Introducing the ChemTracker Chemical Inventory Module

1. After logging into SciShield, expand the menu item for your lab or group and select View Lab Profile.
2. Click on the ChemTracker tab to open the group’s Inventory.
3. Links to the following tools/pages can be found:

ChemTracker– see a list of your chemicals by container, which can be filtered with Advanced Filters.

Add Inventory– add new containers one by one.

Totals– shows total quantities present, based on chemical identity or hazard class.

Bulk Edit– used for editing properties of many containers at once (e.g., changing the storage location of chemicals during a lab relocation).

Reconciliation– used for periodically comparing the inventory with actual on-hand containers to ensure ChemTracker is up to date.

1. If you are adding many containers or performing an initial inventory, reach out to EHS @ NAUEHS@nau.edu to submit an Excel template for bulk upload. For individual containers, continue as below.
2. From your lab’s profile, click on ChemTracker, then on Add Inventory.
3. Type the chemical name, CAS number, or product description into the chemical search bar and select the appropriate listing. ChemTracker will suggest chemicals or mixtures that are already in the database. If you do not see your particular chemical or mixture suggested, choose “None of the above.”
4. Select the lab/group and storage location.
5. Fill out the container information. Multiple identical containers can be added at the same time by increasing the Container Count. You can expand the tab “Additional Details.” The Unique Container ID can be left blank and will be auto-generated by ChemTracker unless the lab prefers to use a specific identifier from a bar code/RFID or other system. If used, custom ID numbers must still be unique from all other tracked inventory.
6. Additional details for the containers may be entered if available but are not required.
7. When finished, select Submit to finish adding the containers to the inventory.

1. From your lab’s profile, click on ChemTracker, then on Reconciliation then Start a New Reconciliation.
2. Select the building and space to be reconciled and click Submit to see a list of applicable containers. If applicable, lab(s) and/or specific location(s) can also be specified for reconciliation. Labs should generally select the “Use Checklist” method. Only labs using custom barcodes or RFID tags to track their containers should select the “Enter Container IDs” method.
3. Containers which are still in use or storage should be marked as “Found” and will be retained in the ChemTracker inventory. Determine which containers on the list are present and mark them as “Found.” Once you have completed your review of a space, click Next. The example below shows that one 1gal bottle of isopropanol and one 500mL bottle of isopropanol were found during this reconciliation.
4. This next page will show you which containers were not found in the previous step. You can now remove them from your ChemTracker inventory by selecting them here and clicking NextSelect which containers should be removed from the ChemTracker inventory (generally, all containers which were not found) and confirm by clicking Next.
5. Finalize the inventory reconciliation on the next page to apply the updates. Your ChemTracker inventory will now be automatically updated for only the items that were found during reconciliation.

ChemTracker allows NAU to meet regulatory requirements by OSHA, the NPFA, and IBC, ensuring that all labs have current chemical inventories and tracking aggregate building quantities. Knowing the types and total quantities of hazardous chemicals in each building allows us to organize more effective emergency response, enhance hazard communication and highlight higher hazard chemicals for safer storage initiatives. These are part of a proactive strategy for chemical and laboratory safety.

Having a digital inventory accessible to all occupants of a given space decreases manual manipulation of spreadsheets and reduces loss of data when members move or leave those spaces. ChemTracker includes a reconciliation tool that can and should be used to update your chemical inventory on an annual basis.

From an environmental sustainability and cost reduction standpoint, maintaining accurate inventories reduces excess ordering and helps keep track of excess chemicals in storage.

It is mandatory for every space that has hazardous chemicals to maintain an inventory of hazardous chemicals. In the past, EHS may have discussed chemical inventories with your group but if your inventory was reviewed by EHS, copies were not kept. Maintaining an accurate chemical inventory in ChemTracker will be mandatory for applicable NAU spaces beginning in January 2024.

Any chemical that poses a physical, environmental, or health hazard must be included. If the container displays one of the chemical hazard symbols/GHS pictograms, it should be listed on the inventory.

This includes any amount of the following:

• Flammable substance
• Corrosive substance
• Acute toxin, reproductive hazard
• Carcinogen, mutagen or teratogen
• Highly reactive substance (pyrophoric, water-reactive or potentially explosive)
• Compressed gas
• Controlled substances (as defined by the DEA Diversion Control Division)

Mixtures should also be evaluated using this scheme. If a mixture is identified as belonging to one or more of these categories, it should be included in the ChemTracker inventory. SciShield’s database includes many commercially available mixtures so that these can be easily added. All applicable hazard categories should be selected in the upload template.

Products with no chemical hazard (such as water, growth media, glucose, sucrose, starches, amino acids, glass beads) or biological materials (infectious substances, cell cultures, bacteria, select agents), or radioactive materials.

Although it is not mandatory to include these types of materials, you may use ChemTracker to keep track of them if you wish. If you choose to track non-hazardous chemicals, biohazards, or other non-chemical hazards in your ChemTracker inventory, it is important that you do not assign them to a hazard group (such as flammable or reactive). EHS uses aggregate data from all inventories to track quantities of hazards in each building and incorrectly assigning chemical hazard categories to non-hazardous chemicals, biohazards, or other non-chemical hazards will distort this data.

Novel compounds that are synthesized in the space should be added to the ChemTracker inventory if there are known hazards associated with them. If hazards are later identified for a chemical that was previously left out of the inventory, that compound should be added when those hazards are identified. These compounds will not be available in the SciShield chemical database but can be added to the inventory as “unlinked” containers and information can be manually added to the entries.

If lab, shop, and studio groups follow good labeling practices, occurrences of unknown chemicals should be rare. However, if a container should end up without a label or an unknown compound is unintentionally synthesized during an experiment, the best options are to identify the compound or dispose of it. EHS has a process for handling unknown chemical waste, which involves working with the group to identify the chemical and, if necessary, sending a sample to an analytical laboratory for identification.

Chemical waste being accumulated in containers for disposal should not be included in the ChemTracker inventory. These containers should be labeled appropriately and disposed of as soon as possible when they are filled or no longer needed.

For the purposes of the ChemTracker inventory, use the vendor supplied quantity for the container. For example, 100mL of a reagent was purchased but small quantities are used over several experiments. Do not measure the remaining quantity after each use, simply list the quantity as 100mL in ChemTracker until the reagent is gone and the bottle is removed from the inventory.

For chemicals/mixtures that are used up and replaced frequently, such as 70% ethanol, the ChemTracker inventory should list the typical amount and size of containers that are on-hand at a given time.

Chemical inventories should be updated as chemicals and hazards enter and exit the space. EHS recommends a full inventory reconciliation once each year. The ChemTracker module has a reconciliation tool to facilitate this process.

Use the online EHS Service Request to request a waste pickup.

Your ChemTracker inventory will be accessible only to you, your group, your compliance liaison (lab manager), EHS and the NAU Fire Marshal.

Any unwanted or unusable chemicals can be submitted for disposal through our online EHS service request.

If you are unsure if your chemical, item, or kit needs to be inventoried, please reach out to NAUEHS@nau.edu with a list of items for review.