When you're in the supply chain business, it's vital to get deliveries to recipients ASAP. You want to keep your clients happy and reduce costs at the same time. However, many supply chain companies also end up having to ship dangerous goods at some point.
This situation is a serious one, not to take lightly. To ensure hazardous items make it in one piece to their destination, and that no harm comes to any people, animals, or the environment along the way, you must take responsible steps to keep items secure. Note that you face significant penalties if you don't take the right precautions, too. However, provided you and your team are proactive and careful, you should keep everyone, including your organization, safe from harm.
Identifying Dangerous Goods
The first thing to do is become aware of what qualifies as a hazardous good. Know which items fall under the dangerous goods banner, so you know which packages to handle and transport securely at all times. Some risky items are obvious, but not all. Hazardous goods can be gases, liquids, or solids, and they have an inherent property that could pose a risk to any individual living organism, or the environment, if not correctly controlled.
Dangerous items sometimes have a strong odor, but can also have no odor at all. They may be hot or cold or anything in between, and they may, if not handled properly, have catastrophic, fatal effects or minimal negative consequences. Hazardous packages get classified into different categories. Items within each category need to be handled and transported in different ways. Dangerous goods are identified according to whether they're poisonous, explosive, flammable, or otherwise risky.
Some of the seemingly innocuous things often classed as hazardous are batteries, nail polish, perfume, and paint. Each country has different rules about classifications, so if you're dealing with international goods or shipments, look into the laws of the nation where you are shipping to or from to ensure you follow all necessary regulations.
Packaging
One of the key parts of shipping dangerous goods is using the right packaging to protect items. You may not always have control over packaging if you're shipping other people's items, but you can set rules for clients to follow. Also, if your company is in charge of packaging hazardous items in-house, you need to know how to do so safely.
Place dangerous goods inside containers with adequate cushioning and closures. Risky pieces should be packed amongst absorbent materials to contain any leaks and assure safety if issues happen in transit. It's also necessary to identify hazardous goods clearly on packaging so that handlers know to be extra careful.
Use shock recorder tools and other helpful signs and stickers to alert people to the potentially dangerous contents of packages. Such materials can also warn handlers if hazardous items get damaged in transit or become more dangerous for another reason.
Training
Quality training is vital too. All personnel who handle and create paperwork for potentially hazardous materials must know their roles in identifying and handling dangerous packages securely. Anyone involved in a relevant process along a parcel's journey should know the specific tasks they have to complete and the order in which to do these jobs. Workers must also know things to avoid that could damage parcels and how to minimize risks if hazardous goods become more dangerous at any point.
Plus, training should fill employees and contractors in on the consequences the business faces if not everyone takes their responsibilities seriously. Explain to workers the significant fines and other legal ramifications that could be imposed if non-compliance issues arise.
Processes
Reduce the likelihood of problems occurring when shipping hazardous materials by putting set processes and checklists in place for staff members to follow. Create documents that detail, step by step, what must be done when creating shipping documents for dangerous items, handling such goods, transporting them, and then passing them off to others, such as couriers at final locations. People are less likely to forget important steps when they have an easy-to-understand, updated, and complete description of exactly what needs to happen.
It's wise to create checks and balances to ensure people don't become complacent. Make it a requirement that labels and packaged goods get checked by someone so a fresh pair of eyes hopefully spot mistakes. Also, have workers take a photo of all hazardous goods at each step to both verify and prove parcel condition at the time.
Shipping dangerous items is a common yet stressful part of running a supply chain business. Provided you follow all the steps listed above, though, you should be able to protect your organization from liability, and the world from harm.
