UFI Codes for Hazardous Products
For manufacturers of hazardous or potentially dangerous products, appropriate labelling and marking of containers has always been critical for compliance with national & international regulations.
New EU legislation, announced recently, requires any manufacturer of hazardous mixtures to add a Unique Formula Identifier (UFI) to their product labels consisting of a unique sixteen-digit code.
What are UFI Codes?
UFI codes will link, confidentially, to a central database, used by regional Poison Centres to quickly identify any chemicals involved in reported health & safety incidents. This information will enable them to offer appropriate medical advice to anyone affected.
To remain compliant, every unique formula used in a hazardous product must be labelled by:
- January 1st, 2020 – for products used by consumers
- January 1st, 2021 – for products used by professionals
- January 1st, 2024 – for products used on an industrial scale
Our experienced team is ready to assist you to comply with UFI legislation.
Do UFI requirements apply to your organisation?
The regulations state that any importer or downstream user involved with putting potentially hazardous mixtures to market must comply with the new law.
Notifying relevant industry bodies, such as Poison Centres, of product UFI codes will be mandatory alongside other product info (e.g. product category, composition, colour, packaging, toxicology, etc.).
UFI Code Compliance
UFI codes must be printed on or otherwise affixed/applied to a product’s existing label.
The UFI is an alphanumeric code of 16 letters or digits, divided into four sections with hyphens and prefixed with ‘UFI’ in all capitals.
UFI codes must be easy to locate and clearly marked, both visible and legible as part of the product’s standard labelling.
Importantly, only products which have the exact same chemical composition can share a UFI code on their label.
To create your own UFI codes, you can use the UFI Generator Tool created by the European Chemical Agency (ECHA). You will need your company VAT number (also known as a ‘company key’) in addition to a formulation number specific to the mixture. If you don’t have a company key, use the ECHA site to request one.
Note: you can also integrate UFI Generator functionality into your existing IT system and production line. This is a worthwhile consideration if your manufacturing environment demands many UFI codes are applied to a wide range of hazardous mixtures.
Learn more about UFI compliance using official ECHA resources.
Linx Coding & Marking Solutions for UFI Codes
How you decide to add UFI codes to your products will depend on the specifics of your production environment, as well as the substrates and products you work with.
Fortunately, the Linx range of coding & marking printers is perfectly suited to production lines featuring a wide variety of packaging and materials. These include flexible or rigid packaging, plastic, PET, films, rubber, glass, metals and much more.
Our team is on hand to help ensure your production line stays efficient and flexible, no matter the application or material. Don’t hesitate to get in touch if there’s anything we can help with!
Linx Printing Technologies: Features & Benefits
- Contamination-resistant printheads designed for harsh production environments
- Deliver legible, durable & compliant codes to meet legal & regulatory requirements
- Compatible with a variety of materials and substrates in the chemicals industry
- Low cost of ownership with minimal intervention and maintenance required
- Specialist machines offering reliable print quality, even at high output speeds
- specialist chemical-resistant inks for longevity & clarity
Continuous Inkjet (CIJ) Printers: a flexible and efficient ink-based coding solution, compatible with many substrates and suitable for existing production lines.
Laser Coding Machines: ideal for high-speed production lines, offering a compact solution with a low total cost of ownership (TCO).
Not sure which solution is best for handling UFI code compliance?
Get some help from our experienced advisors.
Relevant Industries
Linx coding and marking systems provide affordable and effective solutions for product marking and labelling across a range of related industries including: