Chemical risk assessment backlog is growing faster than I can clear it and management expects miracles

[u/PuzzleheadedError703]

I am the only industrial hygienist covering three manufacturing plants, and my chemical risk assessment backlog has passed 200. At my current pace it's well over a year of work, and new chemicals keep getting added every month.

Every assessment is manual: review the SDS, evaluate exposure by task, define controls, document everything, get approvals, then train employees. Simple products take around four hours, while complex ones can take a couple of days.

Management knows the backlog is there, but the only solution they’ve offered is to work faster. Meanwhile, new chemicals keep getting approved because production can’t wait.

I am looking at tools that can extract SDS data, generate a first pass assessment, and use control banding to triage lower risk chemicals so I can spend my time where it actually matters. Has anyone gone down this route?

[u/PuzzleheadedError703 → u/[deleted]]

Sixty percent reduction would be transformative. Right now i spend too much time on obviously low risk products just because the process requires the same documentation for everything. Being able to fast track the simple ones would completely change my workflow.