HCB Magazine December 2018

EDITOR’S LETTER

This month we report back from the EPCA Annual Meeting, held in an unseasonably warm Vienna at the start of October. As ever, the meeting attracted the great and the good from all points in the chemical supply chain, with executives from far and wide treated to a well-appointed few days in the company of their customers and suppliers.

EPCA had drawn up a programme that featured some surprises, not least in terms of the willingness of senior speakers to be candid about their companies’ efforts in the area of sustainability. The promised focus on ‘smart’ and climate-resilient cities also turned out to be more relevant than might have been expected.

Amid all these insights and the gladhanding, however, there was another surprise. HCB spoke to plenty of logistics providers while we were there and they all had the same hot topic to talk about: drivers. Or, more specifically, the increasing difficulty they are having in recruiting and retaining drivers.

This is not a new problem and it is not unique to Europe –much the same is happening in other developed markets. But it is now becoming critical. So far, European hauliers have managed to keep going by attracting drivers from eastern Europe (meanwhile, of course, hauliers in eastern Europe have had to recruit from yet further east). But that tap will only run for so long before it runs dry.

Offering more cash doesn’t seem to work – rates for drivers have gone up and up but, while it may have had some impact on driver retention, it is not attracting new blood. Hauliers are spending heavily on new, more comfortable cabs with better equipment but it seems that young people in the developed world simply do not see driving a truck as being a worthwhile career.

Hauliers are also struggling with the problem of an ageing driver pool and competition from local delivery companies, buoyed by the never-ending boom in internet shopping. Those who want to drive can easily find a way to do so and still get home every evening.

One company that spoke to HCB during the EPCA Annual Meeting even suggested that some recent merger activity in the European haulage industry represented attempts to ‘buy’ drivers.

However, a comment more commonly heard was that ‘drivers want to drive’. That is to say, they do not want to spend their finite hours of service sitting in traffic jams, nor waiting for hours at a loading site. It seems ridiculous that, with such a shortage in driver numbers, those that are employed are spending so much of their time not driving.

Chemical manufacturers could help by making sure that consignments are ready at the loading dock or rack when the truck turns up. In these increasingly inter-connected times, it should not be beyond the wit of the developers of telematics solutions to tie those links in the supply chain more closely together.

Some independent loading locations, particularly in the bulk liquids storage sector, have made much of their ability to turn trucks around quickly. As the driver shortage gets worse, shippers may look more favourably on those sites that can do this. If that confers a noticeable competitive advantage for the businesses concerned, then other sites may be forced to follow suit. And not before time.

Peter Mackay

CONTENTS

VOLUME

UP FRONT

Letter from the Editor

Years Ago

by Training

CHEMICAL LOGISTICS

Chemicals mit Schlagsahne Reporting back from EPCA

Service-centric

RSA Talke adds to Dubai capabilities

Future-proof Intermodal Europe hears what’s coming

Lifeline for logistics Dachser building in Germany

TANKS

Revving up ITCO programmes to promote tank use

To Russia and beyond

A growing market for tank containers

and safe

Thielmann presses quality issues

the bleach Blackmer pumps work well with peroxide

News bulletin – tanks and logistics

PLASTICS DRUMS

Friend or foe?

Measuring the impact of plastics

Listing of plastics drum manufacturers

News bulletin – industrial packaging

CHEMICAL DISTRIBUTION

Down in the mouth CBA members not so upbeat

News bulletin – chemical distribution

STORAGE TERMINALS

Seeking synergy Inter buys NuStar’s European sites

News bulletin – storage terminals

COURSES & CONFERENCES

Training courses

Conference diary

Commercial

SAFETY Incident Log

Safe and sustainable

Tank containers survive

We can work it out

ECTA critical of SQAS update

REGULATIONS

Line ‘em up

Lots of changes to Model Regulations 52

Casting off

What’s new in the IMDG Code 60

Get out of that

US provides some relief 62

Acid retort

CBA has issues with security rule 63

BACK PAGE

Not otherwise specified

NEXT MONTH

Storage terminals – world markets

Tank containers – equipment news

Focus on rail logistics

compliance and training

Managing

Media

30 YEARS AGO

A LOOK BACK AT DECEMBER 1988

Thirty years ago, the last issue of the year led with a special feature on road tankers. It included our annual listing of UK-based road tanker operators, a list that was then far longer than it is now, when those hauliers willing and able to move liquid chemicals in bulk can almost be counted on the fingers of one hand.

Intriguingly, some of the coverage in the December 1988 issue is almost the mirror image of what we have been writing about lately, in respect of the UK industry’s relationship with continental Europe. We spoke in 1988 to Tankfreight, which was then one of the two largest road tanker specialists in the UK alongside P&O Roadtanks, about its plans ahead of the introduction of the EU free market in 1992 and the opening of the Channel Tunnel.

In May 1988 the Freight Transport Association (FTA) had surveyed its members and found that 79 per cent of UK transport companies had made no provision for the single European market; a similar survey this year found that a similar percentage had made no provision for the UK’s exit from the single market, albeit they still have no firm idea of the trading conditions after March 2019.

But back to 1988; Tankfreight said it had begun to establish a presence “on the continent”, opening an office in the Netherlands. Market research had shown that customers were likely to want a comprehensive, value-adding service that included storage and cleaning as well as haulage. Tankfreight reckoned that this would mean turning itself from a pure road tanker operator to a multimodal company with half its tanks being tank containers or swap tanks.

It was also expecting to make use of cooperative arrangements and joint ventures with established European firms.

Over on the regulations pages, 1988 was drawing to a close with a hefty dose of major amendments and updates. The UN Group of Rapporteurs – the forerunner of today’s Sub-committee of Experts –was finalising work on organic peroxides. Or at least, it though it was, as the list of organic peroxides grows larger every year (and will do so again in 2019). Also finalised in 1988 were new leakproofness tests for aerosols and provisional definitions for ‘reused packaging’ and ‘reconditioned packaging’.

At a previous session, the USSR (as it still was) had proposed a fundamental overhaul of Chapter 12 of the Orange Book but this was headed off at the pass as most delegates felt a re-write of the provisions for tank containers would lead to endless headaches. Still, the USSR enlisted the help of the UK and Canada with two new papers on the degree of filling and minimum test pressures, pointing towards further long-running discussions.

Elsewhere, the IMO was beginning to realise that the HNS Convention, designed to do for hazardous and noxious substances what the International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund had already done for oil, was going to be a headache to implement. Indeed, as we said then, it “proved an impossible task for the IMO’s Legal Committee”.

And for those who still wonder why ammonia gets an easy ride in the US, we reported on the concerted efforts of the farming lobby to prohibit the US DOT from re-classifying it as a toxic gas.

LEARNING BY TRAINING

By Arend van Campen STAR STUFF

Last week I drove back from Rotterdam to my home town in Switzerland. When I reached the Vosges Mountains in the vicinity of Strasbourg, a dense fog covered the valley as if an ocean of cotton protected the land underneath. The sun appeared in the east as it was dawning. I was thinking: the sun warms us, this blanket of clouds protects us and I could not help a sudden thought from entering my mind that we are probably alone in this universe.

Our lives, work and loves have to be lived on this earth, which provides us all we need to live well, but only if we stay in harmony with her. 92 elements in a multitude of combinations form all life, even yours and mine. Cosmologists confirm that these elements originate from stars in the universe and somehow ended up on our planet, which miraculously happened to be exactly in the right position. We are literally made up from star stuff, or stardust if you will.

The sun that warms us, clothes us and provides us with the necessary means to survive, is at a safe distance from us at 149.6m km. If she were farther away we would freeze. If she came any closer, we’d be fried. Somehow these stardust atoms agreed on a right mixture of hydrogen and oxygen which formed the water to drink. This water, in combination with many of the 92 other elements, then formed our body, our brain and our blood.

Oxygen was designed because it pleased these atoms to combine two oxygen particles. These two atoms then cooperated in an exact equilibrium with millions of trees to keep up production of O² and

clean our atmosphere, of course in collaboration with everything else in the environment and ourselves, as users and dependents.

This took and is taking time. A continued process of construction and destruction of combined elements provides life.

When I reached Strasbourg, I was wondering if policy makers such as EU Commissioners, their political friends and business relations would also contemplate how to sustain life on earth? I came to the conclusion that they either are not aware of the beauty and incredible creativity of living systems or refuse to see. Their agenda seems to be filled with the pursuit of political and business interests that in fact are harming and jeopardising the life-sustaining particles of our stars and sun.

Life on earth is being sacrificed for the interests of a few. Scientific evidence of harmful industrial production is being ignored. Pollution of seas and soil are condoned. Stephen Hawking stated that humanity will not survive another 1,000 years.

Perhaps I am a pessimist, but I’d like to think that I am a realist. We have to change our transportation, production, sales, marketing, manufacturing from their path dependency into a form which supports life. Perhaps we can all become stargazers so we don’t feel alone anymore.

This is the latest in a series of articles by Arend van Campen, founder of TankTerminalTraining. More information on the company’s activities can be found at www.tankterminaltraining.com. Those interested in responding personally can contact him directly at arendvc@tankterminaltraining.com.

CHEMICALS MIT

THE EUROPEAN PETROCHEMICAL Association (EPCA) held its 52nd Annual Meeting in Vienna this past 7 to 10 October with a focus on the low-carbon economy, sustainability, energy efficiency and climateresilient cities. All of these are vital topics in respect of the long-term viability of the European petrochemical industry and well worth discussing, but it was perhaps not the conference sessions – nor the unseasonably warm early autumn weather than made Vienna such a beautiful location – that drew almost 2,750 registered delegates to the event.

Rather, EPCA’s Annual Meeting provides a focus for chemical and petrochemical manufacturers, their customers and their logistics service providers (LSPs) to meet in

one convenient venue and discuss business for the upcoming year. While they are doing so, they can take advantage of the insights offered by high-profile speakers during the business sessions, while also being treated to a sumptuous opening buffet dinner at the elegant Rathaus. The meeting, of course, also offers a bonus for many of the hotels in Vienna, not least the three venues ringing the Stadtpark where many delegates were staying and where the main events were held.

And of course the Annual Meeting reflects the business conditions under which industry is operating. Marc Schuller, executive vicepresident of Arkema France and appearing at the Annual Meeting for the first time as president of EPCA, explained in his opening

address at the start of the first business session that the sector is now “living in interesting times” – the emerging trade wars, uncertainty over the price of oil, the unknowable impact of Brexit, and so on.

On top of that, there are broader trends that will undoubtedly affect how the petrochemical industry operates around the world, not least the push for decarbonisation and sustainable production and logistics. EPCA’s mission is, Schuller said, to support sustainable petrochemical operations. The Annual Meeting would, he added, focus on how industry can manage the transition to a lowcarbon future, something that will bring both challenges and opportunities.

Schuller had some supportive words for delegates in attendance. Europe remains one of the largest markets for petrochemicals and has a strong record of innovation. It is, then, well placed to drive developments.

LISTEN TO THE CHAIN

Introducing the keynote address, regular moderator Nadine Dereza explained that the session would look at sustainability through the prism of energy-efficient and climateresilient cities. Some in the audience may have wondered how that focus on the ‘smart’

cities of the future could have relevance for the petrochemicals sector but, by the end of the session, they were left in no doubt.

The keynote speaker was Prof Carlo F Ratti, director of the Senseable City Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and founding partner of Carlo Ratti Associati. He focused on the role of cities in modern life and their impact on the environment: cities take up just 2 per cent of the earth’s surface but are home to half of the world’s population, he said; more importantly for a sustainable future, they also create 80 per cent of global pollution. As a result, focusing on ‘smart’ cities can make a big difference in the long term.

“Today we know very well where things come from – but not where they go,” Ratti began. Addressing ‘sustainability’ has to take into account the disposal chain, not just the manufacturing and delivery chain. In any sustainable city, waste management is a key issue.

Prof Ratti reported on an experiment carried out to track goods being put into the disposal chain by individuals in Seattle. He had been surprised by the length of some of those chains, especially those that ended in recycling rather than just disposal to landfill. Indeed, he said, some chains were so long that they used far more energy in transport than could ever be recovered by recycling.

The experiment had relied on some new technology to track and map the movement of wastes and Prof Ratti explained that investment in such technology was worthwhile. It is only through having the data available that behaviour can be changed. And, he said, “When you get machines to talk to you, they tell you unexpected things.”

ROLE OF INDUSTRY

Prof Ratti was joined in the session by two other speakers. First was Saori Dubourg, member of the board of executive directors at BASF, who said that the petrochemical industry has grown in recent years by globalising and taking advantage of the emergence of new demand areas; the industry is now having to look at value rather than just volume. Part of that involves sustainable operations.

“If you react, you are too late,” Ms Dubourg said. And as a leader in the global petrochemical sphere, BASF took it upon itself to speak to leading non-governmental organisations to discover what it is they need from industry to deliver a more sustainable future. It was clear that sustainability must encompass energy efficiency, the end of carbon-based energy and the creation of cities designed for sustainability.

Ms Dubourg had a few questions. How can the petrochemical industry contribute to improving the sustainability of existing buildings? What does in mean for new buildings? And what can be measured in terms of the impact of any changes?

Taking a practical approach, BASF looked at its own Brunck district, which had been created in the 1930s to house workers at its Ludwigshafen plant. Through the use of innovative materials and design, it has achieved an 80 per cent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions and cut heating fuel consumption by more than 75 per cent.

In terms of new construction, one of the major environmental impacts is found in concrete, production of which accounts for around 5 per cent of the world’s total carbon dioxide emissions. There are ways to mitigate this, Ms Dubourg said, such as the use of recycled materials (fly ash, for instance) in the manufacture of concrete. A more radical

solution is to move away from concrete altogether and to use a modular system of construction that applies reusable and/or recyclable materials, and in which individual elements of the building can be taken apart and moved elsewhere. Echoing her introduction, she said: “It’s about creating value, not volume.”

In response to a question from the floor, asking whether this move from ‘volume’ to ‘value’ means a greater concentration on niche activities, Ms Dubourg said this is not necessarily the case. What is important is that the industry has to speak up and address the emotional needs of the public.

THE COST OF DOING GOOD

Ms Dubourg also provided an insight into BASF’s thinking on financial reporting. In this new world where environmental concerns and sustainability goals are becoming ever-more important, are established accountancy practices relevant any longer?

BASF has been looking at accounting for the environmental and societal impact of its activities, she explained.

Ms Dubourg provided some figures that, she said, had never before been seen in public. They showed how BASF had managed to account for the environmental impact of its operations and products but, in the opposite column, it also took account of the buying »

power of its workforce and the taxes it paid: industrial activity provides benefits to the broader economy. Happily for BASF, this extended P&L sheet still showed the company in the black.

Also on the panel was Yousef Abdullah al-Benyan, vice-chairman and CEO of Sabic (below). He agreed that the aim of ‘smart’ cities is to reduce emissions, energy consumption and waste generation. Homes already exist that can do that and they, along with other sustainability efforts, will be employed in the new ‘Neom’ development planned by Saudi Arabia. Neom aims to be the new commercial and technological hub for the kingdom, located in a 26,500-km² area on the Red Sea coast and powered entirely by solar and other renewable energy forms.

The plans revealed by Al-Benyan supported his contention that sustainability is a common theme for the petrochemical industry across the world. It will take innovation and changes to perception, mindset and business models, he said.

During the panel session that followed, AlBenyan said that the chemical industry has to get away from its internal focus. It has always used a B2B business model but it is becoming increasingly important to look at B2C models. “Think of solutions, not projects,” he urged. Europe needs to focus on its strengths in technological innovations – this is where it has a ‘feedstock advantage’, he said.

Carlo Ratti agreed that a B2C focus would help the petrochemical industry find the course it needs to take, but also stressed the need for collaboration, for instance with architects. Ms Dubourg agreed, adding that an open and honest dialogue is needed with governments and non-governmental organisations. As part of that, industry needs to be honest about what is technically achievable.

Discussion moved on to the increasingly high-profile issue of plastics pollution which, it was said, “has the potential to ruin the [petrochemical] industry’s reputation”. There are technologies that can help, said Ms Dubourg, but there is a need for more collection and recycling schemes and more

collaboration between industry and public authorities. “It’s a wonderful opportunity,” she said. “Consumers will still need products and the petrochemical industry will have to come up with solutions.”

Al-Benyan agreed, but, returning to his earlier comments, he said that there is a need to bring end consumers into the loop if producers are to be able to effectively take their polymer products back and disrupt the disposal cycle.

WHERE’S THE TALENT?

That ‘feedstock advantage’ mentioned by Al-Benyan in terms of Europe’s history of innovation will rely on industry’s ability to recruit the talent necessary to come up with new ideas in the modern world. This has been one of EPCA’s main work areas in recent years and, once again, an entire session was devoted to talent and diversity, introduced by Nathalie Brunelle, senior vice-president of corporate affairs at Total Petrochemicals & Refining and chair of EPCA’s Talent and Diversity Inclusion Council (TDIC).

As moderator Nadine Dereza said ahead of the presentations, the European petrochemical industry has to rethink its position in an increasingly competitive environment. That means it needs to recruit and retain talent – all talent, regardless of gender, age, etc.

The keynote speaker was Prof Wayne Visser, holder of the BASF-Port of Antwerp-Randstad Chair in Sustainable Transformation at Antwerp Management School (AMS). He described three current crises that have a bearing on talent in industry: 85 per cent of employees report a lack of engagement with their work. This leads to lower productivity, more errors and greater staff turnover; The wage gap between men and women is getting bigger, despite efforts to highlight the issue; and ocean pollution has suddenly rocketed into the public consciousness.

Prof Visser also highlighted what he described as a “huge” generation gap, with young people – some of them future leaders – feeling that industry is not delivering a social function.

Paying attention to sustainability can help overcome these issues; a survey carried

out by AMS and ING earlier this year found that, while the main drivers for a company paying attention to sustainability are national and international standards and legislation, the ideas of employees are not far behind. Similarly, the benefits to a company of taking sustainability seriously include an improved corporate image but also enhanced employee engagement; companies also report that a sustainable image makes them more attractive to potential employees.

Quoting another 2016 study, Prof Visser said that sustainable companies experience improved employee morale, 38 per cent better loyalty, reduced staff turnover – by between 25 and 50 per cent – and financial savings on recruitment activities.

This is, though, not a stand-alone initiative. A focus on integrated value looks for innovation synergies through solutions that are not only sustainable but are secure (resilient), smart (using advanced IT), shared (connected) and satisfying for employees.

SUSTAINABLE SUPPLY

For many HCB readers, it would have been the logistics and supply chain session that would have been the big draw, although to focus solely on that would have led delegates to miss out on some challenging presentations elsewhere. But EPCA had certainly done well to get Prof Yossi Sheffi, Elisha Gray II Professor of Engineering Systems at MIT and

director of the MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics, to give the keynote address.

In introducing Prof Sheffi, Johan Devos, chair of EPCA’s Supply Chain Programme Committee and sales director at Bertschi, noted that the subject of the session, ‘Innovation and Innovative Concepts for a More Sustainable Supply Chain’, was in line with the rest of the EPCA Annual Meeting and represented a core part of EPCA’s strategy in respect of logistics and supply chain management.

Coming straight to the point of his topic, Prof Sheffi said that “going green is not black and white” and promised to give the audience a balanced and realistic view of what can and should be done to promote sustainability in the chemical supply chain. It is not straightforward to determine where to start: for most companies, two-thirds of their end-to-end carbon emissions are found in their upstream supply chain but for others most emissions are in the use phase. There is, therefore, no simple way to determine a company’s overall environmental impact.

To illustrate the point, Prof Sheffi looked at the comparative environmental impact of different ways of drying hands – paper towels, cotton towel reels, electric dryers, and the new breed of Xlerator and Dyson jet dryers. One variable is the source of the electricity used – which can make standard electric dryers the worst of all in environmental terms, if dirty fuels are used to generate the power.

Not only is a carrying out a lifecycle environmental impact assessment an uncertain business, but it can be exceptionally lengthy and costly. Retailer Tesco started with a project to define the lifecycle impact of the products in its stores but it took a year to look at 125 product lines; as it has around 90,000 lines, it would take centuries to get through everything.

Nonetheless, Prof Sheffi said, even for sceptics it makes a lot of sense to act on sustainability. Eco-efficiency saves money; taking a stand on sustainability guards against consumer boycotts; and developing an offering in the ‘green’ market is attractive to a lot of consumers, not least the young. But, as we know too well from elsewhere, consumers may conveniently overlook their desire for green alternatives if they turn out to be more expensive or less convenient.

Companies looking to asses or improve their lifecycle sustainability may well not know who their ‘deep tier’ suppliers are as there is no commercial relationship between them. This is particularly true in commodity markets. Ultimately, Prof Sheffi said, it is difficult for OEM producers to become more sustainable.

A ROLE FOR ALL

In recent years there has been a lot of talk of the ‘triple bottom line’ and the need to balance profits with people and the planet. But, Prof Sheffi said, a more pertinent balancing act happens between people who want a clean environment and people who want jobs and affordable stuff – especially as they are the same people! There has to be a trade-off.

Government regulation is not the answer and, Prof Sheffi said, can even become part of the problem, pushing consumer behaviour in the wrong direction. Manufacturers – and this includes the chemical industry – must develop a closer relationship with their end customers; they are the ones who will tell manufacturers what they want and what they will be willing to pay.

Appearing on the panel alongside Prof Sheffi were Dr Christoph Gürtler, head of catalysis and technology incubation at Covestro Deutschland, and Jörg Erdmann, senior director of sustainability management at Hapag-Lloyd. Dr Gürtler outlined how Covestro is “re-investigating raw materials”, leveraging

its expertise to investigate new ways of creating hydrocarbon-based chemicals.

Petrochemicals rely on carbon, which are primarily sourced from oil and gas – these are finite resources, so there is a need for new feedstocks, Dr Gürtler said. Ideally that would involve the use of carbon dioxide. Covestro has already developed a way of using carbon dioxide in the production of polyurethane foam, via CO²-based polyols. Mattresses using such foam are already on sale and Covestro is now looking at other applications.

Covestro is also examining other sources of carbon, including biomass, which is easily available and can be applied to the manufacture of bio-aniline, and at noncarbon polymers. In all these applications, there is a need for the right catalyst, which is where Covestro finds a role. There is also a need for collaboration as there are various skills needed.

Jörg Erdmann explained how the container shipping industry is playing a role in improving sustainability in the supply chain; the maritime sector as a whole is currently looking at ways to meet the restrictions on

sulphur content in bunker fuels imposed by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) that will take effect in January 2020. Erdmann revealed that Hapag-Lloyd is investigating hybrid fuels; he also said that refiners and terminal operators are making preparations to meet the new requirements. There are, though, some problems to be resolved: location will be an issue he said – will shipowners be able to take on the right fuel in the right place? Also, he noted, there is as yet no ISO standard for 0.5 per cent sulphur fuel oil.

WORDS FROM THE WISE

Prof Sheffi began the subsequent panel discussion by observing that much of what business says about sustainability is “mostly for show”. It is important, he said, “to separate the PR from the numbers”. For instance, while there is a new focus on plastics in the ocean, most plastics waste begins its journey into the seas from rivers in China and elsewhere in Asia. So, while action is now being taken, it is in the wrong place.

“If we’re going to move the needle rather than the PR, it will take global action to find solutions to carbon sequestration, maritime and atmospheric pollution and other issues,” Prof Sheffi said. This will take a whole lot of money – but to make it seem more affordable, perhaps a sum of around 1 per cent of global GDP would make the difference.

More fundamentally, though, any change will require a different metric that the world – including the financial world – can agree on that will help track developments.

The finale of the EPCA Annual Meeting takes place over lunch; each year the Association finds a speaker of the highest calibre to address delegates and this year was no exception.

Prof Steven Chu, former US Secretary of Energy from 2009 to 2013, Nobel laureate and Professor at Stanford University, took up where last year’s speaker, former UN secretary-

general Ban-Ki Moon, had left off, talking about the challenges and opportunities that lie in “solving the climate change challenge”.

Prof Chu opened by saying he had some bad news and some good news to impart. The bad news is that there is now doubt about the impact of anthropogenic climate change, which started in earnest in the 1970s. That is driving more frequent forest fires, more frequent droughts and more intense storms, each of which is delivering its own problems.

On the upside, wind energy and solar power are now cost-comparable with gas-powered electricity generation in the US – without subsidy. Still, costs will need to come down yet further if renewables are to be the main source of energy. The world will still need back-up sources and then there is the cost of installing new distribution systems and working out the best ways to store energy.

Prof Chu listed some of the current developments, not least the increasing use of ‘pumped storage’ – this is particularly useful where there are hydro-electric dams already in place, and involves pumping water up above the dam when wind or solar power is available, so it can be released to generate power when it is needed. In addition, machine learning systems are being developed to design new distribution networks, and the falling cost of batteries is prompting

greater use of electric vehicles. New battery technologies, such as those based on sulphur, also offer hope of further cost improvements.

GOODBYE AND GOOD LUCK

Prof Chu’s good news was, then, that technological solutions to climate change problems are on their way and, he said, the petrochemicals sector has the “technical chops” to make that change – though it will take at least 50 years. He advised industry to start with decarbonisation and energy efficiency; he also urged businesses to collaborate with other sectors, especially academia and national laboratories. And be brave: “Imagination sets things in motion,” he stressed. “New approaches will transform where we are going.”

Bringing the EPCA Annual Meeting to a close, EPCA president Marc Schuller said that we are seeing the end of business-as-usual in the industry. The petrochemicals industry has grown through globalisation but the future will have to be different. Focus on new thoughts and ideas, he said, and remember that the best way to survive is to take a long view.

Before heading home, delegates were advised that next year’s 53rd EPCA Annual Meeting will take place in Berlin from 6 to 10 October; get those hotel room reservations in now. HCB

SERVICE-CENTRIC

WAREHOUSING • RSA-TALKE HAS OPENED A NEW DANGEROUS GOODS WAREHOUSE IN DUBAI, EXTENDING THE PROVISION OF VALUE-ADDED SERVICES FOR THE REGIONAL CHEMICAL INDUSTRY

RSA-TALKE HAS announced the expansion of its services for its customers across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region with the completion and opening of its new dangerous goods warehouse in the Jebel Ali Free Zone in Dubai. The new chemical warehouse will accommodate 13,000 pallet positions, adding to the hub’s current capacity of 1,800 tank containers, with both units approved to store dangerous goods of nearly all classes.

The new facility is part of RSA-Talke’s plan to systematically expand its tank container terminal in Jebel Ali, establishing its integrated chemical logistics hub as a one-ofa-kind facility in the region.

“Our chemical and petrochemical customers quite rightly attach great importance to their supply chain being flexible, reliable and appropriately equipped while meeting the highest standards of safety,” says Markus Koepsel, general manager

at RSA-Talke. “By fully integrating storage logistics, filling, cleaning, maintenance and testing services at one location, we are able to reduce downtimes to a minimum and, as a result, enable our customers to realise demonstrable competitive advantages with the help of an integrated supply chain solution.”

RSA-Talke already operates a tank cleaning station and workshop at its tank container terminal in Dubai. Following the completion of the warehouse, installation work will begin on a filling station for transferring chemicals of various hazard classes into drums and IBCs.

COMMITMENT TO INNOVATION

The new facility is in line with the company’s core purpose: to raise, set and maintain standards in chemical logistics. By providing storage, tank cleaning, maintenance and repair, and specialist workshop services all at the same physical location, this expansion

creates a comprehensive chemical bulk liquid supply chain destination for the UAE.

“We are proud to announce that with our new facility and, with the steady expansion of our logistics and technical services, we retain our position in the region as a leader in providing highly specialised storage and distribution solutions,” says Abhishek Ajay Shah, co-founder and group CEO of RSA Global and board member of RSA-Talke.

“The new chemical facility will provide further convenience to our existing customer base across the GCC, as well as an integrated solution for new players in the market.”

“RSA-Talke’s commitment to innovation and to diversifying our services solidifies our position in the regional logistics and warehousing market,” adds Richard Heath, chairman of RSA-Talke and Talke president and CEO USA. “We are pleased to offer this, an expanded chemical hub for distribution, warehousing and in the future for refilling, with world-class safety, expert knowledge, and professional standards.”

RSA-Talke is a 50:50 joint-venture between Dubai-based third-party logistics provider RSA Global and Germany-headquartered chemical logistics specialist Alfred Talke Logistic Services. The locations in Dubai’s Logistics City and Jebel Ali Free Zone are the latest additions to Talke’s presence in the GCC area, which also covers Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain. HCB www.rsatalke.com

FUTURE-PROOF

• THIS YEAR’S INTERMODAL EUROPE EXHIBITION

HOST TO A WIDE RANGE OF SPEAKERS KEEN TO EXPLORE

FUTURE MODELS FOR CONTAINERISED TRANSPORT

INTERMODAL EUROPE ONCE again took place at the Ahoy Rotterdam, where companies in the container shipping and intermodal transport sectors came together for an exciting exhibition and conference taking place over three days between 6 and 8 November. In recent years, a heavy focus has been placed on digitisation in the dangerous goods industry and the container and intermodal industries are no exception. The conferences opened up the floor to talks on smart shipping and logistics, covering topics such as smart ports and platform collaboration, as well as the future of the

digital supply chain as a whole. Sessions centring on inland waterways as well as a Rotterdam-focused forum also gave insight into various facets of the industry.

“Intermodal Europe 2018 was a huge success this year in Rotterdam,” says Sophie Ahmed, director of Intermodal Events. “We received the highest number of attendees on record with visitors coming from more than 90 different countries across the global container supply chain.”

COMING TOGETHER

The first day’s conference sessions emphasised the importance of embracing digitisation, with a particularly interesting discussion taking place in the afternoon on the benefits of a digitally enabled supply chain. Rolf Neise, a visiting professor from the

International School of Management (ISM), spoke about the advantages that such an infrastructure can offer.

A digital supply chain enables full endto-end visibility in the first instance, with real-time information and synchronicity being key benefits. Neise spoke about the maritime industry and the pressures it faces, as well as the untapped potential that remains hidden in the maritime container transportation chain. From the shipper’s perspective, the current supply chain model is unable to offer bespoke services, has no buildable foundation for an e-commerce market and is simply unable to provide visibility and predictability along the supply chain. Additionally, it is obvious that there is no functional system in place for collaboration with shipping partners, making the entire process much more fragmented than it should be.

A key question that Neise posed was: why is there a desperate need for collaboration? Fundamentally, he said, there is a lack of internal knowledge among the container shipping industry, with some companies thriving while others are falling at the wayside due to a simple lack of transparency when it comes to new technologies, process improvements and valuable industry

solutions. Through collaboration, both horizontally between competitors and non-competitors, and vertically between customers, service providers and suppliers, the industry is far more likely to thrive. A collaborative effort will enable continuous improvement of services at all levels and will bring together the industry’s vision for the future as a whole.

It is clear that these necessary changes will come about through the adoption of new technologies and the development of mutual trust within the industry, but a certain change in mind-set will be vital if the industry is to progress beyond where it is now.

The focus on digitisation within the industry doesn’t stop with shippers. Raghavendran Viswanathan, CEO of FreightBro, spoke about digitisation in logistics and why it is vitally important for both freight forwarders and the industry as a whole. Even now, a lot of freight forwarding processes are manual with no standardisation in communication between forwarding parties. This, coupled with a lack of transparency in pricing and shipment statuses has led to price volatility and increased risk in the market.

Entering this ‘new era of freight’ requires a certain level of forward-thinking. FreightBro has created a revolutionary digital platform for freight forwarders and carriers that enables users to quote, book, manage, track and analyse shipments and operations. Digital cloud-based platforms like these are the future of the industry, bringing together global freight agents, surface transporters, warehouse owners and shipping lines into a single location. Relatively simple to implement and extremely cost-effective, it is expected that the industry will be seeing a surge in the uptake of cloud-based technologies like that offered by FreightBro.

MACHINE LEARNING

Artificial Intelligence, or AI, is slowly proving its worth within the shipping container and intermodal industries. One of the biggest problems that all container operators face is the repositioning of empty boxes and tanks. Asparuh Koev, CEO and founder of Transmetrics, spoke about the use of machine learning in empty container logistics

optimisation. Typically, 35 to 40 per cent of total container fleets are kept in ‘working stock’, that is to say, the portion of stock that is kept available for the normal demand during a given period. By keeping a higher than necessary proportion of stock available but not in use, it will have a negative impact on a company’s operational EBITDA and ROCE. The solution to this, according to Koev, is a predictive optimisation system that utilises machine learning.

By using a predictive system, a transport management system can use historic data to forecast demand up to 12 weeks in advance.

The system also takes public holidays and

other external factors into account in order to supply up-to-date empty positioning instructions to shipping line staff. This form of AI takes a full cost model of the business and makes decisions based on storage costs, grading costs and much more, tailored specifically to each location.

“For the shipping lines, the main benefit is that they can get rid of some of the unused containers, which would lead to an immediate cash injection for container owners or to the reduction of the leasing/renting costs,” says Koev. “This can be an immediate cost saving in the millions because even a medium-sized shipping line can get rid of thousands »

of containers. Another benefit is that fewer containers means lower storage costs because there is the right level of working stock and therefore no need to overpay for the storage of unnecessary containers. At the same time, with fewer containers, there is a lower cost of maintaining, repairing, upgrading and moving, which leads to lower costs on an ongoing basis. For the customers it would mean that the containers are at the right location wherever and whenever they need them. This means that they will always have exactly the type of container they need at the nearest depot. Additionally, they will not have to make the booking very far in advance in order to reserve the containers; it would generally increase the trust between shipper and transporter in the supply chain.”

A WIRELESS WORLD

Not only are smart shipping and logistics making waves in the industry, but smart devices and the Internet of Things (IoT) are also finding their way into the container shipping sector. Smart containers and wireless IoT telematics devices provide intelligent capabilities that have hitherto not been seen in this capacity. Current TMSs require the individual barcode attached to each container to be scanned before an update is logged on the system. Should a barcode not get scanned for any reason,

vital updates can be missed, and shipments have the potential to be lost in transit as a result of human error. Wireless telematics such as LoRa create a network of connected devices that can – if desired – be monitored throughout a container’s entire journey through the supply chain, without the need for human intervention. Early adopters of the technology are pulling far ahead in the industry with more players entering the market all the time.

The real ROI on these devices is not in the hardware but in the analytics, automated process synchronisation and integration that the devices and accompanying software can provide. “Real-time analytics solutions depend on the IoT for gathering the data they require,” said Michael Dempsey, vice-president container and port solutions at ORBCOMM. “In the beginning, IoT was all about providing real-time visibility of devices and equipment that would otherwise be dumb, dark and disconnected. Enhanced visibility of operations enabled managers to identify problems as they occurred and to quickly deploy corrective measures, automate processes to minimise spending and human error, and optimise asset utilisation to drive up profitability.

“The nature of the information, however, was mainly transactional or reactive, and analytics were only applied to a small portion of the available data,” Dempsey continued. “Today, analytics process large amounts of live

and historical data collected by IoT technology, making it possible for businesses not only to identify the current status of operations, but to predict what can go wrong in the future and identify which processes may break down in order to plan ahead. The ability to mitigate potential issues before they occur is already having an enormous impact on how business operates and driving a significant return on investment. Analytics has a huge potential for transportation and the supply chain.”

LOOKING AHEAD

Europe’s inland waterways are full of untapped potential, with London’s River Thames a prime example, according to Peter Binham, principal city planner at Transport for London. In his presentation, Binham spoke about freight traffic in London, which makes up approximately one-third of all morning peak traffic. London, a growing city with rapidly reducing road capacity, attributes 80 per cent of road freight to van traffic, coincidentally the only motorised mode of transport forecast to grow in London.

In an effort to increase river transport in London, developments are focusing on larger barges in an attempt to move freight off the »

ARRIVED AT THE AHOY

AROUND THE WORLD

roads, aligning with several initiatives not only to reduce congestion in cities but also reduce air pollution from freight vehicles. Transport along inland waterways is something that is being promoted around the world, with the bulk of the push coming from a sustainability standpoint. Binham referenced Vision Zero, an initiative being taken up by many major cities around the world to eliminate deaths and serious injuries resulting from road traffic accidents. London’s mayor has laid out plans to eradicate all deaths and serious injuries on London roads by 2041. Binham also spoke about the environmental impact of reduced road transport and its direct impact on London’s goal to be a zero-carbon city by 2050.

A session hosted by the European Association for Forwarding, Transport, Logistics and Customs Services (CLECAT), focused on the concrete and practical ways in which reliability of inland chains can be efficiently enhanced. The SELIS project, supported by the European Commission’s Horizon2020 programme, aims to deliver

a platform for pan-European logistics applications by establishing a strong consortium of logistics stakeholders and ICT providers.

“Whereas we are all different stakeholders, a common denominator among us is the increasing pressure for the deployment of innovative solutions for responsive, customised and sustainable freight transport service throughout Europe,” said Nicolette van der Jagt, director-general of CLECAT. “Synchromodality builds on co-modality; recognising the need to further improve the efficiency of the transport chain with a special focus on hinterland connections. As such, synchromodality creates more efficient transport services that are more responsive to customers’ current and future needs, particularly in view of a forecast increase in freight volumes. Maintaining flexibility throughout the supply chain will become increasingly important as businesses continue to move towards ‘just in time’ delivery and lean business models.”

LOCAL ISSUES

The final day of the event was dedicated solely to the Rotterdam-focused forum. The Port of Rotterdam is the largest port in Europe and the ninth largest worldwide. “One of the bigger challenges facing us is the huge volume of containers,” said Roy van den Berg, project developer at the Port of Rotterdam. “As the largest port in Europe, the Port of Rotterdam has to find out how to bundle and to do it as effectively as possible. The new port area has two additional container terminals – trains can’t go to all terminals in the port area in one go. Bundled volumes need to be provided so a train can be loaded and unloaded at one or two locations. Barges are more flexible but more coordination is necessary here. Sharing information and data is key to realising this and in creating more efficient supply chains.”

Looking forward, the port aims to become the smartest digital port, delivering digital solutions, data services and support – aptly named Port Forward. The port’s digital business solution details fully operational services for planning, booking, tracking, analytics and orientation. To make this possible, the port is using a variety of products such as Portmaster, an online port management system; Pronto, a planning, executions and monitoring software for shipping companies, agents and terminals; and Navigate, which allows ports to visualise their entire network of connections. According to the port, Port Forward represents a phased approach using ‘smart port-specific software’ to achieve an increasingly higher maturity level.

Speaking about the future of Intermodal Europe, Ahmed adds: “for 2019 and beyond, Intermodal Europe will continue to be the leading platform for the global container shipping market; a platform to showcase new innovation and solutions, and to bring the market together to facilitate business.” HCB

Intermodal Europe 2019 will be held in November 2019 in Amsterdam. More information will be available shortly via the event’s website, www.intermodal-events.com.

LIFELINE FOR LOGISTICS

WAREHOUSING • LOGISTICS LEADER DACHSER IS UNDERTAKING A MAJOR INVESTMENT TO EXPAND CAPACITY AND SERVICES FOR THE GERMAN CHEMICAL INDUSTRY

DACHSER, ONE OF Europe’s leading logistics providers, is investing more than €20m in the expansion of its existing logistics centre in Malsch, near Karlsruhe, Germany. Construction has already begun on the new high-bay storage facility, which covers 21,800 m² and offers approximately 43,000 pallet spaces. The specially equipped facility is also designed to permit the safe storage of chemical products and hazardous materials such as paints, coatings and adhesives. The facility will become operational in the first quarter of 2019 and will offer an industry solution that is tailored to the particular needs of the chemical industry.

The decision to expand the logistics centre came in response to growing demand from companies in the regional chemical industry. “Baden-Württemberg is one of the top five German states for chemical industry revenue,” says Bernd Grossmann, general manager of the Dachser Malsch branch. “As such, there is strong demand here for logistics companies that can serve as a safe, reliable transportation partner while also offering safe storage of chemical products and hazardous materials.” Malsch has developed into a pivotal location for Dachser due to its excellent connections to France, the number one destination for German chemical exports.

RAISING THE BAR

The company, highly experienced in dealing with hazardous materials, serves as a reliable partner to the chemicals industry, which naturally requires the highest of safety standards. The new hazardous materials facility will be divided into nine sections separated by firewalls. Each section will have

an automatic fire extinguishing system with ceiling sprinklers as well as a shelf sprinkler system. A number of the sections will also have a gas warning system in addition to fire extinguishing systems with foam additives. A reinforced concrete floor will feature special sealing sheets and will be built lower to retain fire-fighting water. Additionally, barriers at the wastewater inflows offer increased groundwater protection.

“Dachser has made multiple investments in contract logistics, creating more than 300,000 new pallet spaces in the past few years,” says Alexander Tonn, managing director, European logistics Germany at Dachser. “This new hazardous materials facility lets us offer a strong network for the

chemical industry in south-west Germany, with specially equipped warehouses in Karlsruhe, Mannheim, Überheim and Ulm.”

The company has been operating in Malsch since 2012 and has been a cooperation partner of the German chemical industry association, Verband der Chemischen Industrie (VCI) since 2009. Dachser says it applies safety and quality standards that go beyond legal requirements when transporting and storing chemical products.

Meanwhile, Dachser has announced plans to replace all of its approximately 6,000 ground conveyors in Europe with vehicles powered by lithium ion batteries. Compared with conventional lead-acid batteries, lithium ion batteries last three times longer and can charge significantly more quickly. “When you factor in the savings in avoided maintenance and damage costs – since the batteries no longer have to be taken out of the vehicle every day for charging –then having a lithium ion fleet has already paid for itself,” says André Bilz, team leader, fleet management terminal equipment at Dachser. By 2022, Dachser wants to convert all its road logistics locations in Europe to this new technology, which will prove to be momentous from a sustainability and costsaving point of view. HCB www.dachser.com

REVVING UP

MEETING REPORT • ITCO IS ACCELERATING ITS PROGRAMMES

HELP PROMOTE TANK CONTAINER USE, WHILE GETTING

TO DISCUSS IMPORTANT ISSUES

THE INTERNATIONAL TANK Container Organisation (ITCO) has re-elected Reginald Lee to serve another two-year term as president. The decision was taken at ITCO’s Asia Regional Meeting in Singapore last month, and followed on from a period of intense activity following the merger of ITCO and the Asian Tank Container Organisation (@tco), formerly led by Lee, at the start of 2018. In a letter to ITCO members, Lee highlighted some of the achievements of his initial tenure. Apart from the consolidation of ITCO and @tco, the profile of the Organisation has been raised through a series of meetings

in Europe and Asia and the publication of several articles, not least in HCB. The ITCO board has also agreed to continue its campaign against the use of flexibags by the chemical industry, on environmental and safety grounds.

Lee also highlighted the expanded use of the ITCO e-learning programme, with two free licences given to each ITCO member; it is also now a condition that each member company should have at least one of its senior management team take and pass the online course.

In addition, Lee reported that he has established a good working relationship with the Association of International Chemical Manufacturers (AICM), the Shanghai-based body that represents overseas chemical producers working in China. Furthermore, it

has been arranged for a tank container to be provided to the Shanghai Maritime University; this will be used by its supply chain students as part of a focused course on bulk liquids distribution, based on a version of the ITCO e-learning course.

“I believe there is still a lot of work to do if we are to continue expanding the safe use of tank containers as one of the most costeffective modes of shipping bulk liquids when used as a part of a company’s liquid supply chain,” Lee said in his letter.

A BIGGER TANK

The Singapore meeting came hard on the heels of ITCO’s Antwerp member meeting, held in late September. The two-day event offered the opportunity for ITCO’s divisional boards and working groups to speak faceto-face and there were a number of keynote presentations on topics of interest.

Dr Thorsten Bieker, vice-president of rail and site services at BASF, updated participants on his company’s current project in the use of high-volume tank containers for in-plant and intra-plant logistics. There may well have been some in the audience who had heard Dr Bieker talk about the same topic a few years ago at the European Chemical

Transport Association (ECTA) annual meeting and would have been interested to hear about the progress being made. Indeed, so much progress is being made that the UN Subcommittee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous Goods is now having to figure out how to describe the specifications for this new breed of ultra-large tanks.

The new tanks designed for BASF offer a volume of up to 73,000 litres and payload of 66 tonnes – more than double the comparative figures of a standard tank container or even swap tank and comparable to that of a rail tank car. As a result, more product can be moved around the massive Ludwigshafen plant more efficiently –especially when the tanks are being moved by autonomous vehicles.

Until the introduction of the new tanks, BASF was spending a lot of time building and moving trains within the boundary of the Ludwigshafen plant. It could take 22 hours

from the point where product was loaded to its destination. That process has been cut to one hour, from ordering the tank until its delivery at the loading point.

BASF now has three manufacturers approved to produce what are known as ‘BASF Class’ tanks – Van Hool, Magyar and CIMC – and two operating companies, Hoyer and Bertschi. Tanks are available in L4BH, L4DH, L10BH and L10DH specifications. It has also bought specialised rail wagons from Tatravagonka and Greebrier/Astra.

BASF is now working on a risk analysis for the transport of chemicals in bulk by tank containers on rail, the results of which are expected next year. After that, BASF has plans to build a new terminal network capable of handling these large tanks; it also sees opportunities in intermodal transport, even in long-haul rail lanes between Europe and China.

GET PLUGGED IN

Also at the Antwerp meeting was Tim Mertens, assistant in the logistics processes – technology and infrastructure department at Evonik Degussa Antwerp. He looked at the evolution of cloud solutions in chemical clusters, focusing on Antwerp, where Evonik employs more than 1,000 people. The process of digitisation is raising new opportunities and everyone wants change – but it is hard to find anyone to lead that change, he noted.

Mertens used as an example of change the development of the electronic European Cleaning Document (e-ECD), a project in which Evonik was involved through its membership of Essenscia, the Belgian chemical industry association, which was one of four groups working together to develop the concept and is now a partner in Eclic, the body managing e-ECD.

How does this differ from the process of digitisation that companies have been working »

with for years? Most companies now have integrated information flows using EDI and ERP systems, but they have not changed the way that businesses work. Indeed, Mertens suggested, they have in fact entrenched the old habits. There is still a ‘silo mindset’ in many companies, focusing on day-to-day transactions. New systems have the ability to foster more intelligent processes – but are employees (and managers) ready to engage more actively with information?

The chemical industry is excellent with process technology but as digitisation takes hold there is a multiplicity of new and very intelligent tools out there that can make use of the data already available to enhance business efficiency. Established providers such as SAP and DHL are now making use of some of those techniques, while new software systems exist that can foster collaboration between employees. And blockchain technology will open up yet further possibilities.

Some companies appear overwhelmed by those possibilities; they are still struggling with IT security and perhaps they believe that establishing information-optimised processes will take too long and cost too much. However, Mertens said, the e-ECD project shows what can be done when there is the will to see it through.

He urged the audience to get involved and take advantage of those new technologies that will speed up global systems implementation. Companies need to be open to different skill

sets among their employees, who will need to react fast and spot opportunities early. They also need to be open to a collaborative model, involving the sharing of information across and outside the organisation.

unloading of goods, and access to and traffic within the port area.

In terms of dangerous goods, the Port of Antwerp relies on the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code for seagoing transport, ADR, RID and ADN for hinterland transport, the port’s own Municipal Port Regulations and Port Instructions.

Before dangerous goods can be moved in the Port of Antwerp, a declaration must be submitted to the Antwerp Port Information and Communication System (APICS); this applies to goods being loaded, discharged or kept on board. The person responsible for making the declaration must be properly trained. Containers carrying dangerous goods must be kept at a recognised container terminal with a maximum 10 days dwell time. An extension to that 10-day period can be requested but only in exceptional circumstances – financial issues or transport organisation issues are not sufficient reasons. “A container terminal is not a temporary storage location for dangerous goods,” Wauters said.

LOCAL BOY MAKES GOOD

Also giving a local perspective was Paul Wauters, the Port of Antwerp’s Harbour Master. His department is responsible for taking all measures necessary to safeguard public order, peace, environmental integrity and security in all port activities. That includes the regulation of the handling, loading and

Pre-declaration of dangerous goods arriving in the port gives the Harbour Master’s Department time to check that the declaration is correct and complete and that the container can be properly segregated within the terminal in accordance with the IMDG Code. The information will be shared with national and international authorities and will also be used if an incident occurs.

“THERE IS A LOT OF WORK TO DO IF WE ARE TO CONTINUE EXPANDING THE SAFE USE OF TANK CONTAINERS”

TWO CODES TO ONE

Looking specifically at tank containers, Wauters spoke about the confusion that can arise due to the different specifications for tanks between the ADR/RID/ADN system and the UN T-code system for portable tanks. It is impossible to tell just by looking at a tank which specification it was built to, but there are different construction and equipment requirements.

For instance, UN 1230 methanol requires either an L4BH tank under ADR or a T7 tank under the UN system. Both tanks have three bottom openings and a calculation or minimum test pressure of 4 bar. However, the ADR tank must be hermetically closed, while the T7 tank has normal pressure relief requirements. Wauters showed a picture of a tank carrying methanol from Antwerp to Hamburg, which had two codes marked –L4BN and T11. According to the T-code, such transport is allowed but not according to the ADR tank code.

Wauters explained the position thus: a tank is either a tank container or a UN portable tank, not both. The UN system is designed both for sea and land transport, while an ADR tank code is good only for land transport. Tanks showing both codes can cause confusion for the consignor, loader and port authorities and result in delays in loading, refusal for loading, fines or a frustrated shipment. Wauters advised tank operators in the audience to remove the ADR tank code from their UN portable tanks.

CORROSION CONFUSION

The final presentation came from Drs Penelope Cooke and Ken Kirby of Brookes Bell, who analysed the potential risks to tanks from improper cargo classification and the problems of corrosion. They were particularly interested in some parts of the IMDG Code, notably that which says, “Unless provided otherwise by this Code, the following are forbidden from transport…”. It then lists “any substance or article which, as presented for transport, is liable to explode, dangerously

produce a flame or dangerous evolution of heat, or dangerous emission of toxic, corrosive or flammable gases or vapours under normal conditions of transport”. That seems to cover six of the nine classes of dangerous goods.

However, there are various ways by which ‘normal conditions of transport’ are altered, including the means of packaging, stowage and segregation and, more specifically, refrigeration, heating, the use of pressure tanks, consignment in small quantities, or the use of diluents.

For a consignor, the proper classification for transport is the starting point. Having identified the correct UN entry, proper shipping name and packing group (using the safety data sheet), the IMDG Code will explain what type of portable tank (if any) can be used and what portable tank special provisions apply.

What the speakers wanted to highlight was the issue of corrosive substances. In the IMDG Code, ‘corrosivity’ covers a wide range of products, which may be corrosive to some or all metals and to skin, or only to some of those. They listed a number of substances that are not authorised for carriage in portable tanks due to their corrosivity or other properties, while other substances that are corrosive to most metals – such as UN 3298 iodine monochloride – are authorised.

The speakers reminded the audience of what makes stainless steel ‘stainless’ but also that it can corrode in certain circumstances. Stainless steel is generally corrosion-resistant, even to sulphuric and nitric acids; chromium in the steel forms an oxide layer a few atoms thick, termed the ‘passive’ layer – but this can be compromised. Damage can be caused by aggressive halide ions, contamination, physical damage, low-oxygen environments or under-deposit corrosion. Any breach in the passive layer allows the formation of a corrosion cell that can then prompt further corrosion, although in the right conditions the passive layer can repair itself.

The speakers pointed to the new standard, ISO 10855:2018, which covers the design, manufacture, periodic inspection, examination and testing of UN portable tanks. It includes a number of scientific methods to be used during intermediate and full periodic inspections to check the structural integrity of a tank and to detect any faults that might render the tank unusable. HCB

The next major event for ITCO will be the Tank Container Village during the Transport Logistic show in Munich from 4 to 7 June. More details on that and all other ITCO activities can be found at www.international-tank-container.org

TO RUSSIA AND BEYOND

RUSSIA • TANK CONTAINER USE IN RUSSIA HAS SEEN SIGNIFICANT GROWTH IN RECENT YEARS, WITH COMPANIES OPERATING ON LARGER SCALES AND OFFERING NEW SERVICES ACROSS THE REGION

TANK CONTAINER BUSINESS in Russia is growing rapidly. Companies are investing huge amounts of money in infrastructure and container fleets to meet the increasing demands of chemical and other liquids shippers. Infotech Baltika M, the largest tank container operator in Russia and a member of the International Tank Container Organisation

(ITCO), spoke to HCB with comments on trends in the Russian tank container industry, the relationship with Europe and China, and what can be expected for the sector in the future.

The tank container business has been rapidly developing in Russia over the last seven years.

“International freight transport has been on the rise recently,” says Alexander Alexeev, CEO of Infotech Baltika M. “This has allowed our company to build long-term relationships with our customers and partners in Russia, China and Europe. Leading positions in Russia and owning our own fleet has given us the flexibility and versatility to offer the reasonable pricing and excellent customer service across our operational regions that our client base relies on.” Infotech Baltika M operates a fleet of 5,000 units and 2,300 platforms with chemicals making up the largest share of goods being carried.

EXPANDING OUT

The Eurasian Customs Union (EACU), consisting of five member states - Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Russia - is an economic union in which no customs charges are levied on goods travelling across borders and members of the union levy a common external tariff on all goods entering the union. The EACU has recently tightened the regulations regarding railway rolling stock and tank containers that enter and operate on its territory, which has – according to Alexeev – created certain difficulties for non-resident companies. On the other hand, freight forwarding processes have been streamlined and have become more technologically advanced. Alexeev continues: “Only by being in the business and knowing the ‘nuts and bolts’ of the industry can you maintain a competitive advantage, and we are more than happy to offer our expertise to our clients.”

One problem faced by many companies operating in the Russian market is the cooperation – or lack thereof – with European firms. For many companies in Russia, attracting cargo from Europe is a significant roadblock that is preventing expansion outside the EACU. Infotech Baltika M, however, believes that it is definitely possible to attract cargo from Europe. The company attends conferences all over Europe and China, including the European Petrochemical Association’s (EPCA) Annual Meeting that took place in Vienna this past October.

“Being based in Russia, we have a certain advantage over our European colleagues. We know all the ins and outs of the market, which places us in a prime position,” says Alexeev. “There is a certain scepticism in Europe towards Russian businesses, but attitudes are gradually changing and international companies are actively cooperating with us.” The company has also had to incorporate relevant international standards into its work practices, such as Safety & Quality Assessment for Sustainability (SQAS), in order to maximise its potential within the European market.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Container shipping is currently growing in Russia, both in dry freight containers and

tank containers. Russian railways have adjusted their pricing policies to facilitate the growth, which has acted as a catalyst for the development of container business in Russia. “Unfortunately, however, not all companies and railway stations are ready to work with tank containers,” says Alexeev. “Nevertheless, the comprehensive service that we provide does help to resolve any major technical problems that our clients might experience.” Infotech Baltika M actively participates in developing and actualising the regulatory framework for tank container businesses and its efforts have not been in vain.

The provision of value-added services such as tank cleaning and repair has up to now been scarce in the Russian market. “The number of cleaning stations and repair depots has increased. However, we are not always satisfied with the quality of the service that they provide,” continues Alexeev. “In order to conduct a thorough check, we often invite companies to participate in the tender process so that we can integrate our standards and practices into their business. We own two depots in Russia where we make routine checks and make repairs to our tank containers.”

Given the continuing growth of the tank container market in Russia, there will have to be a significant rise in the number of tank cleaning and repair facilities.

PLASTICS POTENTIAL

The use of fibre-reinforced plastics (FRP) in the tank container industry has been on the rise in recent years with the potential that the containers offer – not only in storage capabilities but also in cost – proving themselves of worth within the chemical distribution market and beyond. A lot of companies, however, are slow to adopt the use of such tanks, but do still acknowledge their place in the market as well as their potential for future use.

Typically, the use of FRP tanks is limited by the resins that are used in their construction. Thermoplastic resin will suffer from slow deformation under mechanical stresses at elevated temperatures, also known as ‘creep’. However, a lot of newer tanks are being produced with resins that are able to withstand higher temperatures. FRP tanks are also susceptible to degradation through long-term exposure to ultraviolet light, which changes the chemical makeup of the

resins over time. This can be mitigated with the addition of exterior gelcoats and sealants but will increase the cost of tank maintenance as a result.

Infotech Baltika M has stated that it has been receiving requests for the transport of freight for which regular stainless steel tanks are not a sufficient solution. “We have just finished the first stage of testing a one-of-a-kind tank container made from composite materials,” says Alexeev. “It is, indeed, a very interesting product. The main benefit is the range of cargo we can transport inside it, including the most corrosion-susceptible ones such as hydrochloric acid. In the coming years, we expect the number of these tanks to rise significantly.”

Infotech Baltika M has been operating in the market since 2007, transporting a range of liquid cargoes including chemicals, liquefied gases and food products. The company, dedicated to customer service, offers transportation of cargo by rail, sea and road and employs a large team of technicians that assist with client services. HCB www.infobm.ru/en

SMART AND SAFE

TANK CONTAINERS • THIELMANN EXPLAINS HOW ITS ISO TANKS

ARE NOT ONLY A SAFER AND MORE RELIABLE WAY TO LEVERAGE INTERMODAL OPTIONS BUT ALSO A SMARTER IDEA ALL ROUND

THE CONCEPT OF the tank container – or ISO tank – goes back a few decades now. And it is worth remembering why it emerged: not just to open up options in intermodal transport but also to overcome some of the safety concerns of road tankers.

Road tankers feature a tank barrel welded into a frame or to the bed of the trailer and this creates a highly unstable environment for the transport of dangerous or sensitive substances, particularly those of the chemical variety.

“When the tank, the frame and the vehicle are a single unit, there is a lot of pressure being placed on all the joints and welds of the tank, including the tank body itself,” explains Sebastian Bojarski, product line director at THIELMANN. “Even if that truck is travelling exclusively down smooth, tarmacked highways,

over time that pressure will eventually take its toll and the tank will twist, the frame will bend or the two components could even disengage from the transport vehicle.

“Add in the bumps in the road, off-road uneven terrain passage, and rough handling during loading and unloading procedures, and very quickly there could be a disaster waiting to happen where unstable or hazardous materials could be released from the tank system with serious results, both for personnel, the environment and wider industry.”

The challenge becomes even greater when a true multimodal transport envelope is required. Tank containers are not transported solely by road and rail; they must be able to be loaded onto ships, stacked many units high, and even carried in the cargo area of transport

aircraft. Here, the knocks are greater and the environment more unpredictable, all of which means the tanks themselves have to withstand higher stresses while still retaining the safety levels to which they are certified.

SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT

The first step to the solution is to remove the tank from the truck to give it the ability to pass through an intermodal supply chain. Secondly - as with THEILMANN tank container systems - by separating the tank from the frame the pressure is taken off the tank body, offering a much more reliable containment system. It also provides fewer areas for wear and tear, offering a longer service life. Furthermore, integrating the tank within standard or low-profile ISO frames offers significant handling advantages.

“On a single journey a tank container system could pass through multiple different cargo areas, be loaded and unloaded onto different trucks, and pass onto and off aircraft or ships,” says Bojarski. “One thing that all logisticians have available to them in every cargo area is the equipment to handle standard ISO shipping containers.

“THIELMANN tank containers can be handled, stacked and transported by any equipment or vehicle that is built to interface with shipping containers without the need for special equipment, and that is a big advantage for simplifying logistics, reducing equipment requirements and speeding up the passage of tank containers through their journey.”

THIELMANN’s solutions for chemical transport offer capacities ranging from 1,000 to 45,000 litres, many in standard ISO dimensions. All benefit from the company’s expertise in welding and manipulating high-value alloys and can be tailored to meet customer requirements, including the addition of integrated heating and cooling, integral pumping and lining options. With decades of experience, all THIELMANN products meet or exceed the regulatory requirements for the transport and handling of chemicals and toxic gases, with the company carrying ASME VIII R, U, T, as well as many national-specific certificates. HCB www.thielmann.com

ON THE BLEACH

PUMPS • HYDROGEN PEROXIDE PLACES PARTICULAR DEMANDS ON TRANSFER EQUIPMENT. KEES IN’T VEEN HAS PUT HIS FAITH IN BLACKMER’S SLIDING VANE PUMPS

IN 1992, KEMIRA Oyj, one of the world’s largest producers of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), was building a new production plant in Rotterdam’s Europoort area. Searching around for a company to handle over-the-road transport, Kemira Peroxides Europoort found a willing partner in the small trucking firm owned by Kees in’t Veen, which then had only two trucks and was based in the small Dutch town of Berkel en Rodenrijs, some 40 km north-east of Europoort Rotterdam.

That contract win proved to be a turning point for in’t Veen and his company !TT Transport Service Centre. Continuing growth led to the need for a bigger base closer to its customers and in 2006 it took up residence on a 20,000-m² plot in the Europoort area. Since then it has expanded considerably, with a 130,000-m² site that is home to five companies owned by Kees in’t Veen, all dedicated to meeting the delivery,

storage, inspection, cleaning, purging and maintenance needs of operators in the tank transport industry.

“It’s a one-stop shop for the tank-truck industry,” in’t Veen says. “We do everything around tank containers and tank trailers, everything you can think of. We are hands-on, that is our mission, our vision, and that is very important.”

What is also important is that in’t Veen is still moving H2O2 – indeed, Kees in’t Veen Tanktransporten – one of the five ITT Transport Service Centre businesses – has become the largest over-the-road hydrogen peroxide haulier in northern Europe. “We started driving two trucks for Kemira and now we have 25 special dedicated transports for hydrogen peroxide,” explains in’t Veen. “There’s only a few haulers in the Netherlands that are dedicated to hauling peroxide and we are one of them.”

SPECIAL NEEDS

Hydrogen peroxide has to be treated carefully during storage, transfer and transport; it is corrosive and can emit irritating or even dangerous vapours if not handled properly. A fundamental aspect of ensuring its safe handling is choosing the right pumps, and this is where in’t Veen used his experience in using Blackmer pumps to his benefit. Blackmer’s STX Series sliding vane pumps, specifically the 80-mm version, proved ideal for peroxide applications.

“We have special dedicated transports for hydrogen peroxide, and it is a very difficult product to pump, but the Blackmer STX pumps are resistant to peroxide,” says in’t Veen. “Since they were installed, we have been using the STX pumps for 10 to 15 years and we are very satisfied with them because it is a pump that we only have to do routine maintenance on two times a year.”

The STX Series pumps excel in H2O2 applications because they have been designed with a body and internal components made of 316-grade stainless steel, and also feature external ball-bearing construction, chemicalresistant seals, bearings and O-rings, and non-metallic vanes, which result in longer life when handling corrosive products. They have excellent self-priming and dry-run capabilities

with minimal product shear or agitation. The sliding-vane design enables the pump to maintain desired flow rates, even as the vanes wear. When the vanes do wear out, they are easily replaced with no need to remove the pump from service.

Assisting in’t Veen has been Wiegel Transport Equipment, which has been supplying his preferred pumps and compressors since 2011. Moerdijk-based Wiegel is a distributor of pumps and compressors that are used in the transport of dry and liquid bulk products, with additional operations in Belgium, Germany and throughout most of Central Europe.

“For heavy chemicals, the STX is the best transport-related pump on the market,” says Rutger Opschoor, sales engineer for Wiegel. “With Blackmer, the quality is good and what they do, they do very well; that’s what I like about Blackmer pumps. Not every manufacturer can say that.”

GOOD FOR GASES

The capabilities and trustworthiness of the Blackmer products that in’t Veen has deployed at his businesses have created a level of loyalty to the brand that is virtually unshakeable. For example, after seeing firsthand the performance and reliability of the STX pumps in handling H2O2, in’t Veen had one installed at his Tank Cleaning Europoort facility at the ITT Transport Service Centre to perform transloading applications during product evacuation activities for transports and containers that need to be cleaned.

Kees in’t Veen Tanktransporten also has a fleet of trucks that transport refrigerant gases. Those vehicles are equipped with 50mm Blackmer LGL Series sliding vane pumps. The ductile-iron LGL pumps are UL-listed and feature a cavitation suppression liner that reduces noise, vibration and wear during operation. They also have replaceable casing liners and end discs for easy rebuilding of the pump to like-new condition.

“We have gas trailers that are dedicated for gas transport and all are outfitted with Blackmer LGL pumps,” says in’t Veen. “These trailers need to be unloaded below 100 kg to be considered empty and the LGL pumps do a great job. That is fantastic

equipment. They save our clients a lot of money and time by emptying the trailers to acceptable levels.”

Another ITT Transport Service Centre business is Container Terminal Europoort, where up to 800 laden or empty liquid and gas tank containers can be stored before moving along to their next destination in the global supply chain. Again, the gas tank containers – which have capacities ranging from 700 to 1,400 kg – must have no more than 100 kg inside of them to be considered ‘empty’. For this evacuation job, in’t Veen employs a Blackmer HDL362C Series reciprocating gas compressor, which is capable of handling hazardous, toxic and flammable gases.

The oil-free design of the HDL362C adds no additional contamination to the gas being handled, while its full distance piece and piston-rod seals create a compartment between the gas and the lubricated crankcase, which minimises any leakage to the crankcase or the atmosphere. Highefficiency polyetheretherketone (PEEK) valves provide superior sealing characteristics, high efficiency and durability, and the heavy-duty, precision-ground crankshaft features roller bearings and integral counterweights to ensure smooth, quiet operation.

RELATIONSHIPS MATTER

“He’s been using Blackmer for a long time, since the beginning of the company 30 years ago,” says Opschoor. “The Blackmer products are very reliable, that’s why he’s loyal to us and we’re very loyal to him. Blackmer is a name that sells itself and the after-sales support is just as reliable as the pump itself.”

It also looks like there will be more pump business coming for Wiegel: in’t Veen is in the process of opening a satellite service facility in nearby Moerdijk and also owns another 10,000 m² of land with railroad access at Europoort Rotterdam, which will allow him to begin servicing railcars when it is eventually built out.

“In 2005, we developed the company motto of ‘Visible Quality,’ which is not only a clean truck or a nice tank, but that you have the right equipment and the right people who can help you, support you when there is a problem,” says in’t Veen. “We have a long-term relationship with Blackmer, and it’s important to have good relationships. That may be oldfashioned, but we depend on good relationships and Blackmer has been good for us, which is how we separate ourselves from the other transport companies.” HCB www.blackmer.com www.itt-europoort.nl

BULLETIN

GREIWING BUILDS IN BAVARIA

Greiwing reports that its new warehousing and logistics facility in Burghausen, Bavaria (above) is nearing completion. The first part of the warehouse and the administration building is already finished and work has moved onto the second phase, which will deliver a 11,500-m2 logistics hall with space for hazardous substances before the end of the year.

“We are very pleased that we have kept to the planned timetable and that all challenges within the project have been resolved,” says Jürgen Greiwing, managing partner of Greiwing logistics for you GmbH.

The logistics hall currently under construction will have eight ramps for rapid loading and unloading and will be divided into three sections, each with its own fire protection. One will be equipped with a gas extinguishing system. Eventually Greiwing will be able to handle hazardous substances and goods subject to the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) and Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards.

Expected to cover 60,000 m2 on completion, the Burghausen facility in the ‘Bavarian Chemical Triangle’ is intended to handle contract logistics for Greiwing’s customers in the nearby chemical parks, connecting them to the wider world via the Burghausen Terminal for Combined Transport.

www.greiwing.de

FASTER PLASTICS IN DALLAS

Katoen Natie has opened a new plastics packaging facility in Hutchins, Texas, just outside Dallas. The facility features a 262,000ft2 (24,340-m2) warehouse space, 220 hopper car spots and a high-speed form-fill-seal (FFS) packaging line with an annual capacity of some 270,000 tonnes.

“With this new Dallas-to-Dock location we continue to expand our local and international network of logistic hubs,” says Frank Vingerhoets, president of Katoen Natie North America. “It will provide our customers an alternative export solution and a back-up to their current export flows.”

The new site will also allow Katoen Natie’s customers to ship up to 25.5 tonnes per 40-foot container, and has the potential for substantial future expansion.

www.katoennatie.com

HOYER HELPS BAYER

Hoyer’s Supply Chain Solutions (SCS) business group has broken ground on its new €8m container terminal at its Chempark site in Dormagen, Germany. The facility, planned in collaboration with Bayer, will have space for 624 swap bodies or 20-foot tank containers, along with six tank heating bays and a ground-controlled portal crane. It is due for completion by the end of 2019.

Locating the terminal in Dormagen Chempark will, Hoyer says, help reduce costs and simplify production and logistics processes for Bayer. Laden tank containers can be kept in intermediate storage until needed at the plant, keeping materials close to hand and reducing logistics costs by eliminating the need for off-site storage. The arrangement also cuts down on congestion on nearby roads.

“The terminal will relieve pressure on the space situation in our works, and processes will become more efficient. We greatly welcome the joint construction project,” says Jörg Sommer, head of Active Ingredients Bayer AG.

Hoyer’s SCS business group was set up to be able to offer a combination of the group’s logistics expertise with know-how in areas such as on-site logistics, the handling of dangerous goods and dry bulk logistics. It now operates at 16 locations in five countries, with its own intermodal and dangerous goods terminals. www.hoyer-group.com

SAFER SOLVENTS

The UK Solvents Industry Association (SIA), in collaboration with the European Solvents Industry Group (ESIG), has produced a 15-minute safety video, Safe Loading and Transportation of Bulk Solvents by Road

The video is designed to support hauliers, drivers and site operators and to encourage best practice in transport, loading and unloading. It is now available in five languages from the ESIG website, www.esig.org

SUTTONS CELEBRATES

Suttons Tankers has won a multi-million pound extension to its contract with CF Fertilisers UK that will see it provide distribution services for all of CF’s bulk liquid and gas products. Suttons will transport product from bases in the north-east and north-west of England to locations across the UK. CF is responsible for supplying around 40 per cent of UK fertiliser demand.

“This contract represents a significant win for our tanker division, with the client recognising our significant ability and experience in handling and transporting their specialist products,” says Michael Cundy, managing director of Suttons Tankers.

On the other side of the globe, Suttons Japan, a joint venture established by Suttons International in 1998, has celebrated 20 years in business. The milestone was marked by a celebration, attended by John Sutton, CEO of Suttons Group, and managing director Barry McNally. Takemitsu Hayashi, managing director of Suttons Japan, said: “I’m so pleased that we could share this important event with our colleagues, customers and suppliers. We couldn’t have reached this anniversary without their support - in fact, a number of customers attending the celebration have been working with Suttons Japan since we started. I look forward to many more years working closely with Suttons International and building upon this strong platform we have created together.” www.suttonsgroup.com

BIGGER IN BRAZIL

Leschaco is planning a significant expansion in Brazil, with new offices due to open shortly in Itajaí, Santa Catarina and Porto Alegre. The move will extend Leschaco’s presence in the country, currently focused on the south-east of Brazil. The plans were announced by Constantin Conrad, son of the owner Jörg Conrad, during celebrations in October to mark 40 years of operations in the São Paulo

area. “The business of Leschaco Ltda is growing sustainably despite the continuing economic crisis in Brazil and it is our goal to continue this positive trend,” he said. www.leschaco.com

GOOD YEAR FOR VTG

VTG AG has reported further growth during the third quarter, with group revenue for the first nine months of 2018 now 3.4 per cent up at €775.7m and adjusted EBITDA ahead by 4.5 per cent at €264.8m. Growth has been particularly strong in the railcar (revenues up 7.1 per cent at €413.5m) and tank container logistics (revenues up 6.7 per cent at €124.9m) divisions.

“Successful closure of the Nacco acquisition at the start of October 2018 also brings us to an important milestone for the Group, laying the foundation from which we can sustainably strengthen our market position as the largest private railcar leasing company in Europe,” says Dr Heiko Fischer, chairman of the Executive Board.

In tank containers, VTG reports “healthy capacity utilisation” levels in Europe and higher volumes of intercontinental traffic to and from Asia. However, EBITDA from the

tank container division for the first nine months was lower than last year after shifting trade flows resulted in higher repositioning costs. “In addition, bottlenecks in road haulage and in the rail infrastructure in Europe also drove up demurrage and freight costs,” the company says. www.vtg.com

DEN HARTOGH’S

TURKISH DELIGHT

Den Hartogh Lojistik Hizmetleri has become the first Turkish company to be audited according to the CDI-MPC quality and safety assessment, which covers the marine packed cargo supply chain. Den Hartogh’s Turkish operation was audited in its capacity as a tank container operator.

“We are very proud to be the first company ever in Turkey to complete the CDI-MPC audit,” says Kerem Gurler, general manager. “It clearly shows our commitment to our customers to always deliver high quality services with safety as our main priority. Our team has worked hard to achieve this.”

www.denhartogh.com

FRIEND OR FOE?

PLASTICS AND INDUSTRIAL packaging have gone hand-in-hand for decades; plastics drums in particular are one of the major packagings for a wide range of liquid and solid chemicals. Recently, though, the use of plastics is coming under greater scrutiny due to the environmental impact that it can have, not least in terms of ocean pollution, and many companies are now looking for more sustainable alternatives.

Statistics suggest that as much as onethird of plastics packaging escapes collection systems, and the environmental impact of this waste is generating headlines – even if most of the plastics waste that reaches the oceans stems from informal disposal of used plastics in Asia. However, there is also atmospheric pollution to take into account: the cost associated with greenhouse gas emissions resulting from plastics production is estimated at $40bn annually.

But those in the business of producing plastics packaging for industrial users believe it necessary to look at the bigger picture: plastics bring numerous benefits and are often less damaging to the environment than alternatives.

A BETTER WORLD

Plastic packaging is versatile, strong and stable. Its comparative light weight simplifies handling throughout the production chain and results in lower greenhouse emissions during transport, ultimately contributing to a lower carbon footprint. A common polymer used in

industrial packaging is polypropene, a material that can be reused several times without leaving toxic residue. However, big problems arise from waste, overconsumption and overproduction, which are external factors that would have undesirable effects on the environment with any form of industrial packaging.

According to Phil Pease, CEO of the Industrial Packaging Association (IPA), the traditional environmental hierarchy has always been: reduce, reuse, recycle and recover, with disposal being the unwanted last resort. However, following a detailed review of this hierarchy by the International Standards Organisation’s (ISO) committee on packaging and environment, it was agreed that both safety and life-cycle performance must play a core role in environmental considerations and, rather than simply ‘reduce’ the volume of packaging materials, it is more appropriate to optimise the design.

“We also see a number of plastics packaging now incorporating use of recycled materials through multi-layer design as well as within components and service equipment,” says Pease. “This is an important response and solution to the problems facing end-user markets for recycled materials.” While recycling is, of course, a worthwhile service to recover the packaging materials, it is energyintensive, so the more times any container can be reconditioned, repaired and reused, the less energy is used and the carbon footprint can be reduced.

It is clear that in order to reduce the impact that plastics production has on the environment, plastics manufacturers, alongside end users, need to adopt strategies to reduce their CO2 footprint and become more sustainable. However, plastics are not the enemy. There is no doubt that there is a long way to go before mankind reduces its overall energy consumption but the use of plastics is a great step in that direction - if they are used properly. HCB

Packaging Solutions has been chosen as the exclusive distributor for the new Drumguard® Quattro load securing system by Strauch GmbH. Drumguard enables customers to quickly secure drums on pallets while still complying with local and international traffic and dangerous goods regulations.

“Users of industrial packaging are facing increasing challenges with regard to load securing and sustainability,” says Mauser. “Often, transport safety is realised by using large quantities of load securing materials. In global goods transport, however, these solutions are not practical for the entire distribution chain, as picking and rearranging of cargo is common. As a result, load securing for loading units is renewed several times during transport to end customers.

“Drumguard® Quattro improves this process by combining economic advantages with a modern, sustainable concept.”

The system is simple, consisting of only two components, making it much easier to handle than the conventional load securing straps and stretch and shrink films. “Mauser, as one of the pioneers for sustainable industrial packaging, is always searching for new ways to reduce the use of

MAJOR PLASTICS DRUM PRODUCERS

COUNTRY/COMPANY

Algeria

Wenco*

Plastic

Republic

Jokey

MAJOR PLASTICS DRUM PRODUCERS (continued)

Recycling

COUNTRY/COMPANY

Germany

Mauser Packaging Solutions*

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ▲ ▲

Plastik Pack ● ● ● ▲

Rikutec ●

Schütz ● ● ● ● ●

Siepe ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Guatemala

Lacoplast ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Hungary

Coveris ● ● ● ● ●

India

Balmer Lawrie-Van Leer ● ● ● ● ● ● ▲

Time Technoplast* ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Indonesia

Novo Complast ● ● ● ● ● ●

Taiko Drums ● ● ● ●

Ireland

Gem Plastics ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ▲

Schütz ● ● ● ▲

Israel

Darbox ● ● ● ● ▲

Pachmas ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ▲

Italy

Casone ● ● ● ▲

Fustiplast ● ● ● ● ● ● ▲ ▲

Greif ● ● ●

Isi Plast ● ● ●

Maschiopack ● ● ● ●

Mauser Packaging Solutions* ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ▲ ▲

Plastinova ● ● ● ● ● ▲

Japan

Kodama* ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ▲ ▲

Sanko ● ● ● ● ● ▲

Korea

Clover Chemical* ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ▲ ▲

Malaysia

Greif ● ● ● ● ▲ Polyrak ● ● ●

Schütz ● ● ▲

Taiko Drums ● ● ● ● ●

Mexico

Schütz ● ● ● ● ●

Plasti-Envases* ● ● ● ● ● ●

Morocco

Greif ● ●

Netherlands

CurTec ● ● ● ●

HK Plastics ● ● ●

Mauser Packaging

materials, and to develop products that can be used several times and recycled in the best possible way,” says Klaus-Peter Schmidt, head of product development and global sustainability management at Mauser.

Drumguard’s robust design also allows the system to be reused instead of using single-use plastic or metal products.

“The safe transport of goods is becoming increasingly important, which is reinforced by international legislation and increased transport controls,” explains Marc Löffler, head of technical service at Mauser.

“The simple assembly on wooden pallets, the enormous time savings leading to reduced process costs as well as the significantly improved ergonomics in operations have convinced our customers in Germany,” explains Alexander Strauch, managing director of Strauch GmbH. With the sales partnership between Mauser and Strauch, the offering will now be extended to Europe and other continents. www.mauserpackaging.com

THIELMANN ADDS CONTEK

Thielmann has acquired CONTek IBC-Service, a world leader in the cleaning, maintenance and inspection of containers for the chemical and automotive coatings industry. It has an automated cleaning facility in Ellrich, central Germany, capable of handling containers with a capacity from 250 to 1,200 litres.

Bernd Loeser, CEO of Thielmann, says: “Our strong organic growth is supported by selected acquisitions, especially of specific competencies. CONTek is perceived as an undisputed leader in cleaning of IBCs. With its integration, Thielmann will complement its current service portfolio in different container sectors and CONTek will benefit from access to a broad global customer base and Thielmann’s worldleading expertise in the container industry.”

Fredi Endtricht, CONTek´s co-founder, will continue to lead the company as managing director, with special focus on the expansion of the facilities and production capabilities. CONTek will be renamed Thielmann CONTek. www.thielmann.com

MAJOR PLASTICS DRUM PRODUCERS (continued)

GREIF CELEBRATES MILESTONE

COUNTRY/COMPANY

Russia

Zavod Tarnikh Izdely ● ● ● ● ●

Saudi Arabia

Al Babtain ● ● ● ● ●

Singapore

CurTec ● ● ● ●

Rex Plastics ● ●

Taiko Drums ● ● ● ● ●

South Africa

Greif ● ●

Megapak* ● ● ● ● ● ● ▲

Paradigm Packaging ● ● ▲ ▲

Spain

CurTec ● ● ● ●

Reyde ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ▲

Schütz ● ● ▲

Sweden

Emballator Lagan Plast ● ●

Greif ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ▲ ▲

Switzerland

Logo ● ● ●

Plastomatic ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ▲ ▲

Schoeller Arca Systems ● ● ●

Taiwan

Chang Chun* ● ● ● ● ●

Yung Hsin Contain Industries ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Thailand

Pack Delta* ● ● ● ●

YPA ● ● ●

Turkey

Deren Ambalaj ● ● ● ● ●

Güngör Plastik ● ● ● ●

Mauser Packaging Solutions* ● ● ● ● ▲

Özler ● ● ●

Sarten ● ● ●

UAE

Elan Inc ● ● ● ● ●

UK

James G Carrick

● ● ● ● ● ● ●

CurTec ● ● ● ●

FDL ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Fibrestar Drums ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ▲ ▲

Francis Ward

Gem Harcostar

Mauser Packaging

PD Rotomouldings

Promens

USA

Assmann

Greif is celebrating 90 years of production at its Hamburg production facility. “We are immensely proud to have reached such a significant achievement,” says Patrick Mullaney, business unit manager at Greif. “Over the years the business has risen to the challenges and thanks to ongoing investment from the group and the expertise of our talented team, we have become the successful business we are today.”

The Hamburg plant was founded in 1928 by Bernard van Leer to manufacture steel drums for the oil industry and asphalt drums for tar products. Today, the Hamburg plant leads the way in the development of new products with ongoing investment in innovation, says Greif.

Meanwhile, Greif has added a new highspeed production line for small steel drums at its plant in Vreeland, the Netherlands. The investment will bring significant efficiency gains to the production of small tight-head steel drums of between 12 and 38 litres capacity.

According to the company, this will optimise lead times and offer greater delivery flexibility. In addition, the plant has added a new welding machine to the production line, which will further improve the welding quality and is expected to significantly increase overall equipment effectiveness.

Customers for Greif’s small steel drums will notice changes in the appearance of the drum, the company states. The thickness of the steel will also be standardised to 0.62 mm in order to increase the overall strength of the drum. www.greif.com

DOWN IN THE MOUTH

MARKET • CBA’S REGULAR MEMBER SURVEY SHOWS A SECTOR FEELING THE PINCH, WITH A MORE PESSIMISTIC OUTLOOK THAN HAS BEEN RECORDED IN RECENT YEARS

THE CHEMICAL BUSINESS Association’s (CBA) latest supply chain trends survey, conducted over a two-week period between 5 and 16 November 2018, reveals a sharp decline in both order books and sales, with current and future sales margins turning negative, along with a decline in employment trends from the previous survey in June.

CBA’s supply chain trends survey asks companies to provide information on order books, sales, sales margins, and employment on a ‘better-worse-same’ basis. To measure short-term trends, the analysis ignores responses answering ‘same’ and focuses on the positive or negative balance provided by the difference between the ‘better’ and ‘worse’ options.

UPS AND DOWNS

Members were asked if their order books were better, worse or the same compared with the previous three months. The survey

results show a positive balance of +14 per cent in current order books which represents a significant decline from the balance of +32 per cent reported in June of this year.

Respondents were also asked to compare their current sales volumes with the preceding three months and forecast the trend for the upcoming three months. The results show that current sales volumes reveal a balance of +7 per cent, significantly lower than the +27 per cent reported in June. Future sales trends – though remaining positive – also continued to lose momentum at +9 per cent, down from +17 per cent reported in the last survey.

Companies reported their sales margins, comparing current margins with the previous three months and forecasts for the upcoming three months. Current sales margins have moved into negative territory with -11 per cent compared with the +8 per cent reported in June’s survey. Respondents forecast that sales margins will remain negative over the

next three months, generating a balance of -7 per cent.

Member companies were asked to report on their employment levels in the same manner, detailing whether levels will increase, decrease or remine the same. The responses reported a decline in employment trends with +16 per cent, down from +28 per cent reported in the last survey.

BIGGER REPRESENTATION

CBA represents the independent chemical supply chain in the UK, including distributors, traders, warehouse operators, and logistics and transport companies. CBA’s members, the majority of which are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), are the main industry interface with thousands of UK downstream chemical users. CBA member companies employ more than 8,700 individuals and distribute, pack and blend more than 4m tonnes of chemicals each year, with a market value of nearly €3bn.

CBA’s membership list continues to increase. In recent months it has welcomed Prayon UK, which describes itself as a world leader in phosphate chemistry, risk management consultant RAS Ltd, and NuStar Eastham Ltd, the main chemical terminal in NuStar Energy’s UK network of bulk liquids terminals, as new members. HCB www.chemical.org.uk

BULLETIN

FIRM GROWTH AT IMCD

IMCD has reported gross profit of €398.7m for the first nine months of 2018, an increase of 25 per cent compared to last year, with operating EBITA ahead by 26 per cent at €156.6m.

“The strong growth we reported after six months has continued,” says Piet van der Slikke, CEO of IMCD. “All regions contributed with robust organic growth and in addition, in North America we benefitted from the recent acquisitions we have made. In September we completed the acquisition of Velox with subsidiaries in many European countries. We have started the integration process of this company as well as of ET Horn, which we acquired end of July.”

Those two major acquisitions are unlikely to be IMCD’s last; the company says it “sees interesting opportunities to increase its global footprint and expand its product portfolio both organically and by acquisitions”.

Indeed, IMCD has now completed the acquisition of Indian speciality chemical distributor Aroma Chemical Agencies and its affiliate Alchemie Agencies. Established in 1973, Aroma focuses on the distribution of additives, resins and pigments for the coatings, construction, adhesives and polymers sectors.

“This acquisition perfectly complements our existing strong position in Life Sciences and helps establish IMCD India as a truly multi-market speciality chemical distributor

with an infrastructure to deliver growth for our suppliers across all regions of India,” says Amit Hirani, managing director of IMCD India. www.imcdgroup.com

NEW MATERIAL FOR DKSH

DKSH has signed a term sheet with TNG, an Australian resources company, covering distribution of its 150,000-tpa titanium dioxide production, as well as its sales, marketing and logistics. “With our market coverage and long-standing successful track record in the worldwide distribution of specialty chemicals to the plastics and coatings industry, we are TNG’s optimal partner to exclusively market their titanium dioxide pigments,” says Dr

Natale Capri, co-head business unit performance materials at DKSH.

“Our customers worldwide will benefit from a reliable and steady supply of high-quality products,” Paul Burton, managing director of TNG, adds. “My entire team and I are very much looking forward to the long-term and strategic relationship for our titanium dioxide business as well as the potential future growth opportunities this agreement brings.” www.dksh.com

NEXEO ADDS PRODUCTS

Nexeo Solutions has been selected to distribute Evonik Cyro’s acrylic-based polymer products in the US, Canada, Puerto Rico and Latin America from 1 November 2018. “Expanding our Healthcare portfolio with performance materials from Evonik is a great addition to our offering of specialty plastics for the medical industry,” says Shawn Williams, executive vice-president of plastics at Nexeo Solutions. “Evonik is known as a trendsetter across multiple industries for their trusted collaboration helping shape customers’ businesses. Our customers will benefit from Evonik’s commitment to innovation and quality, coupled with our technical expertise and industry-leading supply chain network to deliver exceptional acrylic-based products that meet demanding requirements.”

Nexeo has also expanded its line of 3D printing materials with the inclusion of filaments from Sabic. “We are delighted with Sabic’s desire to add its new high-performance filaments to our 3D product line,” says Williams. “The strong partnership we have, coupled with our industry knowledge and technical capabilities throughout the development process, makes us an ideal fit to bring customers these differentiated filament options.” www.nexeosolutions.com

AZELIS EXTENDS IN RUSSIA

Azelis has extended its distribution agreement with Merck in the Russian CASE, personal care and food and health markets. “Russian customers know the innovative and highly reputable products of Merck well and we are very proud to add Merck’s products to our product portfolio in Russia,” says Peter Heinig, group principal manager at Azelis. “I am convinced that our

team in the Moscow office will create a further success story which will lead to new mandate opportunities in the future.”

Andrey Zhukov, general manager at Azelis Russia, adds: “We see strong interest from the market for the Merck product range and we are confident that we will be able to grow the business further and also strengthen the image of Azelis as a leading speciality chemicals and food ingredients distributor.”

Azelis entered the Russian market in 2008, initially in the food and health sectors. It rapidly expanded into the personal care, plastic polymers, coatings and pharmaceutical markets. Azelis Russia provides technical developments and support for customers from both Azelis’ offices and warehousing facilities in Moscow, St Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk and Krasnodar, all conveniently located across Russia, safeguarding short lead times and cost-efficient deliveries. www.azelis.com

OMYA BUY SPACE

Omya has acquired Galderma-Spirig’s Egerkingen site in Switzerland, which was closed in September 2017, from GaldermaSpirig’s parent Nestlé Skin Health. Omya also intends to acquire Spirig Pharma’s Cosmospheres business unit, which develops and manufactures high-quality cellulose-based additives for the cosmetics industry.

Omya will move its research and development activities to this site from its headquarters in nearby Oftringen, which is fully occupied. Up to 350 full-time jobs will be located at Egerkingen; Omya will offer continued employment to the employees in this business area, as well as the continued employment of facility management and maintenance staff. www.omya.com

UNIVAR STRENGTHENS

IN LATIN AMERICA

Univar has opened a new sales centre in Colombia to extend its reach in Latin America. The new office will bring additional product, market and technical expertise to the region and expands Univar’s overall presence in what it sees as important growth markets.

“Univar’s new Colombian presence allows us to better serve our Latin American customers and suppliers through dedicated resources that are regionally focused,” says Rodrigo Santiago, commercial greatness director, Latin America. “Expanding our geographic reach allows us to sell the value of Univar by helping solve some of the most complex issues our customers and suppliers are facing.”

“Our new Colombian sales centre allows Univar to better serve local needs through enhanced product management, account management, program marketing, and communications within each market we serve,” adds Jorge Buckup, president of Univar’s Latin American division.

“Together this allows us to identify local product and technology trends as well as provide technical support and market insights to create specific programs and solutions for our customers and suppliers.”

Meanwhile, Univar has announced third quarter gross profit of $468.7m, 3.1 per cent up from the same period last year.

The company has also reported a 27.5 per cent increase in net income to $49.6m, with David Jukes, president and CEO saying:

“Our global execution continues to improve and our customers and supplier partners are recognising the value that Univar brings. Since we began to execute our strategic plan, we have delivered our eighth consecutive quarter of EBITDA growth.

We are highly confident that we have the right global growth programmes in place ahead of our integration with Nexeo.”

On the downside, “foreign exchange headwinds” and demand softness are expected to dampen fourth-quarter growth, with adjusted EBITDA expected to be in line with last year’s results. www.univar.com

SEEKING SYNERGY

ACQUISITION • INTER TERMINALS’ PLANNED PURCHASE OF NUSTAR EUROPE WILL GIVE IT A DOMINANT POSITION IN THE UK AND ADD A MAJOR FACILITY IN AMSTERDAM

INTER TERMINALS HAS agreed to acquire NuStar Energy LP’s European bulk liquids storage business for $270m (C$354m) cash. The transaction is expected to close before the end of 2018. “The addition of NuStar Europe is an exciting step forward for our European bulk liquid storage business,” says Christian Bayle, president/CEO of Inter Pipeline Ltd, Canadabased parent of Inter Terminals.

“The acquisition materially increases our overall storage capacity and establishes Inter Terminals as the largest independent storage operator in the UK,” Bayle adds.

“Furthermore, the transaction provides an attractive entry into the Port of Amsterdam. The Port is the world’s largest gasoline blending hub and has experienced significant storage growth over the years.”

“Our European assets are not synergistic with our other operations and this divestiture

is a critical step in the implementation of a comprehensive plan launched earlier this year to position NuStar to successfully de-lever and deliver strong, sustainable distribution coverage for the future,” says NuStar’s president and CEO Brad Barron.

The deal will increase Inter Terminals’ total storage capacity by some 33 per cent to 37m bbl (5.25m m³). It will be financed by proceeds from a common share issuance, expected to raise $200m, together with funds from Inter Pipeline’s existing borrowing arrangements.

WHAT’S IN THE DEAL

NuStar Europe has seven coastal terminals in its portfolio with an aggregate capacity of 9.1m bbl (1.45m m³), of which six are in the UK. Inter Pipeline says the acquisition will give it a high-quality, modern asset base of 321 storage tanks serving a diversified range

of customers that include integrated oil companies, chemical producers and major petroleum traders.

Furthermore, Inter identifies that the NuStar business, which is largely fee-based and focused on inland distribution and the blending of petroleum and petrochemical products, offers stable cash flows that, historically, have not been “materially impacted by backwardated commodity markets”. Capacity utilisation rates have also been strong, averaging around 85 per cent over the past three years and running at some 90 per cent in the first half of 2018.

“NuStar Europe has delivered stable financial results despite a challenging European storage market in recent years,” Inter Terminals adds.

The jewel in the NuStar Europe crown is the 3.8m-bbl (600,000-m³) Amsterdam terminal, which represents some 10 per cent of the port’s independent storage capacity. The terminal provides gasoline, gas oil and fuel oil storage and blending services, including those required to produce marine fuels needed to comply with the International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) rules on sulphur content that take effect in 2020. The 44-tank facility has averaged approximately 100 per cent utilisation over the past three years.

The largest terminal in the UK is the 1.9m-bbl (300,000-m³) Grays terminal in Essex. Situated on the Thames estuary, the facility serves the greater London area and is seen as a key regional supply point, handling some 17m bbl (2.7m m³) of refined products a year. The 49-tank terminal has also averaged 100 per cent capacity utilisation over the past three years.

NuStar Europe also has smaller terminals at Belfast, Eastham, Grangemouth, Runcorn and Clydebank, primarily supporting the distribution of petrochemicals, gasoline, diesel and sulphur to regional demand centres.

NuStar’s European terminals were acquired as part of its takeover of ST Services, which itself was formed from the divestment by GATX of its bulk liquids terminal business in 2000.

Inter Terminals’ existing European network consists of 16 bulk liquids facilities in the UK, Ireland, Germany, Denmark and Sweden. HCB www.interterminals.com

GPS POSITIONS ITSELF

Global Petro Storage (GPS) has firmed up two plans for greenfield terminals. In October, in a joint venture with Innova Refining Industries and Chemie Tech, it took a final investment decision to go ahead with a specialised facility in Hamriyah, UAE that will handle the reprocessing of waste oils, trading, imports and bunkering (above). Work has already started, with completion set for late 2019.

“This is GPS’s first investment in the Middle East, which is a key strategic hub which the company plans to expand around,” the company says. GPS will hold the majority in the three-party joint venture company that will develop, own and operate the state-of-the-art hydrocarbon storage terminal according to international standards.

In November GPS announced plans for a new LPG terminal in Port Klang, Malaysia, following a long-term agreement with Equinor (formerly Statoil). Equinor, which is responsible for around 10 per cent of global seaborne LPG trade, is aiming for a larger share of the market in south-east Asia; the new terminal will be

designed to provide an entry point not only for the domestic market in Malaysia but also nearby countries. The two companies expect the facility to be operational by mid-2021.

“Malaysia is an attractive market and we believe that we will be a competitive supplier to the wholesalers of LPG into the domestic market. The terminal and storage are also strategically located for blending and selling to other growing markets in the region,” says Molly Morris, vice-president for products and liquids at Equinor ASA. “We will source LPG from the North Sea, North Africa, the Middle East and Australia and utilise the opportunities the terminal and storage and our shipping positions give us to create value and strengthen our competitiveness.”

GPS, backed by Blue Water Energy, arrived in the terminal sector in December 2016 with the purchase of the 148,500-m3 Hydrocarbon Hotel in Amsterdam from Varo Energy. At that time it said it had around $300m to invest and had a goal of achieving annual EBITDA of $75m to $100m within five years. www.gpsgroup.com

MARTIN ADDS TRUCKING

Martin Midstream Partners is to acquire Martin Transport Inc (MTI) for $135m plus earn-out. The acquisition will be funded by the $193.7m it received from the sale of its interest in the West Texas LPG pipeline on 31 July.

“MTI transports petroleum products, LPG, chemicals, sulphur and other products, as well as owns 23 terminals located throughout the Gulf Coast and Midwest,” says the company.

Furthermore, it says, MTI “is integral to MMLP’s routine movements of sulphur and NGLs”.

MTI was formerly owned by Martin Resource Management Corp. It currently has 561 trucks, 1,307 trailers and 23 terminals in the south-east and Midwest US. www.martinmidstream.com

VTTI SHARE CHANGES AGAIN

Buckeye Partners is to sell its 50 per cent equity interest in VTTI to IFM Investors, an institutional funds manager owned by 27 Australian pension funds. Vitol’s remaining 50 per cent interest will be controlled by Vitol Investment Partnership II Ltd (VIP), an investment vehicle sponsored by Vitol. The transaction, which is subject to certain conditions, is expected to close by the end of the year. There will be no change to the VTTI management.

Rob Nijst, CEO of VTTI, says: “It has been a pleasure working with Buckeye over the last two years and we wish Buckeye the very best in its future endeavours. We are looking forward to a strengthened cooperation with IFM, Vitol and VIP, working together to further grow our global network of terminals”.

The transaction, which will delivery $975m in cash to Buckeye, is one outcome of the partnership’s recent strategic review, which will also see it sell off a package of non-integrated US pipeline and terminal assets. Those include airport operations in San Diego and Memphis and two refined products terminals in California.

BIGGER IN BEAUMONT

Phillips 66 reports that it has recently completed a 0.9m-bbl (143,000-m3) expansion of its Beaumont crude oil terminal in Texas, taking total crude and products storage capacity to 13.3m bbl (2.1m m3). Another round of construction has already started, which will add a further 1.3m bbl (200,000 m3) of crude oil capacity by the end of this year. Another 2.2m bbl (350,000 m3) of crude oil storage is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2020.

www.phillips66.com

TERQUIMSA GETS CERTIFIED

Vopak Terquimsa has renewed its Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) status, which offers simplified customs procedures for companies that show they operate in compliance with security and protection requirements.

“We are committed to certification as an AEO since [the scheme’s] inception, being the first liquid bulk terminal certified in our country,” says Eduardo Sañudo, general director. “At Vopak Terquimsa we have the constant objective of optimising our processes and certification as an AEO is undoubtedly an improvement in the efficiency of our customs processes, which entails significant savings in time and money for our customers.” www.vopakterquimsa.com

PIR CONSOLIDATES CAPACITY

La Petrolifera Italo Rumena (PIR) has become sole owner of Petra SpA, acquiring its former partner’s 50 per cent shareholding. Petra was

established in 1992 by PIR and Eni to rationalise oil logistics in the port of Ravenna, Italy, where PIR operates its own 183,000-m3 bulk liquids terminal.

Now under PIR’s control, Petra SpA will take over the Ravenna terminal through a merger with Pir Petroli SpA. PIR says the Ravenna site is ideally located to act as a hub for petroleum products in the upper Adriatic. www.gruppopir.com

MORE GAS FOR OILTANKING

Oiltanking Antwerp Gas Terminal (AGT) is to build a 135,000-m3 propane tank to handle

imports for the new propane dehydrogenation (PDH) unit Borealis is to open at its nearby Kallo site. The PDH unit is due onstream in early 2022.

“I am looking forward to continue the long-standing partnership and the confidence placed in Oiltanking for handling propylene and propane and the further integration into the logistics chain of Borealis,” says Daan Vos, managing director of Oiltanking West of Suez.

The new propane tank is the same size as the butane tank AGT is currently building for Ineos, which will be the largest of its kind in Europe on completion. Once the two new tanks are finished, Oiltanking will have almost tripled capacity at AGT, which it acquired in mid-2016.

Oiltanking has also announced it has sold its share in the Exir Chemical Terminal, located in Bandar Imam Khomeini, Iran, to its local joint-venture partner. In a brief statement, the Hamburgbased terminal operator said the sale came “as a result of its continuous portfolio optimisation and the difficult market in Iran”. The Exir terminal, sited in the Petrochemical Special Economic Zone, has a capacity of 22,000 m3 in 18 tanks. www.oiltanking.com

TRAINING COURSES

ACUTE ENVIRONMENTAL & SAFETY SERVICES

730 Bridge St West, Unit 3 Waterloo, Ontario N2V 2J4, Canada

T (+1 519) 747 5075

www.acuteservices.com

Transport of Dangerous Goods

• January 10 – Waterloo

• February 7 – Waterloo

Confined Space Entry

• January 10 – Waterloo

• February 28 – Waterloo

Confined Space Rescue

• January 11 – Waterloo

• March 1 – Waterloo

HAZWOPER

• January 29-Feb 1 – Waterloo

HAZWOPER Refresher

• January 30 – Waterloo

ALL MODES DANGEROUS GOODS TRAINING

8 Laurel Road

Hatton Vale, QLD 4341, Australia

T (+61 7) 5411 4415

www.amdg.com.au

Dangerous Goods – Initial Air Acceptance

• January 7-19 – Melbourne

• January 14-16 – Sydney

• January 21-23 – Brisbane

• February 4-6 – Sydney

• February 11-13 – Melbourne

• February 25-27 – Brisbane

Dangerous Goods – Air Transport Recertification

• January 10 – Melbourne

• January 17 – Sydney

• January 24 – Brisbane

• February 14 – Melbourne

• February 21 – Brisbane

Dangerous Goods by Sea –

Function-Specific, Initial

• January 10-11 – Sydney

• January 29-30 – Brisbane

• February 7-8 – Melbourne

BRITISH INTERNATIONAL FREIGHT ASSOCIATION (BIFA)

Redfern House, Browells Lane Feltham, Middlesex TW13 7EP, UK

T (+44 20) 8844 3625 www.bifa.org

Dangerous Goods by Air

• January 7-9 – Feltham

• January 14-16 – Altrincham

• January 14-16 – Coventry

Dangerous Goods by Air –Revalidation

• January 10 – Feltham

• January 17 – Altrincham

• January 17 – Coventry

Dangerous Goods by Road

• January 21-23 – Feltham

Dangerous Goods by Road –Revalidation

• January 22-23 – Feltham

Dangerous Goods by Sea

• January 24-25 – Feltham

BUREAU OF DANGEROUS GOODS

4 Corporate Drive, Bldg. 4, Suite D Cranbury, NJ 08512, USA T (+1 609) 860 0300 www.bureaudg.com

IATA Initial Training

• January 23-24 – Dayton, NJ IATA Recurrent Training

• January 16 – Dayton, NJ IMDG Recurrent Training

• January 17 – Dayton, NJ IATA & IMDG Initial Training

• January 23-25 – Dayton, NJ IATA & IMDG Recurrent Training

• January 16-17 – Dayton, NJ

CFR Initial Training

• January 21-22 – Dayton, NJ

CFR 1-Day Recurrent Training

January 15 – Dayton, NJ

CFR and IATA Initial

January 21-24 – Dayton, NJ

CFR and IATA Recurrent

January 15-16 – Dayton, NJ

CFR/IMDG/IATA Initial Training

• January 21-25 – Dayton, NJ

CFR/IMDG/IATA Recurrent Training

• January 15-17 – Dayton, NJ

CAMEON

PO Box 17345

EH12 1DJ, UK

T (+44 131) 334 1929

www.cameon.com

Dangerous Goods by Air

•

14-16

• February 7-8 – Heathrow

• February 12-13 – Houston

• February 14-15 – Glasgow

• February 14-15 – Leeds/Bradford

• February 19-20 – Austin

Dangerous Goods by Sea (IMDG)

• January 14-15 – Houston

• January 24-25 – Chicago

• January 24-25 – Heathrow

• January 31-Feb 1 – Dallas

• February 7-8 – Atlanta

February 14-15 – Houston

February 21-22 – Birmingham, UK

IMDG – Sea – Revalidation

January 15 – Houston

January 25 – Chicago

February 1 – Dallas

February 8 – Atlanta

February 15 – Houston

CARGO TRAINING

Box 176

Shepperton TW17 8WP, UK

(+44 1932) 769682

O Box 580026

TX 77258-0026, USA

(+1 281) 333 4672

Dangerous Goods by Air – ICAO (full course)

• January 7-9 – Heathrow

January 7-9 – Houston

January 7-9 – Los Angeles

January 14-16 – Birmingham, UK

January 16-18 – Manchester

January 21-23 – Chicago

January 28-30 – Dallas

February 4-6 – Atlanta

February 4-6 – Heathrow

February 11-13 – Glasgow

February 11-13 – Leeds/Bradford

February 18-20 – Austin

Dangerous Goods by Air –Revalidation

• January 8-9 – Houston

January 8-9 – Los Angeles

January 10-11 – Heathrow

January 17-18 – Birmingham, UK

January 17-19 – Manchester

January 22-23 – Chicago

January 28-30 – Dallas

February 5-6 – Atlanta

Dangerous Goods by Road – ADR (full course)

January 21-23 – Heathrow

February 18-20 – Birmingham, UK

Dangerous Goods by Road –Revalidation

January 22-23 – Heathrow

February 19-20 – Birmingham, UK

Lithium Batteries Multimodal

January 31-Feb 1 – Heathrow

Radioactive Materials by Air (full course)

January 10-11 – Houston

Dangerous Goods Safety Adviser

February 25-March 1 – Heathrow

February 25-March 1 – Manchester

Dangerous Goods Safety Adviser (Refresher)

February 27-March 1 – Heathrow

February 27-March 1 – Manchester

CHEMICAL HAZARDS

SOCIETY

for Transport

January 30 – London

• January 31 – London

Overview of the Biocidal Products Regulation

• February 6 – London

DANGEROUS GOODS COUNCIL

PO Box 7325

York, PA 17404, USA

T (+1 717) 848 8840

www.hazshipper.com

49 CFR & International AirCertification

• January 28-30 – Fort Lauderdale

• February 11-13 – Fort Worth

49 CFR – Certification

• January 28-29 – Fort Lauderdale

• February 11-12 – Fort Worth

International Air – Recertification

• January 30 – Fort Lauderdale

• February 13 – Fort Worth

FREIGHT TRANSPORT

ASSOCIATION

Hermes House, St John’s Road

Tunbridge Wells TN4 9UZ, UK

T (+44 1892) 526171

www.fta.co.uk

Dangerous Goods Safety Adviser

• February 25-March 1 – Stirling

ADR – Initial

• January 21-25 – Leeds

• February 4-8 – West Thurrock

HAZMATEAM

12 Kimball Hill Road

Hudson, NH 03051-3915, USA

T (+1 603) 882 1112

www.hazmateam.com

US DOT Hazardous Materials

Regulations (49 CFR) Ground Transportation – Initial

• January 22-24 – Hudson

US DOT Hazardous Materials

Regulations (49 CFR) Ground Transportation –

Intermediate Refresher

• February 5-6 – Hudson

US DOT Hazardous Materials

Regulations (49 CFR) Ground Transportation –Advanced Refresher

• February 27 – Hudson

DOT Manifesting and Function

Specific (49 CFR) Ground Transportation

• January 30 – Hudson

International Air Shipping – Initial

• February 11-13 – Hudson

International Air Shipping –Refresher

• February 20-21 – Hudson

Water Transportation of Dangerous Goods (IMDG) – Initial

• March 5-6 – Hudson

Incident Command

• February 8 – Hudson

OSHA Emergency Response Refresher

• January 28 – Hudson

• February 26 – Hudson

OSHA Emergency Response

Technician – Initial

• January 14-16 – Hudson

OSHA/EPA Emergency Response

– Initial

• January 14-18 – Hudson

HAZMAT TRAINING SCHOOL

SINGAPORE

146A Changi Road

Singapore 419726

T (+65) 6542 5539

www.haz-mat-training.com

IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations (Initial)

• January 21-25 – Singapore

IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations (Recurrent)

• January 24-25 – Singapore

• February 27-28 – Singapore

IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations (Awareness)

• January 21 – Singapore

IMDG Code Dangerous Goods By Sea

• February 25-26 – Singapore Chemical Safety Awareness

• February 20 – Singapore

SCDF Hazmat Transport Driver Permit

• January 14 – Singapore

• February 21 – Singapore

HEALTH AND SAFETY LABORATORY

Training Unit

Harpur Hill, Buxton, Derbyshire

SK17 9JN, UK

T (+44 1298) 218806 www.hsl.gov.uk

COMAH Compliance for Lower Tier Establishments

• January 24 – Buxton

DSEAR – Gases and Liquids

• January 31 – Buxton

Hazardous Area Classification for Gases and Liquids

• February 28 – Buxton

Human Factors in Accident and Incident Investigations

• February 12-13 – Buxton

Behaviour Change: Achieving Health & Safety Culture Excellence

• February 5-6 – Buxton

ICC COMPLIANCE CENTER 2150 Liberty Drive

Niagara Falls, NY 14304, USA

T (+1 888) 442 9628

88 Lindsay Avenue

Dorval, QC H9P 2T8, Canada

T (+1 888) 977 4834 www.thecompliancecenter.com

Shipping Dangerous Goods by Ground in Canada: Initial

• January 9-10 – Toronto

• February 6-7 – Toronto

• February 19-20 – Montreal

Shipping Dangerous Goods by Ground in Canada: Refresher

• January 23 – Toronto

Shipping Dangerous Goods by Ground in Canada: Initial/Refresher

• January 22 – Vancouver

• February 19 – Vancouver Shipping Dangerous Goods by Air: Initial

• January 15-17 – Toronto

• January 23 – Vancouver

• February 5-7 – Montreal

• February 20 – Vancouver Shipping Dangerous Goods by Air: Refresher

• January 24 – Toronto

• February 21 – Montreal

Shipping Dangerous Goods by Sea using IMDG Code: Initial

• January 24 – Vancouver

• January 30-31 – Toronto

Shipping Dangerous Goods by Sea using IMDG Code: Refresher

• February 14 – Houston

Shipping Hazardous Materials by Ground and Air: Initial

• February 12-13 – Houston

Shipping Lithium Batteries by Air

• February 12-13 – Toronto

NOVADATA TAB LTD

3 Blackwell Drive

Springwood Industrial Estate Braintree, Essex CM7 2QJ, UK

T (+44 1376) 552999 www.novadata.co.uk

Dangerous Goods Safety Adviser

• February 18-22 – Braintree

ADR Core, Packages

• January 7-10 – Braintree

• February 11-14 – Braintree

PETER EAST ASSOCIATES

504 Centennial Park

Centennial Avenue

Elstree, Herts WD6 3FG, UK

T (+44 20) 8953 6721

www.petereast.com

Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Air – Certification

• January 7-9 – East Midlands

• January 7-9 – Heathrow

• January 14-16 – Manchester

• January 21-23 – Elstree

• February 4-6 – Stansted

• February 4-6 – Stansted

• February 11-13 – Luton

• February 18-20 – Southampton

Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Air – Revalidation

• January 10 – Heathrow

• January 10-11 – East Midlands

• January 17-18 – Manchester

• February 7 – Heathrow

• February 7-8 – Stansted

• February 14-15 – Luton

• February 21-22 – Southampton

• February 21-22 – Heathrow

Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road & Sea

• February 11-13 – Heathrow

Carriage of Radioactive Material by Air

• February 21-22 – Heathrow

Carriage of Diagnostic & Infectious Substances by Air

• February 5 – Elstree

Carriage of Lithium Batteries by Air, Road & Sea

• January 14-15 – Elstree

• February 11-12 – Heathrow

Carriage of Excepted & Limited Quantities by Air, Road and Sea

• January 23-25 – Elstree

Dangerous Goods Regulations Update

• January 8 – Elstree

• January 17 – Stansted

• January 21 – Southampton

• January 31 – Heathrow

Dangerous Goods Safety Adviser

• February 25-March 1 – Heathrow

• February 25-March 1 –Manchester

TRAININGTEAM

12 Gleneagles Court, Brighton Road

Crawley, West Sussex RH10 6AD, UK

T (+44 1293) 536943

www.trainingteam.co.uk

Dangerous Goods by Air (Initial)

• January 7-9 – Leeds

January 14-16 – East Midlands

January 14-16 – Gatwick

• January 21-23 – Heathrow

January 21-23 – Manchester

• February 11-13 – East Midlands

• February 11-13 – Gatwick

• February 18-20 – Heathrow

• February 18-20 – Manchester

• February 25-27 – Glasgow

Dangerous Goods by Air Revalidation

• January 10-11 – Manchester

• January 15-16 – East Midlands

January 15-16 – Gatwick

January 22-23 – Heathrow

January 31-Feb 1 – Leeds

February 4-5 – Manchester

February 11-12 – Bristol

February 12-13 – Gatwick

February 14-15 – East Midlands

• February 19-20 – Heathrow

Radioactive Materials by Air

• February 14-15 – Gatwick

Carriage of Lithium Batteries by Air

• January 15-16 – Gatwick

• January 28-29 – Manchester

Dangerous Goods by Road

• February 6-7 – Manchester

• February 20-21 – Gatwick

• February 27-28 – East Midlands

Dangerous Goods by Road –‘Top-Up’

• January 11 – Leeds

January 18 – East Midlands

January 18 – Gatwick

• January 25 – Heathrow

January 25 – Manchester

• February 22 – Heathrow

• February 22 – Manchester

Dangerous Goods by Sea

• February 4-5 – Manchester

• February 18-19 – Gatwick

• February 25-26 – East Midlands

Dangerous Goods by Sea –‘Top-Up’

• January 10 – Leeds

• January 17 – East Midlands

• January 17 – Gatwick

January 24 – Heathrow

January 24 – Manchester

February 14 – Glasgow

February 21 – Heathrow

February 21 – Manchester

CONFERENCE DIARY

JANUARY

Platts’ Gas Storage Outlook

JANUARY 10-11, HOUSTON

17th annual conference on gas storage issues in North America www.spglobal.com/platts/en/events/americas /gas-storage-outlook/summary

European Oil Storage Conference

JANUARY 24-25, AMSTERDAM

Platts’ 12th annual conference on oil markets for terminal owners, ports, oil traders, financiers and analysts www.spglobal.com/platts/en/events/emea/ european-oil-storage/summary

COHMED

JANUARY 28-FEB 1, SAN ANTONIO

Annual conference of the Cooperative Hazardous Materials Enforcement Development (COHMED) programme https://cvsa.org/eventpage/events/ cohmed-conference/

Argus Americas LPG Summit

JANUARY 29-31, HOUSTON Conference on market trends in regional LPG supply and demand www.argusmedia.com/en/conferences-eventslisting/americas-lpg

FEBRUARY

Digital Transformation in Chemicals

FEBRUARY 6-7, FRANKFURT

Inaugural event focusing on digitisation in the chemical industry www.argusmedia.com/en/conferences-eventslisting/digital-transformation-in-chemicals

Annual LNG Conference

FEBRUARY 12-13, HOUSTON

18th annual S&P Global Platts conference on the international LNG market www.spglobal.com/platts/en/events/americas/lngconference/summary

Storck Symposium 2019

FEBRUARY 17-19, HAMBURG

35th annual conference on dangerous goods transport (German language) www.ecomed-storck.de/Veranstaltungen/35-

Internationale-Gefahrgut-Tage-HamburgVeranstaltung-Hamburg-17-19-02-2019.html

Crisis & Risk Management Summit

FEBRUARY 18-21, KUWAIT

Seventh annual meeting to crisis resilience in the Middle East https://crisisandriskmanagement.iqpc.ae/

International Petroleum Week (IP Week)

FEBRUARY 26-28, LONDON

Annual week of meetings, lunches, conferences and seminars in London www.ipweek.co.uk/_nocache

Hazardex 2019

FEBRUARY 27-28, RUNCORN Conference and exhibition on hazardous area operations www.hazardexonthenet.net/event. aspx?EventID=4783

MARCH

PPC Spring Meeting

MARCH 3-5, SCOTTSDALE

Bi-annual meeting and tradeshow of the Petroleum Packaging Council www.ppcouncil.org/upcoming-meetings.php

Chemical & Product Tankers

MARCH 5-6, LONDON

Tenth annual conference, co-hosted by the International Parcel Tankers Association http://cpt-conference.com/

IATA World Cargo Symposium

MARCH 12-14, SINGAPORE

13th global conference on air cargo www.iata.org/events/wcs/pages/index.aspx

BADGP

MARCH 14, COVENTRY

Annual AGM and seminar of the British Association of Dangerous Goods Professionals www.badgp.org/event-3120064

SCHC Spring Meeting

MARCH 16-20, LAS VEGAS

Biannual meeting of the Society of Chemical Hazard Communication www.schc.org/meetings

AFPM Annual Meeting

MARCH 17-19, SAN ANTONIO

AFPM’s annual meeting for refiners and marketers www.afpm.org/Conferences/

Dangerous Goods ANZ 2019

MARCH 18-19, MELBOURNE

Workshop on hazardous chemicals and dangerous goods compliance www.marcusevans-conferences-australian.com/ marcusevans-conferences-event-details.asp? EventID=24841&SectorID=3&eventname=%20 Dangerous%20Goods%20ANZ%202019

Tanks and Terminals 2019

MARCH 18-19, DUBAI

Conference and workshop on integrity management of aboveground storage tanks www.marcusevans-conferences-middleeastern. com/marcusevans-conferences-event-details. asp?EventID=24765&SectorID=7

Intermodal South America

MARCH 19-21, SÃO PAULO

International exhibition on intermodal logistics, cargo transport and international trade www.intermodal.com.br/en

LogiChem

MARCH 19-21, AMSTERDAM Chemical supply chain and logistics conference http://logichem.wbresearch.com/

AFPM IPC

MARCH 24-26, SAN ANTONIO

AFPM’s annual International Petrochemical Conference www.afpm.org/Conferences/

International Transport & Logistics Week (SITL)

MARCH 26-28, PARIS

Annual transport event, including inaugural Dangerous Goods Logistics Pavilion www.sitl.eu/en/Home/

StocExpo 2019

MARCH 26-28, ROTTERDAM

The main annual exhibition and conference for the European tank terminal industry www.easyfairs.com/stocexpo-europe-2019/ stocexpo-europe-2019/

INCIDENT

ROAD/RAIL/AIR INCIDENTS

Date Location Vehicle Type Substance Details Source

30/8/18 Obio-Akpor, road tanker gasoline

Speeding tanker lost control, ran into garden and exploded, sparking fire and explosion in generator; nearby The Rivers, Nigeria homes, shops and church razed in fire; third such incident on same stretch of road Guardian

31/8/18 Belton, truck aerosols Driver noticed fire in rear trailer on I-35, pulled over and detached trailer; fire reached load of Axe body CNN Texas, US spray, which exploded; severe traffic disruption but no injuries; road surface badly damaged

5/9/18 Charlotte, road tanker gasoline Tank truck overturned at I-485 junction, spilling 7,500 gal (28.4 m3) gasoline into tributary of Long Creek; WJZY N Carolina, US downstream fish kill; fire crews established dams to prevent spill spreading further; water being monitored

5/9/18 Thompson, road tanker tar Tank truck carrying hot tar rolled into ditch; tank ruptured, spilling tar into cab; driver suffered 95% burns, AP N Dakota, US died three days later in hospital; cause of accident unknown

10/9/18 Lafia, truck LPG Explosion, reportedly during refilling of gas cylinders on truck at gas filling station, killed at least 35 people, EWN Nasarawa, Nigeria injured more than 100; nearby traders had alerted fire crews to gas leak before blast

10/9/18 St Joseph county, road tanker gasoline

Tank truck driver felt tyre blow, found tyre on fire and could not extinguish it; fire spread to tank with WNDU Indiana, US gasoline; heat damage to nearby homes; road could not be repaired as asphalt plants closed for Labor Day

12/9/18 Erode, truck fireworks Truckload of fireworks exploded as they were being unloaded, killing three workers, injuring five more; Times of Tamil Nadu, India nine houses damaged; fireworks industry requested inquiry, suspecting illegal fireworks were involved India

12/9/18 Siburan, road tanker gasoline Road tanker with 16,000 litres gasoline hit barrier on Pan Borneo Highway, overturned; tanker did not leak; The Star Sarawak, Malaysia highway closed while fuel was transferred to other tankers; driver injured (KL)

14/9/18 Kottayam, freight train fuel Oil train, cargo unspecified, caught fire at Muttambalam; initial reports suggested tanks were badly filled Manorama Kerala, India and spark from overhead power line ignited spilt fuel Online 15/9/18 nr Ponton, freight train fuels One crewman killed, one badly hurt when train derailed on line from Winnipeg to Gillam; diesel leaked from Toronto Manitoba, Canada loco to Metishto River; tank cars with gasoline, LPGs did not leak; service to remote towns suspended Star

15/9/18 Iju-Atan-Ilogbo, road tanker gasoline Road tanker with 33,000 litres gasoline overturned on Iwoye-Ilogbo Road; authorities quickly on hand to Punch Ogun, Nigeria keep residents clear of spilling fuel; cargo transferred to another tanker

17/9/18 nr Kashan, road tanker fuel Tanker carrying unspecified fuel crashed into bus on motorway between Kashan and Natanz; crash led to AFP Isfahan, Iran fireball that engulfed both vehicles, killing 19 passengers

17/9/18 nr Habarana, freight train oil Oil train derailed after hitting elephants crossing the track; three elephants killed; several tank cars leaked AFP Sri Lanka fuel; press photos showed orderly line of locals with pails waiting to collect spillage

18/9/18 Ilminster, truck hydrochloric Truck spilled 25 litres acid at service station after container broke when driver braked hard; A358 closed to Somerset Somerset, UK acid allow fire crews to clean up spill from road Live

20/9/18 Maje, road tanker fuel Road tanker rolled over as driver tried to pull away after being parked on a hill; spilling fuel ignited, spreading Punch Niger, Nigeria fire to shops, 40 of which were destroyed but no injuries reported; locals had complained about illegal parking

21/9/18 Malappuram, road tanker LPG IOC LPG tanker overturned on NH 66 near Calicut University; some leak of gas from tanker; power supplies The Kerala, India to area cut off; fire crews played water on tanker to prevent explosion; nearby homes evacuated Hindu

21/9/18 Cherokee county, truck peroxide Leak of organic peroxide during delivery of six 300-gal containers at Pilgrim’s Pride chicken processing plant AJC Georgia, US by FedEx truck; plant evacuated; I-575 closed temporarily; four hospitalised with breathing difficulties

22/9/18 nr Trail, truck sulphuric Small leak of acid from Trimac truck during delivery from Teck Resources to IRM; portion of Highway 22 Global BC, Canada acid closed while responders checked vehicle over; third leak of acid this year on same route News

27/9/18 Pocatello, road tanker sulphuric Concentrated sulphuric acid spilled over several streets in Bannock county, presumably from leaking tanker East Idaho Idaho, US acid or container; up to 65 gal (250 litres) thought to have been lost News

30/9/18 Lincoln county, road tanker ethanol Tank truck with 8,000 gal (30 m³) ethanol overturned on Highway 61; no report of leak but highway had KSDK Missouri, US to be closed for several hours for response; driver injured in crash; cause unknown

1/10/18 Edmonton, road tanker asphalt Double tanker rolled off Anthony Henday Drive, spilling hot asphalt beside road; some product reached CBC Alberta, Canada storm drain; front tank ruptured, losing most of its load

2/10/18 Ojo, road tanker gasoline Laden tanker overturned on Lagos-Badagry expressway, reportedly due to bad road repair; tanker exploded, Vanguard Lagos, Nigeria spreading fire to several other vehicles; unknown number of fatalities

3/10/18 Ondo, road tanker gasoline Road tanker swerved to avoid car on Akure-Owo expressway, overturned; spilling gasoline ignited, spreading This Ondo, Nigeria fire near filling station; five people thought to have died in vehicles Day

MARINE/INLAND WATERWAY INCIDENTS

Date Location Vessel Substance Details Source

29/8/18 nr Port Arthur, Savage diesel Some 50 m³ marine diesel spilled to dock waters after unspecified accident involving two vessels; USCG PA News Texas, US Pathfinder attended to investigate, contain spill; booms deployed

1/9/18 off Måløy, Key Fighter rapeseed Product tanker called for medical assistance after two crewmen collapsed while working in cargo tank; one FleetMon Nordfjord, Norway oil died later in hospital; thought that they had been exposed to hydrogen sulphide

8/9/18 Muthurajawela, furnace oil Some 25 t furnace oil spilled to water due to leak in dock line at CPC terminal; oil spread along the coast, Adaderana Sri Lanka fouling beaches; long-term environmental damage feared

12/9/18 River Don, Kapitan fuel oil Product tanker (5,630 dwt, 1987), with 4,300 t bunker fuel from Tayanka to Kavkaz ran aground while FleetMon Russia Permyakov anchoring; tanker still aground two days later; no damage to vessel and no leak reported

28/9/18 Vistabella River, oil Unspecified quantity of oil (crude?) spilled from Petrotrin’s Mossetville Manifold high-pressure pipeline to Newsday Trinidad river; crews quickly contained spill, recovered oil, but locals complained of pungent stench

MISCELLANEOUS INCIDENTS

Date Location Plant type

3/9/18 Somerset West, munitions ammunition

Details

Eight people killed by explosion in Rheinmetall Denel munitions plant; several others injured; other staff IOL W Cape, South Africa plant evacuated; cause of blast under investigation

3/9/18 Radushne, water treatment chlorine

Major leak of chlorine at water utility when valve broke during maintenance work; locals complained of lack UNIAN Kryviy Rih, Ukraine plant of information, though winds blew cloud away from village; fire crews applied water curtain

6/9/18 Duliajan, oil wells crude oil Fire broke out in two Oil India Ltd wells, reportedly after thieves tried to steal condensate; OIL criticised for Northeast Assam, India lack of security, despite several similar incidents; no injuries reported Now

6/9/18 Kamisu, resin plant paradichloro- Storage tank at DIC EP Kashima plant exploded during welding work; one person was blown off the top of the Ibaraki Ibaraki, Japan benzene tank and died, another was injured; tank had some 110 t DCB News

7/9/18 Vohburg, oil refinery unknown At least 10 people were injured by major explosion at Bayernoil refinery that caused severe damage to plant; DW Bayern, Germany local reports said there were several smaller blasts in the aftermath; more than 1,800 locals evacuated

7/9/18 Decatur, pipeline jet fuel More than 8,000 gal (30 m³) jet fuel leaked from Buckeye pipeline to St Marys River; booms deployed; Journal Indiana, US nearby roads closed; line shut in pending repairs Gazette

8/9/18 Melbourne, airport amyl Leak of liquid at cargo facility at Melbourne Airport identified as amyl butyrate propanethiol; thought that Herald Victoria, Australia butyrate at least one of four containers in package leaked; MFB transferred product to salvage drums Sun

10/9/18 Center township, pipeline natural gas Explosion, fire on Energy Transfer’s 24-inch gas gathering line destroyed two houses, caused widespread WPXI Pennsylvania, US evacuations; line automatically shut down; line was opened a week earlier and was not in full service

12/9/18 Bijnor, petrochemical methane

Six people killed, eight badly injured by explosion in ‘liquid methane’ tank feeding boiler at private plant; Hindustan UP, India plant police said workers had reported gas leak two days earlier; owner ordered leak to be welded while tank was full Times

13/9/18 Lawrence, pipeline natural gas Dozens of fires broke out in three communities north of Boston due to leaking gas; one killed, others injured; AP Massachusetts, US later emerged that line was severely overpressurised; mass evacuations; at least 80 homes destroyed

13/9/18 Petersburg, post office mercury Post office was closed for several days after packaged leaked mercury; USPS took air samples before opening Postal Alaska, US office to the public, started investigation into identity of sender and receiver Times

13/9/18 White Springs, phosphate phosphoric Some 200,000 gal (750 m³) phosacid spilled at Nutrien White Springs Phosphate plant, due to unspecified Suwannee Florida, US plant acid equipment failure; spill contained on site with no injuries and no environmental impact, operator said Democrat

14/9/18 Poruwadanda, rubber plant ammonia

Five people injured by explosion in ammonia tank at rubber factory; incident said to have happened as truck Hiru News Horana, Sri Lanka loaded with 14 ammonia cylinders was leaving plant, but no cause identified

18/9/18 St-Aubin-les-Elbeuf, chemical plant hydrochloric Leak in container (IBC?) with 900 kg hydrochloric acid at BASF Sanofi plant; nearby roads closed during franceinfo Seine-Mar, France acid response; leak contained on site; air samples taken; no injuries reported, no evacuations needed

21/9/18 Aspen, airport jet fuel Some 1,325 gal (5,000 litres) jet fuel overflowed from tank during filling at Atlantic Aviation facility at Aspen Aspen Colorado, US Airport; fire chief later expressed surprise at not being informed; much of the spill reached nearby road Times

22/9/18 Rajahmundry, fireworks fireworks At least three killed, three more injured by explosion at illegal firecracker factory in thatched house; Xinhua AP, India factory police ordered investigation

25/9/18 Winnsboro, feed mill ammonium Fire broke out at Valley Feed Mill, involving stocks of ammonium nitrate fertiliser; fire crews established E Texas Texas, US nitrate half-mile evacuation zone, allowed fire to burn out; shelter-in-place advised outside exclusion zone Matters

SAFE AND SUSTAINABLE

TANKS • TANK CONTAINER OPERATORS LIKE TO STRESS THE BENEFITS OF THEIR UNITS OVER OTHER TRANSPORT OPTIONS. A RECENT INCIDENT IN MEXICO GIVES SUPPORT TO THEIR POSITION

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION agreed in October to propose legislation to outlaw single-use plastics in an effort to combat the problem of plastics and microplastics pollution in the maritime environment. A proposed directive will target small items in the consumer market, with another aim of recycling 90 per cent of plastics bottles and other larger items by 2025.

While the plan is focused squarely on the consumer end of the plastics supply chain, there are those – not least among the International Tank Container Organisation (ITCO) – who believe that restrictions on single-use plastics articles should extend to the industrial sphere as well. In particular, ITCO says, the use of flexibags in the bulk liquids logistics sector runs counter to the desire to remove non-reusable plastics from widespread use.

Flexibags are one-way delivery systems and, while some are collected and shredded so that they can be recycled, many appear to be going directly to landfill. And, while flexibags cannot be used to carry regulated dangerous goods, they are often used to move large volumes of product that may, in bulk quantities, be harmful to the environment should they be lost in the case of a failure of the bag. There are many instances of bags leaking product on the roads of Europe and in the hulls of containerships, which can lead to costly cleanup activities and delays.

IMPACT ON THE TANK

By contrast, tank containers are built to withstand more than the normal rigours of transport, as illustrated by a recent incident in Mexico. On 11 October, the local agent was transporting a tank with foodgrade product

from the port to a local consignee. According to the truck driver, he had to swerve to avoid an animal running across the motorway; the truck ran off the road, overturned and dumped the tank against a concrete bridge support alongside the road.

Remarkably, while the tank was badly damaged – pictures showed the frame badly bent and buckled, part of the tank insulation stripped away and dents in the tank itself –there was no leak of product.

In fact, the agent managed to load the damaged tank onto another chassis and complete delivery of the product to the consignee; after unloading, the empty tank was taken to Atosa in Mexico City for repair.

It is safe to assume that, had the consignment been made in a flexibag, there would have been no delivery to the consignee and the road would have been put out of action for a while to allow the product to be cleaned up. HCB

HCB is grateful to Stolt Tank Containers, owner of the tank involved, for permission to report the incident and reproduce pictures taken at the scene.

WE CAN WORK IT OUT

SQAS • LOGISTICS SERVICE PROVIDERS ARE ALARMED BY THE WAY THEIR CHEMICAL CUSTOMERS ARE MISUSING THEIR JOINTLY AGREED AUDIT SYSTEM. ECTA WANTS CHANGE

IT IS NOW more than 25 years since the European chemical industry, through its trade association the European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic), decided that safety could be improved throughout the supply chain by the introduction of a standardised system of auditing logistics service providers (LSPs) against safety and quality benchmarks.

The resulting Safety and Quality Assessment System (SQAS) – now expanded and renamed Safety and Quality Assessment for Sustainability – has become a cornerstone

of industry’s efforts to improve safety in its logistics operations and, more recently, to make sustainability an integral element of those operations.

However, as Cefic prepares to introduce revisions to some of the SQAS questionnaires in 2019, the European Chemical Transport Association (ECTA), which has been involved in the development and improvement of SQAS for the past 20 years, has raised serious concerns about the way in which the system is increasingly being used by the chemical industry.

ECTA says that its members have reported rising numbers of instances where SQAS is being misused by chemical companies, particularly in the last two years. ECTA has raised these concerns with chemical industry representatives, although this does not seem to have improved matters.

As a result, at its annual board meeting on 28 September, ECTA decided to prepare a Position Paper on the implementation of SQAS 2019, making its concerns clear. That Paper also stressed ECTA’s willingness to work together with Cefic to ensure that SQAS remains the best audit system for the logistics sector and continues to be a vital part of ECTA members’ commitment to Responsible Care.

WHERE IT’S GOING WRONG

ECTA explains the current position thus:

“During the last few years a steadily growing number of complaints has been communicated to ECTA by its members (and others). We believe that this deterioration has further continued during 2017 and particularly during 2018 where our ECTA members

are witnessing observations and company behaviours which undermine SQAS as a best practice.”

In particular, ECTA says, there has been “a steady decline in the willingness of chemical industry representatives to use SQAS as it is intended”. Comments added to the completed assessments by the assessed companies are often ignored, users perhaps having forgotten that the point of these comments is to allow assessed companies to provide a status report on the implementation of measures to address areas where low scores were recorded. It appears that these comments are now being used primarily as a tool for evaluating assessors.

ECTA also says that the perennial problem of SQAS scores being used to give an impression of overall safety and quality compliance. The original intention was that chemical companies – the users of the system – would create their own templates to focus on those areas of assessment of relevance to their operations. Recently it seems that the ‘SQAS scoring percentages’ have become

relied upon as the single norm on which to take business decisions, to the extent that some chemical logistics companies now consider the SQAS score as more important than the content.

Perhaps most worryingly, ECTA says that some chemical companies have started undertaking their own assessments, on top of the SQAS audit. This is taking LSPs to the situation that obtained back in the early 1990s, with too much time spent dealing with safety audits ordered by their customers. ECTA also urges chemical companies to engage with those LSPs that have not yet been audited according to SQAS to spread the message and ensure that SQAS is regarded as widely as possible as the industry benchmark.

Worse still, some chemical companies have been promoting or developing completely different assessment systems or versions of SQAS that are out of Cefic’s control. The first is a repetition of work and thus an increase in costs. ECTA strongly doubts the added value of additional assessment systems covering the same subjects. The improper practices added to the SQAS implementation by individual chemical companies (such as the imposition by the chemical company of the choice of assessor) may not be in compliance with European legislation.

In recent years, ECTA members have seen a change in the ‘enforcement’ of SQAS by

Cefic, particularly towards its own members. It is not transparent how this control has slipped away. While each individual chemical company can and will make its own choices, the SQAS rules have been decided together and deviations or misuse of the system should be addressed more strongly, more aggressively and more transparently, ECTA says. While there is nothing to stop any particular chemical company from designing its own assessment system, it should do so openly and discontinue use of SQAS.

BACK TO BASICS

ECTA’s Board of Directors say they are “gravely concerned” about the deteriorating stature of SQAS and urge the chemical industry to remember the reasons for the establishment of the system in the first place. Correct and more professional use of the SQAS audit system can contribute to securing the safe and compliant movement of chemicals throughout Europe.

ECTA confirms its commitment to maintaining the strength of the system and pleads for an open dialogue to use SQAS as it was originally intended. At the same time ECTA has made an offer to meet with high level representatives of Cefic to further understand the business drivers behind the above observations, to discuss the current situation and consider possible steps to be taken to improve that situation during the launch of the new SQAS 2019 version.

ECTA is keen to hear from more companies with their experience of the misuse of SQAS, while also stressing that its concerns should not be taken as a criticism of SQAS itself or of those chemical companies that use it appropriately.

SQAS 2019 will be used from 1 January 2019; the revised questionnaires and other documentation can be found on the SQAS website. This also identifies where changes have been made to the previous, 2015 questionnaires. ECTA notes that the revision is the result of great effort by a range of industry interests, in which it has taken a leading part, and recognises the work of Cefic’s Victor Trapani, who coordinated those efforts.

LINE ‘EM UP

MULTIMODAL • THE VOLUME OF AMENDMENTS AGREED BY THE UN TDG SUB-COMMITTEE THIS YEAR POINT TO SOME SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN THE MODAL REGULATIONS IN 2021

THE UN SUB-COMMITTEE of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous Goods (TDG) held its 53rd session in Geneva from 25 June to 4 July 2018. The meeting was chaired by Duane Pfund (US) with Claude Pfauvadel (France) as vice-chair. It was attended by experts from 20 countries, observers from three others, and representatives of the EU, the Intergovernmental Organisation for International Carriage by Rail (OTIF), the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), the World Health Organisation (WHO) and 32 nongovernmental organisations.

The packed meeting room at the UN building in Geneva was matched by a very

hefty agenda. This was the third meeting of the current (2017-18) biennium and, as has proved to be the usual pattern, this is the one where a lot of business gets finalised so that the fourth and final meeting of the biennium, taking place this month, can concentrate on dealing with last-minute changes and refinements to the amendments that will appear in the 21st revised edition of the UN Model Regulations (the ‘Orange Book’). Those amendments will in turn be picked up by the various modal, regional and national regulators and appear – with some revisions and additions – in the rulebooks that will take effect from 2021.

Participants were welcomed by Yuwei Li, director of the UN Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) Sustainable Transport Division, who stressed the importance of the work of

the TDG Sub-committee within the overall strategy of promoting sustainability in inland transport.

The TDG Sub-committee has developed the practice of assigning proposals of a very specific nature to a number of working groups, which meet in parallel to the plenary session and report back on their deliberations. For this session, a working group on fibre-reinforced plastics portable tanks (in other words, tank containers) had been arranged. A number of experts expressed regret that this had been announced rather late and this had made it difficult for them to organise the participation of the appropriate personnel or to develop a formal position. They stressed the need for such working groups to be announced well in advance.

EXPLOSIVES ISSUES

One of the regular side-meetings involves the Working Group on Explosives (EWG), which met over four days under the chairmanship of Ed de Jong (Netherlands). This is one area where the work of the TDG Sub-committee collides with that of its sister body, the UN Sub-committee of Experts on the Globally Harmonised System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS). Now that the GHS Sub-committee

is examining the inclusion of explosives in the GHS document (the ‘Purple Book’), proposals relating to the review of Chapter 2.1 of GHS were held over for discussion by an intersessional working group and for further detailed deliberations by the joint session of both Sub-committees towards the end of the TDG Sub-committee’s session.

Ammonium nitrate

There were nevertheless a great many other proposals for EWG to consider, beginning with an informal document from the Institute of Makers of Explosives (IME) on the Koenen Test (UN Test 8(c)) and its unsuitability for use on ammonium nitrate emulsions (ANEs). At the 51st session of the TDG Sub-committee, IME had been asked to lead work to investigate the possibility of modifying the Koenen Test. In its paper it noted that ANEs are comparatively inert during a fire, due to their high water content, whereas the substances used in the development and validation of the Koenen Test were far more energetic. Thus, when used with ANEs, the Koenen Test runs for a longer period. This weakens the steel tube used in the test and, IME said, results in false positive results.

IME proposed the use of the minimum burning pressure (MBP) test as being more appropriate. Its paper suggested that substances that fail the current 8(c) Koenen Test should be subjected to an MBP test as Test 8(c)(ii). There was some support for this idea, at least as an interim measure while further work was carried out. It seemed, though, that a consensus would be unlikely and the chair suggested that IME work up a formal proposal for the next session; Canada offered to help with the work. Prompted by IME, there was no support for modification of the Koenen Test itself.

Definitions

In another informal document, Sweden contended that the phrase “a practical explosive or pyrotechnic effect”, introduced

as part of the definition of Class 1 in 2.1.1.1(c) and referenced elsewhere in the Model Regulation and Manual of Tests and Criteria, is confusing and of no help to industry or regulators. EWG debated whether to delete the word “practical” and/or to define “explosive effect” and “pyrotechnic effect”. Sweden listed to the comments made during discussion and will consider them when deciding what action, if any, to take.

Detonators

The Australian Explosives Industry Safety Group (AEISG) returned to the idea of adding a new entry in the Dangerous Goods List for electronic detonators. There are currently various entries for electric and non-electric detonators, as well as for non-electric detonator assemblies and, during earlier discussions, it had been suggested that electronic detonators could be accommodated by re-wording the existing entry for electric detonators. AEISG stressed, however, that the two types are very different and “cannot reasonably or legitimately” be included within the existing entries.

After some discussion and fine-tuning of AEISG’s proposals, it was decided to adopt the proposed changes; these proposals were agreed by plenary. Three new entries were adopted in the Dangerous Goods List, UN 0511 to 0513, with the proper shipping name DETONATORS, ELECTRONIC programmable for blasting. These are assigned to Divisions 1.1B, 1.4B and 1.4S, as appropriate. In the table in 1.4.1, “0512 and 0513” is added at the end of the list of UN entries against Class 1, Division 1.4. Reference to electronic detonators is added to the definition of ‘Detonators’ in Appendix B and a new definition is added:

DETONATORS, ELECTRONIC programmable

for blasting Detonators with enhanced safety and security features, utilizing electronic components to transmit a firing signal with validated commands and secure communications. Detonators of this type cannot be initiated by other means.

Nitrocellulose

The European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic) and the Worldwide Nitrocellulose Producers Association (Wonipa) returned with a formal proposal after previous discussion on the testing of the stability of nitrocellulose mixtures. After making some amendments, EWG agreed the proposals, which were confirmed in plenary.

Two new special provisions will be added in Chapter 3.3:

393 The nitrocellulose shall meet the criteria of the Bergmann-Junk test or methyl violet paper »

test in the Manual of Tests and Criteria Appendix 10. Tests of type 3 (c) need not be applied. 394 The nitrocellulose shall meet the criteria of the Bergmann-Junk test or methyl violet paper test in the Manual of Tests and Criteria Appendix 10.

The new Appendix 10 agreed for the Manual of Tests and Criteria is a lengthy piece of work that explains the two tests specified, the assessment of their results and the equipment required to carry out the tests.

In two related informal documents, Cefic further proposed another Appendix on the use of classification results for industrial nitrocellulose in relation to supply and use in accordance with Chapter 2.17 of GHS. However, as the texts were adopted on the basis of informal documents and only available in English, they were held over by the Secretariat for confirmation by the Subcommittee at its next session.

Airbags

Germany returned with a formal proposal to amend the reference to ISO 12097 relating to the performance of fire tests on airbags components and inflators. It had already been agreed at the previous session that the newer ISO 14451 standard was more appropriate. The Sub-committee agreed the amendment of the Note in 2.1.3.6.4(b) to read:

Where the integrity of the article may be affected in the event of an external fire these criteria shall be examined by a fire test. One such method is described in ISO 14451-2 using a heating rate of 80 K/min.

Fireworks

In a similar vein, the US returned with a formal proposal following discussion at the previous session, this time relating to the extension of the default fireworks classification table in 2.1.3.5.5 to cover UN 0431 Articles pyrotechnic for technical purposes. The reasoning, which had largely been accepted, was that such articles present a very similar hazard. However, some experts remained unconvinced by the argument that fireworks meeting the Division 1.4G criteria in the default table could be assigned to UN 0431 if they were to be used for theatrical effects, while others felt that the US proposal was not the right way to deal with the issue. The US will take account of those comments and will review the matter further before deciding whether or not to submit an amended proposal at a later session.

Electrostatic

The Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute (SAAMI) offered a thought-starter on the need for a method for determining the sensitivity of explosives to electrostatic discharge, bearing in mind that 4.1.1.14 contains a provision that plastics packagings should not generate or accumulate a charge large enough to initiate any explosives they contain. The Allegany Ballistics Laboratory has developed an electrostatic sensitiveness discharge (ESD) machine to do just that. SAAMI’s paper did not garner much support and its representative said he would take note of the comments

made and decide whether to proceed with a new proposal.

Unapproved explosives

Another paper from SAAMI generated more support. It proposed creating new entries in the Dangerous Goods List to allow for the use of specialised containers for the transport of small quantities of unapproved explosives for evaluation, testing, and research and development. SAAMI seemed keen to leverage the support to get the idea accepted in the current biennium but the general feeling was that more time would be needed. SAAMI was asked to come up with a revised proposal taking a number of observations into account. ICAO also asked SAAMI to provide further information to its Dangerous Goods Panel.

Energetic samples

A similar fate befell a Cefic suggestion that provisions be included in the Model Regulations to allow energetic samples to be transported for testing. While the idea was not dismissed, EWG wanted more time to confer with stakeholders and to determine how industry copes at the moment. Cefic was encouraged to prepare a formal proposal to allow for further review of the subject.

Ammonium nitrate

An informal document from IME raised the question of UN 0222 ammonium nitrate, Division 1.1D. This product is not manufactured commercially and it has been indicated that UN 0222 is assigned

to contaminated ammonium nitrate or for ammonium nitrate fertilisers that have failed test series 2. IME’s proposal to delete UN 0222 was opposed by some experts on the basis that it is useful in such cases. IME was concerned that the entry could be misinterpreted, especially as ammonium nitrate is regarded as a security-sensitive material, and sought some changes to special provision 370 that would make its purpose clear. There was a difference of opinion on IME’s proposal and its expert said that the group’s comments would be taken into account in the preparation of a formal proposal for the next session.

Large explosives

The UK returned with a revised proposal to extend the number of UN entries assigned to large packaging provision LP101, following generally positive discussions at the previous session. There were further questions raised by EWG, which will be considered in a revised proposal to be submitted at the next session.

GHS and MTC

The EWG chair had drawn up an extensive paper detailing the changes that would need to be made to the Manual of Tests and Criteria to make it relevant to the classification of explosives in GHS. EWG made some amendments and the Sub-

committee endorsed its recommendations. EWG will make further proposals for amendment at the next session, while the European Industrial Gases Association (EIGA) is working on other proposals.

GHS revision

A joint meeting of EWG and the GHS Chapter 2.1 Informal Correspondence Group was charged with reviewing and refining proposed changes to Chapter 2.1. Papers from Sweden on the one hand and the US, with the support of IME and SAAMI, on the other revealed that there is are differing philosophies regarding the classification of explosives in GHS. However, those appear to have largely been resolved, opening the way for work on final details.

LISTING, CLASSIFICATION AND PACKAGING

Viscous liquids

Spain had noticed an inconsistency between the Model Regulations and the Manual of Tests and Criteria. According to 2.3.2.5.1 of the Model Regulations, viscous liquids are not subject to the regulations if they fulfil a list of conditions, one of which is that they have a flash point of 23˚C or above and less than or equal to 60˚C. Another one is that they meet the requirements of the solvent separation test in the Manual of Tests and Criteria. The issue is that the solvent separation test is »

used to determine the extent of solvent separation in viscous liquids with a flash point of less than 23˚C.

The Sub-committee agreed with Spain’s observation and also accepted its proposed remedy, the deletion of the words “with a flash point of less than 23˚C” from the end of 32.5.1.1 in the Manual of Tests and Criteria. While doing so, it was noticed that 32.5.1.4 contains references to other paragraphs in the Manual that no longer exist and the Cefic representative felt that the description of the solvent separation test in 32.5.1 could be improved. This should be the subject of a separate proposal, the Sub-committee decided.

Articles

Germany proposed some changes to the text of packing instruction P907 that it felt were necessary following the adoption of new entries for dangerous goods in articles and the revised description for UN 3363. The Sub-committee agreed to replace the words “machinery or apparatus” by “article” throughout P907 and to replace the introductory sentence by the following text:

This packing instruction applies to articles, such as machinery, apparatus or devices of UN No. 3363.

Recovery devices

Germany returned with a list of options to permit the inclusion of self-inflating recovery devices into the Model Regulations, following discussion at the previous session. Opinion was divided as to which of the options offered would be preferable and the US came up with its own ideas. However, the Subcommittee is alert to the need to address the classification of these devices and the expert from Germany was invited to develop a proposal for the next session.

Modal regulation

The Council on Safe Transportation of Hazardous Articles (COSTHA) had been looking at special provisions 117 and 123, which are assigned to entries that are either only regulated when transported by sea (SP 117) or when transported by sea or air (SP 123). It had found that, of the seven entries assigned to SP 117, six are identified in the Dangerous Goods List in the ICAO Technical Instructions as being forbidden for transport by air; the seventh (UN 3496) is allowed in air transport but there are specific packaging and documentation requirements. COSTHA believes that this means all seven entries are in effect regulated in air transport.

COSTHA’s concern is that identifying these entries as only being regulated for transport

by sea is misleading and potentially unsafe. It proposed that SP 123 should replace SP 117, at least for the first six entries. While on the topic, Germany noted that UN 3166 and 3171 are now included in ADR and RID and it is therefore no longer appropriate for SP 123 to be assigned to them.

In discussing COSTHA’s proposal, some experts felt that both special provisions should be deleted as there is little or no value in indicating within the Model Regulations when a substance is only regulated in a specific mode and when the modal authorities have the discretion to decide whether or not certain substances are to be regulated. This was not a unanimous view, however, and it was decided that further review was needed.

In the meantime, the Sub-committee did accept COSTHA’s argument and has changed “117” to “123” for UN 1372, 1387, 1856, 1857 and 3360. A decision on whether to amend UN 2216, 3166 and 3171 may be taken in the future.

Organic peroxides

Cefic proposed the amendment of one existing entry in the list of organic peroxides in 2.5.3.2.4 and the addition of two new entries to packing instruction IBC520, all of which were accepted by the Sub-committee. The amendment, relating to di-(4-tert-butyl cyclohexyl)

peroxydicarbonate, involves a change from packing method OP7 to OP8 based on new test data and also a change from UN 3116 to 3118. The two new entries in IBC520 are both under UN 3119 and relate to tert-amyl peroxypivalate and tert-butyl peroxypivalate.

Editorial corrections

Canada had been comparing the French and English texts and found a few inconsistencies. To remedy these, it proposed some changes in both versions. The experts were wary of accepting those changes on face value and the Secretariat was asked to dig out the original proposals associated with the current texts so that the Sub-committee could determine the original intent. For the time being, it was accepted that the reference to 2.8.2.3 in the Note to 2.6.2.2.4.1 in the English version should be to 2.8.2.4 and this was adopted as a correction to the 20th revised edition of the Model Regulations.

Environmentally hazardous substances COSTHA and the Dangerous Goods Advisory Council (DGAC) appealed for an extension

to the scope of special provision 375, which exempts small packages containing environmentally hazardous substances (UN 3077 and 3082) from the provisions of the Regulations other than the general packaging requirements. They stated that industry is unaware of any transport incidents involving small packages of UN 3077 or 3082 since SP 375 was introduced in the 2015 edition of the Model Regulations but said that the 5 kg/L limit is unnecessarily restrictive. Raising the limit to 30 kg/L would aid efficiency in the supply chain and reduce the volume of waste packaging.

The Sub-committee, while expressing some sympathy, wanted to see some hard data and also felt the proposal would not be suitable for sea transport. The COSTHA representative withdrew the proposal, saying that more data would be gathered from industry and that a new proposal could be forthcoming in the future.

Metals

Following an inquiry from a shipper, Austria asked the experts’ opinion on the correct classification of strontium, which is not listed by name in the Dangerous Goods List. While looking into the issue, Austria had also noticed that other alkali and alkali earth metals are assigned to Division 4.3 but that »

GHS identifies them as not only being hazardous in contact with water but also having a corrosivity hazard. Should this not be reflected in their classification in the transport regulations?

The Sub-committee confirmed the general point in 2.0.0.2 that substances – such as strontium – that are not specifically mentioned in the Dangerous Goods List should be assigned to the most appropriate generic or nos entry. As to the issue of corrosivity, Austria was asked to provide more data to support a possible change. The EU offered to help in the gathering of data.

Machinery

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) had noticed that, when the former UN 3166 entry for engines and machinery had been amended, with the introduction of three new entries in the 19th revised edition of the Model Regulations, special provision 356, which relates to metal hydride storage systems, was not assigned to UN 3529, which covers engines and machinery powered by flammable gas-based fuel cells. The Subcommittee agreed with IATA’s reasoning and added “356” in column (6) of the Dangerous Goods List against UN 3529. It also took the opportunity to tidy up the text of SP 356.

Pyrophoric solids

In an informal document, Cefic drew attention to an issue industry is experiencing with the use of packing instruction P404 for pyrophoric solids, which includes specific requirements for threaded closures for metal or glass receptacles used as inner packagings. While experience has shown that this requirement ensures an adequate level of safety during transport, it is causing problems in supply and use, especially when receptacles are re-sealed using the threaded closures. Cefic proposed an alternative wording to allow other means of preventing back-off or loosening of closures during transport.

There was general support for Cefic’s position and the Council was invited to work its ideas up as a formal proposal for the next session.

Technical names

The International Paint and Printing Ink Council (IPPIC) appealed for the deletion of special provision 274 from the generic entries for environmentally hazardous substances, UN 3077 and 3082. SP 274 requires the proper shipping name to be supplemented with the technical name of the substance or

substances involved. In the paint industry, these technical names can be very long. In practice, this causes problems with IT systems, where the length of the required text often exceeds the space available, provides little or no useful information to emergency responders, and fails to indicate what the product actually is – i.e. paint. That can cause delays to shipments in ports and during customs clearance.

The Sub-committee did not support the proposal as it stood. Most experts felt that the technical name does provide useful information, especially when determining the appropriate containment and clean-up measures. It was also pointed out that the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code requires the technical name to be shown for all marine pollutants, whether or not SP 274 is assigned.

It was also pointed out that the Model Regulations allows the use of generic or chemical family names, rather than the detailed technical name. It was suggested that the use of generic names such as “ink” or “paint” might be considered in this context. The IPPIC representative took note of this interpretation and said a revised proposal may be presented so as to provide greater clarity in the Model Regulations.

Barium carbonate

Spain contended that barium carbonate, which is a barium compound and therefore by default is classified as UN 1564 Barium compound, nos, Division 6.1, does not justify that classification. Tests have shown that its level of toxicity does not warrant assignment to Division 6.1. It proposed that barium carbonate should be treated in the same was as barium sulphate, which is exempted from the regulations by SP 177.

Some experts felt that there was no need for action as, if the data shows that barium carbonate does not meet the classification criteria, it is not subject to the regulations. That raised the question of why SP 177

exists. Spain reiterated that there is a problem in international transport as some countries require its carriage under UN 1564. It is likely that an official document will be presented at the next session with additional data.

Polymerising substances

Cefic returned to the topic of introducing exemptions for polymerising substances, introduced to the Model Regulations in the previous biennium, in line with those already in place for self-reactive substances and organic peroxides. This had been discussed two years previously and Cefic had been asked to provide more details, which it now offered. Its proposals centred on the ability of packages to contain the effects of spontaneous polymerisation, similar to those in 2.1.3.6.4 for explosives.

The Sub-committee was not totally convinced by Cefic’s paper and some experts made specific comments that Cefic will take into account in the preparation of a revised proposal.

Infectious substances

Canada proposed modifications to the performance tests for packagings for use with infectious substances in Chapter 6.3. It pointed to some inconsistencies, particularly regarding additional drop tests on packagings containing dry ice. After some discussion and input from the UK, the Sub-committee adopted some changes. In 6.3.5.2.2 there will no longer be a requirement to drop a container with dry ice five times, and amendments have been made to 6.3.5.3.1 and 6.3.5.3.2 for greater clarity.

P801

Another paper from Canada returned to the long-running discussions to improve packing instruction P801, which applies to batteries of UN 2794, 2795 and 3028. Its proposal contained detailed changes to the text of P801 and a revision to special packing provision PP16 in P003.

The proposed revision of P801 was accepted, with some minor modifications, although it was not thought that any change

to PP16 was needed. The new text in particular provides more information on the acceptable means of packaging used batteries in stainless steel or plastics bins.

Infectious waste

Yet another proposal from Canada related to the classification and packaging of Category A infectious waste, again after discussion at previous meetings. The paper included proposals for a new UN number for solid medical waste, two new packing instructions and other consequential amendments throughout the Model Regulations. There was general support for the proposals but some experts asked for more time to consult with their public health authorities. As such, the amendments proposed have been placed in square brackets pending confirmation at the next session.

Infectious substances

Another paper on this topic from Canada proposed amendments to the definitions of infectious substances in the Model Regulations to align them with current scientific terminology used worldwide, based on the work of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses. The experts were not convinced of the need to make changes to the table of indicative examples in 2.6.3.2.2.1, although they did agree to remove specific references to rickettsiae and mycoplasmas in 2.6.1(b), 2.6.3.1 and Note 3 to 2.6.3.2.2.2 as these are types of bacteria, and bacteria are already mentioned. HCB

The second part of this two-part report on the UN TDG Sub-committee’s June/July session in next month’s HCB will cover discussions on electric storage systems, the transport of gases, marking and labelling, packaging, portable tanks, cooperation with other agencies, and other miscellaneous proposals.

Meanwhile, the 54th session of the UN TDG Sub-committee was due to be held in Geneva from 26 November to 4 December. A report on that meeting will follow as soon as is feasible.

CASTING

OFF

MARITIME • THE NEW VERSION OF THE IMDG CODE INCLUDES SOME SPECIFIC CHANGES THAT WILL HAVE A BEARING ON HOW DANGEROUS GOODS ARE MOVED BY SEA

IN COMMON WITH the other modes, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has adopted revisions to the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code drawn from the 20th revised edition of the UN Model Regulations. These will appear in Amendment 39-18, which will enter into force on 1 January 2020; its provisions may, however, be applied as from 1 January 2019 and it has been the practice of the major shipping lines to encourage observance of the latest revision as soon as possible.

Until 31 December 2019, Amendment 38-16 is still in force and may be used by shippers and carriers, although IMO points out that dangerous goods falling under the provisions of the IMDG Code must comply with one or the other edition – shippers cannot pick and choose provision from both to suit themselves.

MAJOR CHANGES

IMO has provided a handy guide to the major changes that appear in Amendment 39-18. While many of them are taken from the UN Model Regulations, there are others that are specific to the maritime mode and shippers more used to the regulations governing transport by other modes should take care.

Among those changes that are common to the other modal rulebooks are:

• The use of the word ‘hazard’ rather than ‘risk’ throughout the regulations

• A new paragraph 2.0.6 covering the classification of articles containing dangerous goods, nos

• The complete overhaul of Chapter 2.8 on the classification of corrosive substances

• Revisions to the lists of organic peroxides and self-reactive substances

• Updates to the packing instructions in Chapter 4.2

• Several minor changes throughout part 6

• Restructuring of Section 7.3.7

• Clarification in 3.1.2.2 that only the more applicable proper shipping name may be used when there is more than one name under a UN number.

In terms of layout, 5.2.2.2 has been revised to present the specimen labels in a clearer manner.

IMO has also finally brought in provisions for bulk containers, which has involved an extension of Chapter 5.3. It has also adopted the new IMO Type 9 tank for ‘road gas elements vehicles’ – elsewhere termed multiple-element gas containers (MEGCs) – for the transport of compressed gases of Class 2.

As with the other modes, the Dangerous Goods List has been expanded with several new entries:

• UN 3535 Toxic solid, flammable, inorganic, nos

• UN 3536 Lithium batteries installed in cargo transport unit

• UN 3537 to 3548 Articles containing dangerous goods.

STOWAGE AND SEGREGATION

One unique aspect of the IMDG Code is its treatment of the stowage and segregation of dangerous goods. Amendment 39-18 introduces

the idea of segregation groups and the accompanying ‘SGG’ codes, which are shown in column (16b) of the Dangerous Goods List. The 18 SGG codes are identified in 3.1.4.4 and Section 7.2.8 has been revised to reflect their arrival. Note that not all substances are assigned a segregation group code.

It is important to differentiation segregation group codes and segregation codes (‘SG’), where there have also been some changes. SG1 has been amended and three new codes, SG76, SG77 and SG78, have been added. IMO has also added a number of substances in the Dangerous Goods List to SG35, SG36 and/or SG49, requiring their stowage separated from acids, alkalis and/or cyanides.

Finally, the Emergency Schedules (EmS) have been updated and revised to reflect new assignments.

The IMDG Code is, sadly, not available in an open-access online version, though IMO does sell one. Further information on this and other material related to the IMDG Code can be found on the IMO website at www.imo.org/en/ Publications/IMDGCode/Pages/Default.aspx.

SOLID CARGOES

The IMDG Code is revised on a biennial cycle by the IMO Sub-committee on Carriage of Cargoes and Containers (CCC), which held its fifth session on 10 to 14 September 2018. With the IMDG Code amendment already adopted, it had time to discuss a number of other issues, some of which are also relevant to shippers and carriers of dangerous goods.

For instance, CCC agreed draft amendments to the International Maritime Solid Bulk Cargoes (IMSBC) Code, due to be adopted by the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) in mid-2019 and appear as Amendment 05-19. These include a new individual schedule for bauxite fines as a Group A cargo following a number of ship losses while carrying the material in bulk.

An ongoing issue is the treatment of ammonium-nitrate based fertiliser. CCC agreed to divide the existing schedule into two: MHB Group B (cargoes which possess a chemical hazard which could give rise to a dangerous situation on a ship); and Group C (do not possess chemical hazards). The division will be based on limits for nitrate and chloride

content values. Ammonium nitrate content below 20 per cent or chloride content below 2 per cent have been proposed as a criteria for dividing the existing schedule. As in the case of bauxite fines, this change responds to a few ship losses during the carriage of such fertilisers in bulk. The subject will continue on the agenda at CCC’s next meeting in 2019 with the aim of including the revision in the subsequent Amendment 06-21 to the IMSBC Code.

CCC further discussed amending the IMSBC Code definition of Group A (cargoes which may liquefy) to include other phenomena. This follows research by the Global Bauxite Working Group, which found a new phenomenon affecting some bauxite cargoes, known as dynamic separation, that can cause instability of cargo and ship. CCC agreed that the definition should be amended and instructed the E&T Group to work on it, with the intention of adopting the changes into Amendment 06-21.

NEW SHIP FUELS

CCC has also been given the task of drawing up specifications for vessels of all types using non-traditional fuels. This work was triggered largely by the increasing use of LNG as a fuel, leading to the agreement of the International Code of Safety for Ships using Gases or other Low-flashpoint Fuels (IGF Code), which entered into force on 1 January 2017.

At its September meeting, CCC agreed draft amendments to the IGF Code relating to the protection of the fuel supply for liquefied gas fuel tanks, aimed at preventing explosions. This issue had been referred back to CCC by MSC and the text agreed by CCC will now go back to MSC for adoption.

In a similar area, a correspondence group was established to discuss a proposal to carry out a formal safety assessment study for ships fuelled by low-flashpoint diesel (i.e. diesel fuel with a flashpoint of less than 60°C). The group will report back to CCC’s next session.

Similarly, CCC agreed to develop safety provisions for fuel cells as interim guidelines, to cover installation, fire safety and other relevant matters and instructed the correspondence group on safety of ships

using low-flashpoint fuels to develop relevant draft interim guidelines.

CCC is further on with work relating to the use of methanol and ethanol as fuel for ships. Draft interim guidelines were agreed, which include requirements for the arrangement, installation, control and monitoring of machinery, equipment and systems to minimise the risk to the ship, its crew and the environment, taking into account to the nature of the fuels involved. It is hoped that these guidelines can be finalised at the next session. HCB

GET OUT OF THAT

US • PHMSA’S BIGGEST RULEMAKING FOR SOME TIME, RESPONDING TO PETITIONS FROM INDUSTRY, PROVIDES RELIEF FROM A NUMBER OF REQUIREMENTS THROUGHOUT HMR

THOSE SUBJECT TO the US Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) have had a quiet couple of years, with the current presidential administration hostile to the imposition of additional regulatory burdens. However, on 7 November, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued a wide-ranging final rule that has resulted in changes throughout HMR.

The final rule, issued under docket HM219A, came in response to 19 petitions for rulemaking to update, clarify, streamline, or provide relief from miscellaneous regulatory requirements. Adoption of the changes therefore allows more efficient and effective ways of transporting hazardous materials in commerce, achieving current political goals, while maintaining an equivalent level of safety.

While a number of the amendments are editorial in nature or update references to other publications, several provide a substantive degree of change.

1. Revisions to §§172.519(f) and 172.407(f) allow for the use of labels and placards conforming to the specifications in the UN Recommendations, ICAO Technical Instructions, IMDG Code, or TDG Regulations. Additionally, the word “approximately” is inserted in §172.407(c) to allow for tolerance in the size of the inner border on labels, with a similar change in §172.519(c) for placards.

2. Revision of §172.205 to allow the use of electronic signatures when completing EPA forms 8700-22 and 8700-22A.

3. There will no longer need to be an emergency response number shown on

shipping papers for excepted quantities of hazardous materials.

4. A revision to §173.24a allows packages tested with a liquid material to be filled with a solid material of the equivalent packing group.

5. Reference to a 20-year service life for rail tank cars used to transport materials that are poisonous by inhalation in §173.31(e)(2)(iii) has been removed.

6. A revision to §173.156(b)(2)(iii) allows pallets used for limited quantities and ORM-D material to be made of metal, plastic or composite materials in addition to wood.

7. A revision to §176.415 removes the requirement for the Captain of the Port to be informed in writing ahead of the loading or unloading of Division 1.5 ammonium nitrates when shipped in limited quantities.

These changes took effect on 7 December.

Full details can be found in the Federal Register at www.federalregister.gov/ documents/2018/11/07/2018-23965/hazardousmaterials-response-to-petitions-from-industryto-modify-clarify-or-eliminate-regulations.

RULEMAKING PROCESS

It is clear from the lengthy document describing these changes that PHMSA has had to justify each of them very carefully, in consultation with industry and with other federal agencies, while taking account of recent Executive Orders.

The increasingly long process of getting a rulemaking through the federal system means that PHMSA’s next major action, the biennial update to keep HMR in step with international regulations, will inevitably be delayed. A notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) under the docket, HM-215O, was published on 27 November, just too late to be reviewed in this issue of HCB.

The NPRM invites comments on the proposed changes by 28 January 2019, which suggests that a final rule will not be forthcoming before March at the earliest. Until then, HMR will be out of step with international regulations – in particular the 20192020 edition of the ICAO Technical Instructions, which takes full effect promptly on 1 January.

PHMSA has a couple of ways by which it can get around this issue; HCB will look more closely at the HM-215O proposals – and especially those UN changes that PHMSA is not adopting – in the January issue, by which time we may know how it is to deal with the ICAO issue. HCB

ACID RETORT

WEAPONS • PROPOSALS BY THE UK GOVERNMENT TO INTRODUCE NEW RESTRICTIONS ON THE SALE OF CORROSIVE SUBSTANCES COULD CAUSE PROBLEMS FOR INDUSTRY, CBA SAYS

THE UK GOVERNMENT has proposed new legislation in the form of the Offensive Weapons Bill, which aims to introduce new controls on the sale of firearms, knives and corrosive substances. The bill is a response to a series of recent terrorist and criminal attacks. Corrosive substances have been included after a string of violent attacks in which strong acids were used to injure victims.

The UK Chemical Business Association (CBA), which represents companies involved in the distribution, trading and supply of chemicals, has highlighted several legislative and practical concerns with the provisions of the Bill. “Whilst we understand the public concern that has prompted the legislation, we

do not believe firearms, knives and corrosive substances can be effectively covered in a single piece of legislation primarily designed to control retail rather than business-tobusiness (B2B) transactions,” says Peter Newport, chief executive of CBA.

“ID PLEASE”

In its submission to the House of Commons Committee reviewing the Bill, CBA has emphasised the differences between retail and B2B chemical transactions, the additional costs involved for CBA member companies were the Bill to be implemented in its current form, and the potential overlap with existing chemicals legislation.

When CBA member companies sell corrosive substances, they are engaged in B2B transactions that, despite being fundamentally different from retail transactions, fall within the new definition of “remote selling” adopted by the Bill that covers all orders received over the phone, by fax, email or online.

For regular business customers placing repeat orders, security factors will already be known. For new customers, CBA member companies apply the ‘Know your Customer’ protocols agreed jointly with the Home Office and National Counter Terrorism Security Office to ensure the order, company and the proposed application are legitimate.

“These protocols do not currently include checking that the person placing the order or accepting the subsequent delivery is over 18 years of age as required by the draft Offensive Weapons Bill,” says Newport. “Checking someone’s age has been a long-standing part of the process for the retail sale of alcohol or tobacco, but it cannot easily be incorporated into B2B transactions.”

CBA has highlighted the term “delivered into the hands of a person aged 18 or over” used in the Bill obliges delivery drivers to verify the age of the person physically receiving the order. This would require additional training both in in handling the verification process and managing the outcome should doubts about the recipient’s age remain.

There are other regulatory issues, as CBA believes that certain aspects of the Bill conflict with existing regulations. For example, the use of the term “clearly marked to indicate that it contained a corrosive product” requires suppliers to add – at significant costadditional labelling over and above the current requirements of the Classification, Labelling and Packaging of Substances and Mixtures Regulation (CLP) and may in fact be contrary to those existing provisions.

Newport continues: “We support the general aims of the proposed legislation, but believe a more focused approach for corrosives is required to ensure its overall provisions are pragmatic, proportionate and substantial for the industry sectors serving legitimate users.” HCB www.chemical.org.uk

NOT OTHERWISE SPECIFIED

BLAST FROM THE PAST

We don’t often get visitors to the Back Page office, so we were happy to see our colleagues from the 30 Years Ago page drop by a few weeks ago. They had unearthed an old story from December 1988 that they thought might bear repeating – and we think they were right.

The tale came from Israel, where a man ended up in hospital with second-degree burns to his nether parts, cracked ribs and a broken pelvis.

As has happened before elsewhere, the injuries resulted from an over-exuberant attempt to rid an apartment of unwanted wildlife, in this case a cockroach. The man’s wife had failed to dispatch the insect by stamping on it, so picked it up and dropped it in the toilet. Then she sprayed a whole lot of cockroach spray on to make sure it would not be troubling her again.

Unaware of this domestic drama, her husband shortly afterwards sat down on the toilet and, while he was about his business, thought he might have a smoke. Lighting his cigarette, he dropped the match into the toilet bowl, where it ignited the fumes from the insect spray.

That accounted for the burns, which were bad enough for the couple to summon medical assistance. An ambulance quickly arrived and the chap was being taken down the stairs to go to hospital; on the way the wife was explaining to the paramedics what had happened. They laughed so much they dropped the stretcher and it was this that caused the other injuries.

DON’T LOCK THE DOOR

News of further lavatorial incidents came our way from Mumbai, India in November.

A 28-year-old man was severely injured when the septic tank of a public toilet exploded. Local press reports said this was due to “toxic gases” but we suspect flammable gases would have done the trick. Reports did not say what the man was doing at the time and we do not want to dwell on that too long.

In any event, the blast was so strong that it blew roofs off nearby houses and the local fire brigade was called to attend. The victim was rushed to hospital for treatment and was soon declared to be out of danger.

Interestingly, press reports noted that this was the third similar accident within a few days, although those it quotes were largely to do with untrained entry into enclosed spaces. They also mentioned that in September a man had been beaten to death for occupying the toilet for too long. It’s a dangerous world in Indian toilets.

FIRE IN THE FRAME

November often brings with it tales of fireworks gone awry, as cultures around the world hold festivals involving explosive materials. One such incident worthy of note happened in Burma, where there was a mishap during the Taunggyi Fire Balloon Festival. Apparently, this features fireworks being set off from hot-air balloons – it would be interesting to look at a risk assessment for this sort of activity.

This year, a frame carrying 15 kg of burning fireworks fell from a balloon when the ropes holding the frame to the balloon snapped (perhaps they burned through?). The frame fell among the crowd beneath, seriously injuring two people. Others ran for their lives.

Videos are available online; it was really quite a sight.