MEGlobal & REACH: Downstream Uses and Exposure Scenarios (DU-ES)

An European Union (EU) based company that manufacturers or imports products in the EU is required to register the chemical substances contained in them under REACH.

Under REACH, EU customers of that EU Company are classified as 'downstream users'.

Their 'downstream uses' of a substance contained in the MEGlobal products have to be documented in the registration for that specific substance.

The Dow Chemical Company has been working closely with MEGlobal to define the product uses of Monoethylene glycol (MEG) and Diethylene Glycol (DEG). MEGlobal is following the 'top down' approach recommended by CEFIC for the communication of downstream uses and exposure scenarios along the supply chain.

Our customers play an important role in helping to ensure the description of the use of our product. This not only ensures that uses are correctly submitted as part of our registrations but that the exposure scenarios take known uses into account and provides the appropriate risk management measures, or instructions on uses, specified by the registrant of the substance.

  

If an EU customer's uses are not documented in the registration for a substance, two options exist:

  • The EU customer will pass the necessary information on to the EU Company that manufactures or imports the substance. The latter will then consider whether to modify its registration to include the EU customer's use.
  • The EU customer will have to register its specific use directly with the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). For this, the EU customer must complete an independent registration and chemical safety assessment for the substance.

Downstream users of our products are requested to review the downstream use information provided to you and decide whether your use of MEGlobal product is properly described. Please communicate back to MEGlobal, if your use deviates from the described uses.

For questions relating specifically to REACH registration, please access our REACH Q&A Page or contact REACH customer focal point.