Import and export

You upload an XLSX or CSV file. The register reads the header row and proposes which of your columns map to which fields, so "Qty" lands on quantity and "Room" on location. You can override any of those guesses. Columns you do not need can be left out.

Then it works through your chemical names and matches them to the database. This is fuzzy matching with a confidence shown on each row. "Conc HCl" and "hydrochloric acid 37%" should both find the same chemical, with the concentration held separately. You check the low-confidence rows, accept or correct them, and leave the rest.

Anything that cannot be placed comes across as free text with an unlisted flag. That matters more than it may sound. A list usually has its most interesting problems in the rows that do not match, and those are the ones you do not want a tool to drop.

Before anything is written you see a preview of the result. When you accept it, the import runs as one transaction, so you do not end up with half a list. For the next 24 hours you can roll the whole import back if something looks wrong.

You do not need to clean a list before importing it, but checking the columns and removing unrelated rows can reduce corrections afterwards. Remove any rows that are headings or section breaks. Make sure each column contains one kind of thing, so the quantity column does not also hold "ask Sue". If a colour means something in your sheet, put it into a text column, because the import reads values and not formatting.

Think about locations before you start. If your list says "Store A", set up a location called Store A first and you can refine it later, shelf by shelf, during your first stock check.

Do not worry about having one row for several bottles. If your sheet says "5 x 500 ml", the number of containers is a field on the row. Splitting those into individual containers is something you can do as you label them.

Many schools began their stock list from CLEAPSS E233, so the register provides a template following that column layout. Column layout is all it takes from that document. We do not copy Hazcard text into the product, and a Hazcard reference number is held only where it has been legitimately sourced. If you are a CLEAPSS member, you keep using your Hazcards as you do now.

Once your rows are matched to the database, hazard pictograms, H and P statements and storage classes come from our sources, PubChem and the ECHA C&L inventory, with source and retrieval date stored. Your old list did not have to contain them.

Import classification is one of the AI assistant's jobs. It works over free-text names, suggests a storage class and an EWC code, and lists what it could not place. Each one is labelled as a suggestion. Nothing is written to your register until a person confirms it. For a long list of abbreviations this saves a great deal of looking up, but you remain the checker. The AI assistant page explains the limits.

Your record is yours. On the School plan and above you can export the full register, or any filtered or saved view, as XLSX, CSV or PDF. Each export carries an audit timestamp, so a printed list in a folder can be traced to the point it was produced.

The everyday use is simple. A technician filters to "Flammables store", exports a PDF and files it with the fire risk assessment. A lab manager sends a finance colleague an XLSX of what is expiring. A trust's science lead pulls a CSV to compare two schools.

The Hospital and Enterprise plans can also schedule a monthly export by email, which suits departments that must file a copy of the register on a regular cycle.

A sensible store keeps a current printed copy where it can be reached if the network is down or the building is being evacuated. Export a PDF of the full register at a sensible interval and keep it with your other emergency information. That is your procedure, and the software simply makes it quick to follow.

If you ever decide to leave, the same exports are available, and a data export of your whole organisation is available on request. We would prefer to keep you because the register is useful, and not because your data is difficult to move.

In England, producers and holders must keep hazardous waste records for three years, whichever system you use. Other parts of the UK can differ. Take your consignment note archive with you when you go. The consignment note guide sets out the retention rules by nation.

Starter does not include exports. School, Trust, University, Hospital and Enterprise plans can export. Scheduled monthly exports are on the Hospital and Enterprise plans. Pricing sets out the rest.