident investigation and corrective action (10.2), and continual improvement (10.3).

Where the two overlap: the records you need

Requirement	REACH / CLP / GefStoffV	ISO 45001 clause	Record in QuickInspect
Know your substances	SDS, classification, register	6.1.2, 7.5	Hazardous materials register with GHS/CLP classes, pictograms, H/P statements, PubChem lookup, SDS upload with AI extraction
Know the law	REACH, CLP, GefStoffV obligations	6.1.3	Legal register with AI-suggested entries you confirm
Assess the risk	Exposure and risk management measures	6.1.2	Activity-based risk assessment linked to substances
Control the work	Conditions of use	8.1	Permits to work with pre-checks, zone conflict checks and certificate checks
Instruct workers	GefStoffV §14 instruction	7.2, 7.3	Trainings, assessments, certificates, competency matrix
Investigate incidents	Exposure incidents	10.2	Incident reports, 5-Why, corrective actions
Prove it	Register and instruction records	7.5, 9.2, 9.3	Audit trail, controlled documents, ISO 45001 compliance report (Key User)

A five-step compliance routine

1. Build the substance register. Enter every hazardous substance with its safety data sheet. QuickInspect can fetch the GHS classification from PubChem by CAS number and extract hazard statements, exposure limits, PPE and storage information from the uploaded SDS with AI, showing a confidence level for each field for you to confirm. SDS versions are tracked, so you always reference the current sheet.
2. Maintain the legal register. Record which regulations apply to which site and what they oblige you to do. QuickInspect's AI proposes applicable entries based on your company profile; it never writes to the register itself. Review it when the law changes or when a new substance or process arrives.
3. Link substances to activities and risk assessments. Every activity that uses a substance gets the exposure hazard rated and the SDS risk management measures documented as controls. Record substitution decisions.
4. Gate high-risk work with permits and training. Permits to work should only be issued when the risk assessment, hazardous materials data and required training are in place. QuickInspect's authorisation runs hard-stop pre-checks, checks conflicts with other permits in the same zone, and lets workers accept only after their certificates and induction are verified.
5. Export the evidence. Before an internal or external audit, export the ISO 45001 compliance report (Key User plan) and review the audit trail.

Germany-specific notes

• GefStoffV §6 requires a hazardous substances register (Gefahrstoffverzeichnis) and a substance-specific risk assessment; §14 requires written operating instructions (Betriebsanweisungen) and instruction at least once a year.
• The technical rules (for example TRGS 400 on risk assessment and TRGS 555 on operating instructions) describe how.
• DGUV rules add sector-specific requirements and inspection intervals.

QuickInspect's legal register suggests which of these, together with the ArbSchG, BetrSichV, TRBS, REACH and CLP, apply to your company, and your team can add customer or industry standards. Start free on iOS, Android or the web.