SUBJECT:Vehicle Safety Data Sheet (VSDS)TOPIC:VSDS placard systemOBJECTIVE:Understand the concept of a proposed system to provide critical safety information to emergency response personnelTASK:Identify elements that you would like to see on the VSDS placard and recommend two standard locations for placard placement on new vehicles.
When responders are summoned to hazardous material calls, one source of critical information on the properties of the chemicals involved comes from Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) forms. These standardized forms are required to be provided by manufacturers of chemical products. In addition to use at hazmat emergencies, MSDS forms are used in training and pre-incident planning for target hazard occupancies.
In the field of vehicle rescue, I feel it is just as important that responding personnel quickly know the exact type and location of certain features on the crashed vehicles they confront. To immediately know the location of items such as all front- and side-impact airbags, airbag crash sensors, the vehicle battery, fuel tank and seatbelt pre-tensioners would be extremely valuable.
Information such as this, immediately available at a crash scene, can improve responder safety and improve our vehicle rescue operational efficiency. A more efficient extrication effort can reduce victim entrapment time, thereby reducing injuries and potentially increasing the chances of survival for occupants trapped in vehicles.
Based upon the success of the nationwide hazmat MSDS concept, I propose a new federal motor vehicle safety standard requiring safety information be provided by the manufacturer of the vehicle. This information form shall be known as the
