Terms & Conditions

– Scope of Marketplace alternatives and definition of SVHCs

The intention of ChemSec Marketplace is to provide safer alternatives to hazardous substances. We welcome all kind of alternatives, drop-in, chemical, technical/process related changes, as well as alternative and innovative materials, in order to reduce the use of Substances of very high concern (SVHCs) and other highly problematic properties.

Not within the scope of ChemSec Marketplace is:

Solutions/Equipment for safe handling of hazardous chemicals
Solutions/processes that reduce the amount of a hazardous chemical
Biobased chemicals are not per see regarded as safer alternatives, as the Marketplace focuses on intrinsic hazardous properties.
Other types of sustainability innovations, eg to reduce carbon emissions, water consumption or energy use.

A key feature of the site is to promote better alternatives and we have therefore set up minimum requirements we expect all solution providers to respect:

No substances or materials meeting the criteria of being SVHC – Substance of Very High Concern according to the criteria laid out in the EU chemicals regulation REACH – should be promoted. In practice, it means the following five substance categories:

  • No substances on the REACH Candidate list
  • No substances on the SIN List
  • No substances with CMR properties (Carcinogenic, Mutagenic or Reproductive toxicants of category 1 according to the criteria in the EU CLP regulation).
  • No substances fulfilling the PBT/vPvB criteria in the EU CLP regulation (Persistent, Bio-accumulative and Toxic)
  • No substances fulfilling the PMT/vPvM citeria in the EU CLP regulation (Persistent, Mobile and Toxic)
  • No substances fulfilling the criteria for EDCs (Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals) category 1 and 2 in the in the EU CLP regulation

In addition we reserve the right to deny alternatives which might not meet the official SVHC criteria, but still have very problematic properties. Examples of this include, but is not limited to:

  • Substances where data is lacking, but which are structurally similar to well-known problematic compounds
  • Substances which are persistent or very persistent,
  • Neurotoxic compounds
  • Sensitizing compounds

 

Concentration limits

  • Not any of these substance categories (1-5) above may be >intentionally added at any concentration.
  • No contaminants of the substance categories (1-5) above, at any concentration above 0,1% w/w (1000 ppm) or the specific concentration limit as stated in CLP, whichever is the strictest, may be present in the advertised product.

 

Verification

Since these are the minimum requirements for placing an ad, please note however that many companies searching for safer alternatives might have considerably stricter requirements. Therefore, it is highly recommended to indicate your lower limits, if applicable.

You should be prepared to verify compliance upon request by ChemSec or a potential customer who might need a verification of any such claim. A good idea is to indicate this already in your advertisement that verification is available upon request. Also indicating compliance with any third party labels is recommended.

When no information or classification is available to verify the safety of an alternative chemical, we recommend the following resources:

  • ChemSec SINimilarity tool can be used to verify border-line cases such as possibly not yet classified phthalates. If a substance is flagged in SINimilarity as a yellow or orange substance, additional caution is expected and the need to provide testing results showing no such harm increase from the customers side.
  • Also making use of an advanced QSAR model such as the Danish initiative  could be used to verify compliance with the non-SVHC criteria.
    Even if the focal point of the site is to provide substitutes to SVHCs, also other safer solutions are of interest. This can be substances and materials without toxic, sensitizing or allergenic properties.

Also information about additional (non-chemical) sustainability qualities of the alternative, such as recyclability, energy efficiency, carbon footprint etc. can be of high interest to the user, even if not being the focus of this Marketplace.

 

Terms & Conditions

The Marketplace is directing its services to legal entities only (and not to consumers). By using the Marketplace, you agree to the following:

A. Only authorized individuals working for a particular company or their approved external consultants/aides may post an advertisement on behalf of that company. Upon request a user might be asked by ChemSec to provide evidence for its affiliation with the company in question. ChemSec is however not obliged to make such checks
B. All names and trademarks mentioned in the ad must be the (intellectual) property of the company in question unless otherwise clearly stated.
C. All companies will be held responsible for the content of its own advertisements.
D. Any claims made in the ad must be factual and substantiated by evidence.
E. All information in the advertisement must be accurate and not misleading in any sense.
F. You may not:

  • Post or upload content of inappropriate matter on our site
  • Post false, inaccurate, misleading, deceptive, defamatory, or libelous content
  • Harvest or otherwise collect information about users without their consent
  • Circumvent any technical measures we use to provide the service

Failure to comply with any of the terms A-F above might lead to withdrawal of one or all advertisements for that particular user.

ChemSec reserves a right to (but is not obliged to), in its sole discretion (and without cause), alter, limit or discontinue access to the Marketplace to any user. ChemSec shall have no obligation to take the needs of any user into consideration in connection therewith. ChemSec reserves a right to deny (in its sole discretion) any user access to the Marketplace or any portion thereof without notice (and without cause).

ChemSec is not liable, and you agree not to hold us responsible, for any damages or losses (including, but not limited to, loss of money, goodwill or reputation, profits, other intangible losses, or any special, indirect, or consequential damages) resulting directly or indirectly from:

  1. the content you provide (directly or indirectly) using the service
  2. your use of or your inability to use our service
  3. delays or disruptions in our service
  4. viruses or other malicious software obtained by accessing or linking to our Service
  5. glitches, bugs, errors, or inaccuracies of any kind in our Service
  6. the content, actions, or inactions of third parties
  7. a suspension or other action taken with respect to your account or breach of the terms and conditions as stated above
  8. the duration or manner in which your listings appear in search results

In addition to the aforesaid, you agree to indemnify ChemSec and our affiliates from and against any and all actions, claims, losses, damages, liabilities and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of your use of Marketplace, including, without limitation, any claims alleging facts that if true would constitute a breach by you of these Terms and Conditions.

If any provision of these Terms and Conditions (including the disclaimer set forth below) shall be unlawful, void, or for any reason unenforceable, then that provision shall be deemed severable from these terms and conditions.

 

Disclaimer for users and advertisers

Any and all use of the Marketplace is on the user’s own risk. All information and data included in the advertisements are the responsibility of each individual company providing such advertisement and ChemSec shall not be held accountable for any error, inconsistence or inaccuracy in the information provided. ChemSec will do a brief check of the alternatives advertised in Marketplace, however ChemSec will not be able to carefully assess or analyze all the information provided in the advertisements.

Further, bear in mind that the information provided by the advertisements might not be directly transferable to your company. Specific issues, of technical or legislative nature, for example, may significantly change the context and therefore the way you should use the information from this website. Before implementing an alternative, the supplier and user of an alternative should discuss conditions of use.

The users should also ask the alternative providers for verification and check for missing data, especially for hazards and assess their importance for implementing the substitution examples in their companies.

Mentioning of trade names, companies, or commercial products does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use by ChemSec Marketplace. Links to websites outside the ChemSec Marketplace website are for the convenience of the user. However, we cannot attest to the accuracy of the information provided by or through such external links.

We try to keep our service safe, secure, and functioning properly, but we cannot guarantee the continuous operation of or access to our service.

If you are dissatisfied with anything on the Marketplace or with any of the Terms and Conditions of use, your sole and exclusive remedy is a right to discontinue using the Marketplace.

 

Applicable Law and Jurisdiction

Use of the Marketplace will be governed by and construed in accordance with Swedish law, without giving effect to its conflict of law provisions. By using the Marketplace you agree to the aforesaid and you also agree that any legal action or proceeding between you and ChemSec will be brought exclusively in front of the Swedish courts.