Chemical Traceability
Making Compliance Effortless and Audits Predictable
Specialty Chemicals Manufacturing
Distribution
Audit preparation had become a recurring fire drill due to fragmented chemical data and uncontrolled approvals. This system introduced end to end traceability, enforced workflows, and real time visibility making compliance the default state, not an afterthought
Overview
A regulated, high-risk project focused on giving compliance teams instant, audit-ready chemical traceability while reducing operational risk
My Role
Lead System UX Designer, responsible for data modeling, system UX architecture, and prototyping
The Problem
Zero Traceability, High Risk
The teams were dealing with sensitive chemical lifecycle data scattered across spreadsheets, paper logs, and outdated inventory tools. Everything was fragmented. Nothing was connected. And preparing for a regulatory audit felt like a fire drill every single time
- No full traceability
- Audit pressure
- Uncontrolled approvals
- Document mismatch
What I Did
I focused on building a clean, logical data model and turning it into a UX that makes compliance the default behavior, not something users need to remember
Information Model & Traceability Mapping
- Mapped the full chemical lifecycle from supplier intake to final approval
- Defined clear entity relationships: Chemical → Batch → CoA → Approvals
- Designed forward and backward traceability to answer audit questions instantly
- Eliminated duplicate records and ambiguous document ownership
Compliance Workflow Design
- Replaced informal approvals with a structured, step based pipeline
- Defined mandatory steps that cannot be skipped or bypassed
- Introduced role based permissions so only authorized users could approve or finalize
- Ensured every action generated a timestamped audit record automatically
Embedded Documentation & Control
- Designed in context document viewing for CoA and MSDS files
- Enforced “single source of truth” for compliance documents
- Prevented outdated or mismatched files from being used downstream
Traceability Dashboard & Status System
- Created a central dashboard showing all high risk chemicals, deadlines, and approval states
- Designed instant drill down from dashboard → batch → documents → approvals
- Introduced clear, high contrast compliance indicators (Approved / Pending / Expired)
- Made risk visible before users even opened a record
Prototyping & System UX Validation
- Built high fidelity system prototypes to validate flows with compliance stakeholders
- Tested traceability scenarios (audit prep, batch investigation, expired CoA)
- Refined flows to minimize steps while maintaining regulatory rigor
The Solution
The goal was simple:
Make traceability effortless, and make non compliance impossible
Traceability Dashboard
A single dashboard became the hub for everything:
- All high-risk chemicals with their status and deadlines
- Real-time approval status
- Ability to click any Chemical Batch ID and instantly see:
Forward Traceability: where this batch is used
Backward Traceability: supplier, CoA, MSDS, initial approvals
Guided Compliance Workflow (The Approval Pipeline)
This replaced the informal approval process with a structured, mandatory flow.
- Step-by-step progression: you can’t continue unless you finish the previous required steps
- Role-based validation: only QA Managers can finalize CoA approvals
- Instant audit trail generation: every action becomes part of a verifiable record
- Document Viewer built in: MSDS and CoA always visible within the step
Visual Compliance Status Across the Platform
I used simple, high-contrast indicators everywhere:
- Green: “REACH Approved”
- Yellow: “Pending QA Review”
- Red: “CoA Expired”
Compliance officers could see risk before even opening the record
One Dashboard, Full Traceability
All high-risk chemicals, approvals, and deadlines in one controlled view
Trace Any Batch in Seconds
From supplier to final product, every link is visible and verifiable
Compliance by Design
If a step isn’t complete, the system won’t let you move on
Audit Ready by Default
Every document, decision, and approval captured automatically
Impact & Results
The shift to a centralized, traceable, guided platform created immediate measurable impact
| Metric | Before | After | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regulatory Audit Prep | 2–3 weeks | 2 days | ~70% ↓ |
| Time to Trace a Batch | 8 hours | <h;30 sec | Massive gain |
| Compliance Document Accuracy | High risk | Near zero | Major risk reduction |
| Chemical Approval Cycle | 15 days | 8 days | 47% faster |
The biggest win wasn’t speed, it was confidence. Teams finally knew they were always audit-ready because the system enforced the right process every time
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