CAS and the Pistoia Alliance, a global non-profit that works to lower barriers to innovation in life science and healthcare R&D, have launched a new Pistoia Alliance Chemical Safety Library platform.
This resource aims to mitigate the serious risks researchers working with potentially hazardous chemicals face due to unanticipated chemical reaction outcomes by enabling scientists to access and share hazardous reaction information drawn from real-life laboratory experiences.
The open access platform, developed and hosted by CAS, supports industry efforts to increase the safety of workers in the lab by facilitating data sharing across the global chemical enterprise.
“We have a duty to ensure the health and safety of researchers dedicating their lives to delivering breakthrough innovations,” said Carmen Nitsche, General Manager Cambridge Crystallography Data Centre and Chair, Chemical Safety Library Advisory Panel, “The Chemical Safety Library fulfils an important need and adds a key component to our safety toolbox.”
The resource, originally launched by the Pistoia Alliance as a prototype in 2017, was made possible through a partnership between the Pistoia Alliance and CAS announced earlier this year.
The platform allows researchers from across academia, industry and government institutions to access chemical safety incident information and confidently submit new hazardous reaction data. R&D organisations can also integrate the full library content into their knowledge centres and internal laboratory safety workflows. Reaction incident information is reviewed by an advisory panel including experts from ACS, CAS and the Pistoia Alliance management, as well as Pistoia Alliance member companies and outside experts.
“By providing researchers access to real world incident data, the Chemical Safety Library will prevent avoidable laboratory accidents every day,” noted Dr. Steve Arlington, President of the Pistoia Alliance. “I encourage researchers around the world to use this resource, make others aware of it and contribute to improving the safety of the chemical research community as a whole by sharing their experiences through the platform to protect others.”
Image credit: Hans Reniers
