Why am I, as a private rail shipper, responsible for providing rail safety training to my employees?
If you have employees who operate mobile railcar movers or locomotives within your facility you are required to train your employees on the operation of that equipment, and to follow all manufacturer recommendations for safe operation of the equipment.
The new edition of the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) code will be published and released by the end of the year and there are several changes that should be noted. Compliance with the new changes is optional begin January 1, 2019 but is mandatory January 1, 2020.
Some of the noted changes that were stated by the IMO organization include:
Whether shipping a hazardous material by ground, rail, air or vessel many factors play a role in determining which provisions of the regulations will keep your shipments in compliance. Regulations, by their very nature, can be confusing to interpret no matter how many times you read them. Applying the exceptions and additional requirements within the regulations can cause even a seasoned shipper an occasional headache. For some employees, being able to take a training concept and apply it to their real life shipping situation is scary at best.
Did you know that the IATA 59th Edition went into effect as of January 1, 2018? These regulations will be mandatory as of January 1, 2019. Some of these regulation changes may affect your company and how they ship dangerous goods.
A list of the significant changes that may affect your dangerous good shipment is as follow:
If your company ships dangerous goods by air, it is essential that your employees are aware and properly trained on the current IATA regulations. The 59th edition of the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations includes the changes issued by ICAO to the 2017-2018 editions of the Technical Instructions. The changes may affect your company’s current operations Not sure if a regulation affects you?
The HM-215N is a regulation that would have harmonized the 49 CFR HMR with the 19th revised edition of the UN model regulations, the 2016 IMDG Code and the 2017/2018 ICAO Technical Instructions.58th Edition of the IATA DGR. As of January 1st new battery marks were available to consumers, which many battery shippers in the US started to purchase to prepare for harmonization of the regulation.
Effective January 1, 2017, UPS and Fed Ex added more restrictive requirements for shipping Section II Lithium batteries by Air than those imposed by the IATA regulations.
UPS Air service:
All US Air and International Air shipments of lithium ion or metal cells and batteries shipped without equipment must be prepared and shipped as fully regulated. UPS will no longer allow air shipments prepared according to:
Companies who produce, distribute, sell or recycle hazmat must have strict internal operations and security plans, that ensure safe processing and handling of all chemicals – they must also arrange for safe transportation of their chemical components. This often requires the assistance of a 3rd party transportation provider, who has their own transportation restrictions. When combined with the compliance requirements set forth by the DOT, a detailed hazmat safety and security plan must be in place.
