What’s new in IMDS Recommendation 001 and it’s impact on the Automotive Industry

25 May 2023

IMDS recommendation 001 is the basic document that describes the requirements for creating MDS reports with a specific set of Rules and Guidelines in the IMDS portal. All these criteria are universally accepted by all car manufacturers subscribed to IMDS.

The IMDS Steering Committee published its first IMDS recommendation 001 documents in August 2003. This update is the 12th revision of IMDS recommendation 001, and it will be effective from 27th May 2023.

This revised version of IMDS recommendation 001 contains many changes proposed by the steering committee of the IMDS. The list of updated revisions in the new version is listed below:

Added new Chapters and Rules

• Chapter – 4.1.2 – Sending MDSs
  • Rule – 4.1.2.A – Depending upon customer requirements, the MDSs can be sent.
• Chapter – 4.2.4 – Multi sourcing
  • Rule – 4.2.4.A -The preferred alternative is one of the multi-sourced components, which was majorly used as an alternative.
  • Rule – 4.2.4.B – Weight deviation between preferred alternative and other at not exceed the allowed tolerance.
  • Rule – 3.2.1.F – Datasheet older than 10 years are no longer used in new datasheet submission. It should be revalidated before reuse.
  • Rule – 3.2.2.C – One customer, one material MDSs submission. Multiple material creation for same customer is not allowed.
  • Rule – 4.4.2.P – Recipient name must be descriptive, if it is submitted to the customer (Same as Rule – 4.4.2.D)
  • Rule – 4.4.5.C – If applicable, “Within the GADSL limit” should be used as default application code.

Change/Update in existing Chapters and Rules

• Chapter – 4.4.1.1 – Change in standard material intention. Material MDSs can be created if the own material composition is more precise than Steering committee material.
• Chapter – 4.4.2 – Clear information provided for material MDSs information.
  • Rule – 4.4.2.H – Added more clarity on Norms & Standards part for the material creation.
• Chapter – 4.5.2 – Added a 2-week timeframe for updating confidential substance. If not happen, confidentiality will suspend.
  • Rule – 3.2.1.D – Added SVHC list. When GADSL or SVHC list is updated, the affected material and the linked MDS should be updated.
  • Rule – 3.2.2.B – Added REACH SVHC criteria with GADSL in creating new IMDS ID/Version.
  • Rule – 4.5.1.D – Application code preference removed (44-47).
  • Rule – 4.5.3.D – When GADSL or SVHC list updated, should follow the rule 3.2.1.D.

Deleted Chapters and Rules

• Chapter – 4.7 – Obsolete MDS, as it was explaining only the functionality.
• Chapter – 4.4.2 Recyclate – As it was completely going to change with IMDS release 14.0, the recycling chapter has been removed from IMDS recommendation 001.
  • Rule – 4.4.2.I – Optional entry of providing norms & standards for the material greater than 5 gram is removed.
  • Rule – 4.5.2.B – Upgraded rules for GADSL and SVHC list update made this rule obsolete.

We at ComplianceXL keep track of regulatory compliance updates, especially regarding IMDS, to help organizations understand the IMDS documentation requirements. It will also help them with MDS creation, and submission of IMDS reports. Furthermore, we will help them implement the guidelines based on the latest updates. Talk to one of IMDS specialists today to understand the impact of this new update on your organization and IMDS reporting.

FAQs:

1. Why is the IMDS needed?
IMDS is an online database used by the automotive industry to manage information about vehicle materials and substances.

2. What are the norms and standards in IMDS?
A standard material number uniquely identifies the chemical content of a material. A wide range of chemical compositions can be regulated by many norms.