How to handle dangerous goods

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Are you in compliance with the legal requirements for shipping dangerous goods?

When your company has to transport dangerous goods, safety must be taken into account and a number of rules must be followed. Read more in this blog post to learn more about your responsibilities and how to comply.

Blue Water has extensive experience in the transport and handling of dangerous goods. We ensure that all relevant employees are continuously trained according to legislation and that equipment complies with applicable standards.

Please note that this guide to dangerous goods is an introduction to dangerous goods regulations, but cannot be considered a complete set of rules. It is also important to consider the different sets of rules that apply depending on the mode of transport. You are always welcome to contact your local Blue Water office for further information.

What are dangerous goods?

Dangerous goods are substances or objects that pose an immediate risk to people, the environment or property in various ways. This also applies to infrastructure and means of transport, and therefore there are higher requirements to fulfil for these shipments.

When it comes to the transport of dangerous goods, different legislations apply depending on which modes of transport are involved. The international regulations include the following:

  • Road transport: ADR convention
  • Sea freight: IMDG code
  • Air freight: ICAO/IATA DGR
  • Rail transport: RID Convention

Your responsibility as sender of dangerous goods

As a shipper of dangerous goods, you are obliged to know the properties of the product. This means, among other things, knowledge in relation to:

  • Classification of the product according to transport legislation. This includes: UN number, substance name, hazard class, packing group, tunnel code and any environmental impact. The classification will appear from the product's safety data sheet or can be provided by the manufacturer. Example of classification: UN1230, Methanol, 3(6.1), II, (D/E).
  • Packaging in UN-approved packaging (both outer and inner packaging) suitable for the product.
  • Rules regarding free, restricted and exempted goods (read on for further definition).
  • Labelling with correct hazard and handling labels. In addition, the UN number must always be labelled. Sea freight must also be labelled with the substance name and air freight with the full name and address of both sender and recipient.

Documentation of dangerous goods

Dangerous goods shipments must be accompanied by a transport document that provides information about:

  • Shipper + consignee
  • UN number
  • Substance name
  • Class, primary and any secondary
  • Number and type of packaging
  • Quantity of dangerous goods

For sea and air freight, there are also a number of additional information requirements.

Blue Water offers to issue dangerous goods documents for a fee. However, this requires that we receive all relevant information about the product, including classification.

Important about the Safety Data Sheet (SDS)

Dangerous substances or objects that pose an acute risk to people or the environment are classified as dangerous goods. The characteristics of the substance - including first aid instructions and proper firefighting - are described in the product's Safety Data Sheet (SDS), which very rarely accompanies the goods during transport as it is not a legal requirement. However, if an accident should occur somewhere in the transport process, quick access to the correct handling information can be crucial.

With this in mind, we recommend that our customers attach a QR code label to the outside of the shipping packaging that leads to the product's SDS. In this way, we keep each other safe.

Other information

Safety data sheet/SDS: A safety data sheet is a document that describes the properties of the goods. You must ensure that the recipient of the shipment receives the safety data sheet in the local language. However, it is not required that the SDS accompanies the goods during transport.

Insurance: Blue Water arranges cargo insurance in cooperation with a recognised insurance company. For further information about transport insurance for dangerous goods, please contact your contact person at Blue Water.

Safety advisor requirement: If your company ships dangerous goods, it is likely that your company is required to have a safety advisor.

Training requirements: It is a legal requirement that personnel involved in packaging, labelling, document production and transport handling have received function-specific training, i.e. targeted to the employee's work area. This applies to both your employees and Blue Water's.

Fees: Shipments containing dangerous goods are subject to a fee per shipment to cover legal requirements.

Exemption rules

Exempt goods: Certain products may be exempt from regulations on one or more modes of transport. Any requirements for exemption can be found in section 14 of the safety data sheet.

Exempt quantity: Only applies to road transport and relates to the total amount of dangerous goods transported on a vehicle. A large number of rules still apply, exemptions include primarily the driver's training and the safety equipment carried. The calculations are based on the weight of the dangerous goods and the package group. The goods must still be labelled with a hazard label matching the class.

LQ/Limited quantity: Some types of dangerous goods may be transported in larger quantities under certain conditions. However, provided they are packed in combination packaging and the maximum quantity in the inner packaging for the substance in question is observed. UN-approved packaging is not required, but packaging of the same strength and stability. A special label is used.

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