What this is
What is a glass and brittle plastic register?
What is a glass and brittle plastic register?
A glass and brittle plastic register is the master inventory of every item of glass or hard, brittle plastic in a production area: what it is, where it is, whether it sits above open product, whether it is shatterproof or guarded, and its condition. It is built once and checked on a set frequency, and it is what a breakage response is checked against.
Why does it matter whether an item is above open product?
Because a breakage above enclosed product and a breakage above an open line have completely different consequences. An item sitting directly over an unwrapped product stream is a foreign-body risk every time it is present, whereas the same item elsewhere on site is a much lower priority for replacement or shielding.
What does the register drive when something actually breaks?
It gives the breakage response its scope. Knowing exactly what was listed for that location, its material and its condition immediately before the incident lets the isolation and reconciliation be targeted, rather than searching the whole area on the assumption that anything could be responsible.
Scope
When is a glass and brittle plastic register required?
This register is the foundation record for glass and brittle plastic control. It is not the breakage event itself, and it is not the wider HACCP or foreign-body programme those breakages sit inside.
Use this template when
- A production area is being brought into scope for glass and brittle plastic control for the first time
- A new item of glass or hard plastic is introduced, moved, replaced or removed from a production area
- The scheduled check interval for the site or area is due
- A breakage has occurred and the response needs to confirm exactly what was listed for that location
- An audit or verification activity needs to see the current state of every listed item, not just the count
Do not use it for
- HACCP Plan, which is the hazard analysis behind the wider food safety system, not a physical inventory of one specific hazard type
- CCP Monitoring Log, which records readings at a critical control point such as cook temperature or metal detection, a different control entirely from a physical register
- Pest Control Log, a separate foreign-body programme with its own inspection cadence and its own register
- Anything outside KnowQuality, which belongs in the workspace that owns that process
Compliance mapping
Which SQF 11.2 requirements does this satisfy?
SQF and BRC both require a documented glass and hard plastic control programme rather than prescribing a specific format, so the defensibility of this register rests on completeness and currency, not on the layout of the form.
| Clause | Requirement | Where it lands |
|---|---|---|
| SQF 11.2 | Glass, brittle plastic and similar materials controlled through a documented inventory, inspection schedule and breakage procedure | Header |
| SQF 11.2 | Each item identified with its location and material, and assessed for whether it can be eliminated from the area | Items |
| BRC 4.9 | Glass and hard plastic risk assessed for proximity to open product and protected where it cannot be removed | Items |
| BRC 4.9 | Documented breakage procedure covering isolation, reconciliation of all pieces, and product disposition | Breakage response |
| SQF 11.2 | Scheduled checks performed and verified, with discrepancies and required actions recorded | Result |
| SQF 2.4.2 | Corrective action raised, owned and tracked to closure where a check finds a nonconformance | Result |
What it does not cover
- HACCP Plan, the hazard analysis for the product or process, which this register supports as one prerequisite control rather than replaces.
- HACCP Verification Record, which confirms the plan as a whole is being followed, not the state of one physical inventory.
- Pest Control Log, a distinct foreign-body control with its own bait station map and inspection cadence.
- Product Nonconformance Report, which documents a specific affected batch once a breakage or other issue is found, rather than the standing inventory of what could cause one.
- The breakage response itself, which is a separate, in-the-moment record; this register is what that response is checked against, not the response.
Global
Glass and Brittle Plastic Register requirements by country
Glass and brittle plastic control is a GFSI-scheme requirement rather than a matter of national food safety law, so the reach of this template follows the certification schemes a site holds rather than a single regulator.
SQF Code, module 11, and FDA preventive controls under FSMA covering physical hazards
SQF-certified sites must maintain a documented glass and brittle plastic programme; FSMA requires physical hazards to be addressed within the food safety plan generally.
A site without SQF or a comparable scheme still carries a general duty to control physical hazards under FSMA, but the specific register format is a scheme requirement rather than a statutory one.
BRCGS Global Standard for Food Safety, clause 4.9
Requires glass, brittle plastic and similar items to be identified, risk assessed, and where practicable removed or protected, with a documented breakage procedure.
For BRCGS-certified sites this is an audited clause with its own nonconformance category; auditors expect the register to match what they can see on the floor.
GFSI benchmarking requirements reflected across SQF, BRCGS, IFS and FSSC 22000
Every major GFSI-recognised scheme requires a glass and hard plastic control programme in substantially similar terms.
The register transfers across schemes with minimal adaptation, since the underlying expectation, an inventory, a check cadence and a breakage procedure, is common to all of them.
How to complete it
How to complete a glass and brittle plastic register, step by step
The register is easy to build once and hard to keep honest. The parts that actually determine its value are the ones a checklist mentality tends to skip.
An item added, moved or replaced between checks is not covered until someone remembers to update the register, and the scheduled check interval is a backstop, not the primary trigger. The register should be updated at the point of the change, ideally through the same process that authorises the machine or fitting work, not treated as a periodic audit exercise.
The form asks whether an item can be removed from the area before it asks how well it is protected, and that ordering matters. A shielded item is still a risk if the shield fails or is removed for maintenance and not replaced; an eliminated item carries no residual risk at all. Recording that elimination was considered and rejected, not just that shielding is in place, is what makes the assessment complete.
An item in Zone 4, outside the processing environment, and an item directly above an open product stream are not the same risk even if both are unprotected glass. Recording the zone and the relationship to open product is what turns a simple count of items into something that actually prioritises where attention goes first.
A check that records every item as in good condition but never confirms the total against the previous count will miss an item that has quietly gone missing, which in a glass control programme is at least as serious a finding as one found broken. The items on register, eliminated since last check, and breakages this period figures exist together for that reason.
What auditors find
Most common glass and brittle plastic register findings
The register nearly always exists once a site is certified to a GFSI scheme. The findings are almost entirely about whether it still matches what is on the floor.
| Finding | Clause | What fixes it |
|---|---|---|
| An item added, moved or replaced during maintenance work is not reflected on the register. | SQF 11.2 | Route glass and brittle plastic changes through the same change process as the maintenance work, with the register updated as part of closing that work, not at the next scheduled check. |
| Items above open product are not distinguished from items elsewhere, so priority is set by count rather than exposure. | BRC 4.9 | Record the relationship to open product for every item and use it, alongside zone, to set which items get attention first. |
| Shielding or guarding is recorded once and never reverified, so a shield removed for access during maintenance is not caught. | BRC 4.9 | Include protection status in the scheduled check itself, not only at the point the item was first registered. |
| Elimination is not genuinely considered; every item defaults to being managed in place. | SQF 11.2 | Require a stated reason where elimination is rejected, so the decision is visible rather than assumed. |
| The item count is not reconciled between checks, so a missing item is indistinguishable from one that was never added. | SQF 11.2 | Compare the current count and item list against the previous check explicitly, and treat any unexplained discrepancy as a finding in its own right. |
| The breakage procedure referenced by the register is not actually available or current at the point of use. | BRC 4.9 | Verify the breakage kit, the defined isolation radius and the reconciliation method as part of the scheduled check, not only when a breakage occurs. |
Case in point
Case in point: the register that was right about everything except the one thing that broke
A dairy site's culture room held a glass sight-gauge on a vessel, listed on the register as Zone 2, shatterproof-coated, in good condition. A contractor replaced the vessel's control panel during a shutdown and, in the process, removed and refitted the sight-gauge with an uncoated replacement from a parts bin, because the coated version was not in stock and the job needed finishing before the shift restarted.
Nobody updated the register, because the change was logged as an electrical job, not a glass item change, and the register's monthly check was three weeks away. When the gauge cracked under normal pressure a fortnight later, the breakage response pulled the register, confirmed the item as shatterproof-coated, and released the area on that basis before someone on the floor pointed out the physical part did not match the description. The corrective action was not a faster check cycle; it was requiring any work that touches a registered item, regardless of the job's own category, to trigger a register update before the work is signed off.
The template
The template, field by field
The form exactly as it installs. Every field, option, score and conditional rule is editable, and the links to other templates come with it.
4 sections
- Reference
- QUA-052
- Archetype
- Register
- Record ID
- GBP-2026-000
- Scoring
- Not scored
- Direction
- n/a
- Singleton
- No
- Basis
- SQF 11.2, BRC 4.9
- Links
- Links Site; feeds Breakage Record
- Tags
- Food safety, Foreign material
- Sections
- 4
- Fields
- 43
- Follow up fields
- 4
- Repeating sections
- 1
- Links out
- 3
Header
10 fieldsRegister ID*
Auto sequence. Format GBP-2026-000.
The record's own ID. Other templates point at this value.
Status*
Drives who this goes to next.
- Planned2 pts
- In progress2 pts
- Complete3 pts
- Deferred0 pts
- Open0 pts
- Closed3 pts
- Overdue0 pts
Date and Time*
Raised By*
Site*
Site ID*
Format SITE-000.
Links to FDN-001 Site ID
Last Full Check*
Check Frequency*
Next Check Due*
Know Before It Breaks
The register exists so that when something breaks you know instantly what was there, what it was made of, and what area it could have reached.
Items
Repeats14 fieldsItem Reference*
Item Description*
Material*
Asset
Asset ID
Format AST-0000.
Links to FDN-002 Asset ID
Location*
Zone*
- Zone 1, product contact0 pts
- Zone 2, adjacent to product1 pt
- Zone 3, processing environment2 pts
- Zone 4, outside processing3 pts
Above Open Product*
- No3 pts
- Yes0 pts
Shatterproof Or Coated*
- Yes3 pts
- Partly1 pt
- No0 pts
Guarded Or Shielded*
- Yes3 pts
- Partly1 pt
- No0 pts
Condition*
- Good3 pts
- Fair1 pt
- Poor0 pts
Photo
Can It Be Eliminated*
Removing glass from the area is always better than managing it.
- Yes3 pts
- Possibly2 pts
- No1 pt
Replacement Planned
Breakage response
5 fieldsBreakage Procedure Documented*
- Yes3 pts
- No0 pts
Breakage Kit Available*
- Yes3 pts
- No0 pts
Isolation Radius Defined*
- Yes3 pts
- No0 pts
Reconciliation Method Defined*
All pieces accounted for before the area is released.
- Yes3 pts
- No0 pts
Product Disposition Rules Defined*
- Yes3 pts
- No0 pts
Result
14 fieldsItems On Register*
Items Above Open Product*
Items Unprotected*
Items Eliminated Since Last Check*
Breakages This Period*
Register Accurate*
- Yes3 pts
- Minor discrepancies1 pt
- No0 pts
Action Required*
Raise the action record, then enter its reference here.
- No2 pts
- Yes0 pts
Priority
- High0 pts
- Medium1 pt
- Low3 pts
CAPA ID
Format CAPA-2026-00000.
Links to FDN-014 CAPA ID
Action Owner
Quality*
Signature*
Site Manager*
Second Signature*
QUA-052 · record IDs look like GBP-2026-000 · Links Site; feeds Breakage Record
Open in KnowellaRun it with agents
From a document you fill in to a programme that runs itself
The register itself is simple to keep. What slips is the link between other work, maintenance jobs, machine changes, refits, and the register that is supposed to reflect their effect.
Holds the register against the site and asset records, tracks the check schedule, and links each breakage response back to the items that were listed for that location.
Flags maintenance and engineering work that touches a registered item, so a job logged under a different category still triggers a register update.
Watches for items due a scheduled check, reconciles the item count against the previous check, and surfaces discrepancies before they are lost in a routine sign-off.
This template lives in KnowQuality — quality and food safety. HACCP, nonconformance, traceability, laboratory and customer complaints.
Meet KnowQuality→Glossary
Glass and Brittle Plastic Register definitions and key terms
- Brittle plastic
- Hard, rigid plastic such as certain machine guards or covers that can fracture into sharp fragments similarly to glass, and is controlled under the same programme for that reason.
- Zone (glass control)
- A rating of an item's proximity to product, from directly in product contact through to entirely outside the processing environment, used to prioritise inspection and remediation.
- Elimination
- Removing a glass or brittle plastic item from the area entirely, the preferred control over shielding or guarding because it leaves no residual risk if protection later fails.
- Reconciliation
- Confirming that all pieces of a broken item are accounted for before an area is released back to production, and separately, confirming the register's item count against the last check.
- Foreign body control
- The wider set of controls, glass and brittle plastic, metal, pest and similar, aimed at preventing physical contaminants from reaching product.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about glass and brittle plastic register
What counts as glass or brittle plastic for this register?+
Anything rigid enough to fracture into sharp fragments if broken or struck: viewing panels, light diffusers and fittings, gauge glasses, thermometers, machine covers and similar items. The material category on the item itself, not just literal glass, determines whether it belongs on the register.
Why does the register ask whether an item can be eliminated before asking about shielding?+
Because removing the item is the more durable control. A shielded or guarded item still depends on that protection remaining intact, whereas an eliminated item carries no residual risk regardless of what happens to any shielding around it later.
How often should the register be checked?+
On the frequency set for the site, commonly monthly, but the check interval is a backstop. Any change to a listed item, whether added, moved, replaced or removed, should update the register at the point of the change rather than waiting for the next scheduled check.
What happens to the register when something actually breaks?+
It is the reference point for the breakage response. The response confirms what was listed for that location immediately before the breakage, which is what lets the isolation radius, the reconciliation of pieces, and the product disposition decision be made against a known list rather than an open-ended search of the area.
Does an item outside the processing environment still need to be on the register?+
Yes, though its priority is lower. The register is meant to be complete across the site's production areas, with the zone rating used to set inspection and remediation priority rather than to decide whether an item is tracked at all.
Who is responsible for keeping the register current?+
Quality maintains the register, but currency depends on other functions, particularly maintenance and engineering, notifying quality whenever their work touches a registered item. A register maintained purely on a monthly check cycle will lag behind changes made between checks.
Keep going
Related templates and programmes
Industries this is written for
Programmes this belongs to
Used together in HACCP and Food Safety
Unannounced Audit Readiness Check
Checks whether the site would pass an audit arriving today, covering records, standards and area condition
Product Nonconformance Report
Records product that does not meet specification
Hold and Release Record
Places suspect product on hold and records the decision to release, rework or scrap it
HACCP Plan
The hazard analysis and critical control point plan for a product or process
HACCP Verification Record
Confirms the HACCP plan is being followed and still works
CCP Monitoring Log
Records readings at a critical control point, such as cook temperature, chill time or metal detection
More in Food Safety
HACCP Plan
The hazard analysis and critical control point plan for a product or process
HACCP Verification Record
Confirms the HACCP plan is being followed and still works
CCP Monitoring Log
Records readings at a critical control point, such as cook temperature, chill time or metal detection
Prerequisite Programme Plan
Sets out the basic conditions that must be in place for HACCP to work, covering hygiene, maintenance, pest control and training
Allergen Control Plan
Sets out how allergens are managed from receipt through to labelling, including segregation and changeover
Allergen Changeover Check
Confirms the line is clear of the previous allergen before the next product runs
Written and reviewed by
Siddarth Singh
Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Knowella
Certified Safety Professional and industrial and systems engineer with more than a decade inside food supply chain, freight and manufacturing operations. This page was written against the current text of the standards it cites, not against secondary summaries of them.
- Certified Safety Professional (CSP), Board of Certified Safety Professionals
- MBA, University of Chicago Booth School of Business
- MS and BS, The Ohio State University, Industrial and Systems Engineering
- Six Sigma Black Belt
Sources and last review. Reviewed 16 August 2026 against:
- SQF Code, module 11 — Good Manufacturing Practice requirements, glass and brittle plastic control
- BRCGS Global Standard for Food Safety, clause 4.9 — glass, brittle plastic and ceramics
- SQF Code, module 2.4.2 — corrective and preventive action
This page is general guidance, not legal advice. Confirm requirements with your jurisdiction’s regulator.