Paint. Dry ice. Lithium batteries. Perfume. There are just a few of the seemingly innocuous items that are considered potentially hazardous when they’re in transit. If you sell these or other regulated hazmat goods, there are tight regulations for transporting them. As our Ohio hazmat certified shipping providers can explain, the U.S. Department of Transportation mandates that anyone shipping hazardous materials be both trained and certified. Proper shipping of hazmat materials means correctly packaging, labeling and documenting all items as well. Non-compliance can result in costly legal action – both from government fines and civil liability for injuries. The skillful handling of your hazardous materials is essential for the safety of everyone in the supply chain.

At On Time Delivery & Warehouse, our Ohio hazmat certified shipping teams are experienced in packing, crating and securing these materials to minimize potential risks – from pickup to delivery and every point in between.

Understanding Hazardous Materials Shipping Regulations

Hazmat is a shortened version of the words, “hazardous materials.”

Often we think of “hazardous” materials as those being incredibly dangerous and toxic. But regulations encompass a lot of fairly ordinary items. The reason is because people who store or handle these products – be it on a truck, on a ship, on a plane or in a warehouse – could be hurt if the item leaks, spills, breaks or drops. (Remember the series of incidents involving dozens of workers at separate warehouses sickened when bear spray was accidentally discharged? That’s the kind of thing that can happen with a lot of seemingly harmless items as well if they aren’t packaged and shipped properly.) There are potential risks to the environment and property as well.

Regulators categorize products into nine classifications of hazmat materials, ranked from the most dangerous to minor products. Each class also has sub-classes. Per the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, these are:

• Class 1: Explosives
• Class 2: Gases
• Class 3: Flammable liquid and combustible liquid
• Class 4: Flammable solid, spontaneously combustible and dangerous when wet
• Class 5: Oxidizer and organic peroxide
• Class 6: Poison (toxic) and poison inhalation hazard
• Class 7: Radioactive
• Class 8: Corrosive
• Class 9: Miscellaneous

As our hazmat shipping experts can explain, shipping of these materials can be a complicated process – and there are steep consequences if you get it wrong.

How Ohio Hazmat Certified Shipping Gets Your Goods Where They Need to Go

The exact process for certified hazmat shipping will depend on the exact type of material and its classification. Our customer service team can help explain the process in more detail when you contact us for a free quote. In general though, movement of these products will follow these basic steps.

• Classify the material. Anytime you are shipping hazmat, whoever will be handling the materials must fill out a product safety data sheet (SDS), which helps workers who handle the materials know how to protect themselves and avoid accidents.
• Choose appropriate, safe packaging. Depending on the kind of product you’re selling, there may be very specific laws about packaging. Potentially dangerous liquids, for instance, need to be packaged in drums, though the material of the drum (which can impact weight and storage) will depend on the kind of liquid.
• Mark and label your package. Hazardous materials must be marked a certain way depending on their class, weight, ID number, etc. Our team of Ohio hazmat certified shipping providers can help make sure all regulations are followed to the letter. Understand that labeling and packaging errors as seemingly minor as the wrong orientation of an arrow can cause serious snags in your shipment plans.
• Properly prepare all shipping papers. Depending on the materials, sometimes additional papers are necessary to safely ship hazmat items – information ranging from packing group, quantity number, type of packages, emergency contacts, etc. Filing all of this properly and promptly ensures your shipments aren’t unnecessarily delayed. We can help.

As a third-party logistics (3PL) company, On Time Delivery & Warehouse helps clients not only ship orders of hazardous materials, but store, pick and pack them as well. Because there are so many rules and regulations pertaining to hazmat shipping, it’s imperative that your 3PL partner is trained, certified and experienced.

Contact On Time Delivery & Warehouse by calling (440) 826-4630 or sending us an email.

Additional Resources:

How to Comply with Federal Hazardous Materials Regulations, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

More Blog Entries:

Demand for FDA-Registered Warehousing to Grow Rapidly in Next 5 Years, Feb. 27, 2021, Cleveland 3PL Blog