How should you name SDS, TDS and CoA files so staff find them?

This naming rule is for the working copies a chemical maker or distributor keeps of supplier and own SDS, TDS and CoA files. It does not change how the original issuer names or numbers its documents, and it does not replace a document management system's own version control.

What do you need before renaming SDS, TDS and CoA files?

Before renaming SDS, TDS and CoA files, you need a fixed list of brand spellings, a fixed list of product short names, the four document type codes, and a written copy of the naming rule. Without those lists, two people rename the same SDS two ways.

Prepare these four things:

• Brand list: one preferred spelling per brand, without spaces, such as BrandX (illustrative). Keep variant spellings as aliases elsewhere, not in file names.

• Product short names: the grade as the maker writes it, shortened to letters and digits, such as HM46 for a hydraulic grade (illustrative).

• Document type codes: SDS, TDS and CoA, plus any you add, such as Spec for a customer specification. Treat "MSDS" files as SDS.

• A one-page naming rule, kept in the top folder of the library as a README file. The Harvard Medical School data management guide recommends documenting naming conventions in a README.txt kept with the files (Harvard Medical School, 2026).

Then rename in three steps: open each file and read its document type, revision date or lot from the document itself; build the new name from the pattern; keep the supplier's original file unchanged next to the renamed working copy.

Which elements belong in an SDS, TDS or CoA file name?

The elements that belong in an SDS, TDS or CoA file name are brand, product, document type, language and one identifier: the revision date for an SDS or TDS, the lot number for a CoA. Each element answers a question staff ask when they search.

• Brand and product say which item the document covers. Use the preferred spellings from your lists.

• Document type says SDS, TDS or CoA, so a search for one type does not return the others.

• Language says which language version this is, using a two-letter ISO 639 code such as EN or DE. For an SDS written for one jurisdiction, add the ISO 3166 two-letter country code, such as EN-US or EN-GB, because a US SDS and a UK SDS in English are different documents. ISO 3166 recommends the two-letter alpha-2 code as the general-purpose country code (ISO, 2026).

• Identifier says which copy this is. An SDS carries its date of preparation or last change in section 16 (OSHA 29 CFR 1910.1200 Appendix D, as amended 2026), so that date is the SDS identifier.

Leave out the supplier name, the date received and words such as "final" or "new", which change without the document changing.

In what order should the parts of an SDS, TDS or CoA file name go?

The parts of an SDS, TDS or CoA file name go in one order for every type: brand, product, document type, language, identifier. Computers sort names character by character, so the elements you sort by most come first, and the one that changes comes last.

The table below shows what each document type carries and which identifier changes when a new version arrives.

The SDS row is the one to get right first: with the date last, all revisions of one product sit together in a sorted list and the newest is at the bottom. Use an underscore between elements and a hyphen only inside an element, such as in the date or EN-US, so each element can be read back from the name.

Keep the pattern the same for files you write yourself, such as your own SDS or a customer specification, so one sort order covers the whole library and a new member of staff learns one rule.

Which date format keeps SDS revisions in order?

The date format that keeps SDS revisions in order is the ISO 8601 calendar date, YYYY-MM-DD, written at the end of the file name. ISO 8601 orders the elements of a date as year, month and day (ISO, 2026), so an alphabetical sort of the names of one product is also a sort by revision date.

Other formats break the order. With 03-14-2026 or 14.03.2026, a March file from one year sorts next to a March file from another, and 01/05/22 can mean 5 January or 1 May; the ISO page gives that example of an ambiguous date (ISO, 2026). The slash is also a reserved character that Windows does not allow in a file name (Microsoft Learn, 2026).

Use the date the document itself shows, not the date you received it:

• SDS: the date in section 16 or, for an EU SDS, the date marked "Revision: (date)" on the first page (REACH Annex II section 0.2.5, consolidated 2026).

• TDS: the revision or issue date printed on the TDS. If the TDS shows no date, write the date received with a prefix, such as rcvd2026-03-14 (illustrative), so nobody mistakes it for the maker's date.

The Harvard Medical School guide accepts YYYYMMDD as well as YYYY-MM-DD (Harvard Medical School, 2026). Pick one and use it everywhere.

Should the lot number or the revision date go in a CoA file name?

The lot number should go in a CoA file name, not a revision date, because a certificate of analysis belongs to one lot and a new lot means a new certificate, not a new version of the old one. Filing a CoA by date would put certificates for different lots in a sequence that hides which lot each one covers.

ICH Q7, written for active pharmaceutical ingredients, recommends that the batch number and the date of release be provided on the certificate of analysis (ICH, 2000). Many industrial chemical makers print a lot or batch number on the CoA as well. Copy that number as printed, changing only reserved characters, and put the word Lot in front so the element is clear, such as Lot24117 (illustrative).

When the same lot has two certificates, for example the maker's original and a reissued certificate from a distributor, keep both with the same lot number and add the reissuer's short name to the lot element with a hyphen, such as Lot24117-DistributorX (illustrative). ICH Q7 recommends that a reissued certificate refer to the original manufacturer and the original batch certificate (ICH, 2000).

The release date on a CoA stays inside the document; customers ask for a certificate by the lot number printed on their drum label.

How do SDS, TDS and CoA file names relate to the folder structure?

SDS, TDS and CoA file names should carry every element on their own, so the folder structure only groups files and never supplies information the name lacks. A file sent by email leaves its folder behind; the Harvard Medical School guide notes that if a file is moved or shared, users can still identify it from its file name (Harvard Medical School, 2026).

Keep folders shallow: one level by product type or by brand is enough, with all document types for a product in the same folder. Deep trees by supplier, year and document type make the same SDS end up in several places. The naming rule then sorts the files inside each folder.

A wider question is how to bring files from many suppliers into one library with consistent tags; that practice is covered in how a distributor should organize TDS, SDS and CoA files. Lubinpla's data room suggests product type, brand and document type tags from the file path and name, and it has no revision date or lot field, so those two belong in the file name.

How do you check SDS, TDS and CoA file names are consistent?

You check SDS, TDS and CoA file names are consistent by sorting the library by name and running six checks: element count, brand spelling, document type code, language code, date format and characters. A list sorted by name shows most faults at a glance, because a misnamed file falls out of its product group.

The table below decides whether each file name can be found by search and read back correctly.

The date or lot row catches the costliest fault: an SDS named with the date it arrived can look newer than the maker's latest revision. Run the check after each batch of new files.

A spreadsheet export of the folder listing makes the check faster: split each name at the underscores into five columns, then filter each column for values that are not on your brand, type or language lists (illustrative method). Any blank or extra column is a name to rebuild.

Common mistakes when naming SDS, TDS and CoA files

The most common mistakes when naming SDS, TDS and CoA files are using the received date, writing dates in a local format, and adding words that do not identify the document.

• Received date instead of revision date. Two copies of the same SDS revision get two names, and an old revision received late looks current. Read the date from section 16 or the first page.

• Local date formats. 14.03.2026 and 03-14-2026 do not sort by date. Use YYYY-MM-DD.

• "Final", "new" or "v2". These describe your handling, not the document, and they stop being true. The identifier is the maker's revision date or the lot.

• Spaces and special characters. Spaces break some systems, and the Harvard guide recommends names of alphanumeric characters, dashes and underscores only, 40 to 50 characters long (Harvard Medical School, 2026).

• No language code. An SDS in German and one in English for the same product and date overwrite each other when the names match.