It is not necessary to sell or distribute explosives in order to see yourself confronted with the necessity of preparing dangerous goods for shipment.
Flammable liquids such as perfumes and acetone for example, must be treated as hazardous goods, as these substances by their nature are products characterized as dangerous and therefore regulated by universally valid norms.
Given that the cycle of shipment, transport and distribution of dangerous goods is a protracted process that requires multiple steps, we will take a quick look at all that is necessary to ensure a secure shipment.
It is a fact that one cannot become an expert overnight in this field that is as complex as the shipment of dangerous goods. One mistake can cause tremendous damage to the ecosystem as well as monetary loss and given the worst-case scenario, can cause irreversible damage to the wildlife.
That’s why the first step is inquiring information. In the contemporary world, we have a lot of instruments to get the information we need, as for example through the internet. There are a lot of company blogs, which publish articles on these topics in a simple and intuitive way, in order to provide their readers with the most important information in the shortest time possible, which, considering the complex subject, is not always easy.
If on one hand the internet can help you get lots of information in the fastest way possible, it cannot guarantee you on the other hand the know-how that an expert could provide you with, in order to ship dangerous goods in autonomy.
That’s why our second advice is to ask for the consultancy of an expert: enquiring professional support, will guarantee you in any case the best results in terms of efficiency and professionalism. An expert is able to guide you towards the right packaging and labeling of your dangerous goods and can help you to minimize the waste of resources.
If the packaging containing perfume is made of glass it has a permitted capacity of 10 L, 40 L if made of metal and 30 L if made of plastic. The outer packaging must, in case of a cardboard box, be certified as 4G or 4GV. The maximum gross weight of one single package must not exceed 400 kg, while the transport unit does not have any limit to its capacity.
Regarding labeling and marking of PG II perfume packages, they must show hazard class 3 label (red with a fire symbol), the package orientation (this way up) on the two opposite sides of the package, the UN number UN1266 and the UN mark. These prerequisites are valid for all regulations currently in place. When looking at transport by sea (and also by air), it is necessary to apply onto the package the proper shipping name (PSN) and the UN Number, in our case UN1266 “PERFUMERY PRODUCTS”.
The choice of packaging for PG III is the same one as in PG II. The biggest difference lies in the capacity limit of the transport unit, which is 1000 L.
In the case of a limited quantity shipment, the difference between PG II and PG III does not exist, but there is a difference in the prerequisites of the packaging.
The inner packaging must not accede a maximum of 5 L per package, while the total gross weight of the whole package must not exceed 30 kg. There is also a change to marking and labeling. The hazard class labels are not applicable in this case, as the Limited Quantity has its own marking (diamond-shaped black and white). The package itself does not have to be UN certified, but must comply with the norms stated in chapter 6.1.4, which are very similar to the prerequisites of homologated packaging, but without the UN mark on it. It should be noted that every UN certified packaging can be used for shipment in limited quantity.