Hazcheck gets support for extension

RESTRICTIONS REVEALED

MARITIME • SHIPPERS’ FRUSTRATIONS OVER SHIPMENT DENIAL COULD BE EASED THANKS TO A NEW COOPERATION IN THE MARITIME CONTAINERISED TRANSPORT CHAIN

TT CLUB AND the UK P&I Club have joined forces with Exis Technologies to move the Hazcheck Restrictions portal into its next development phase. Hazcheck Restrictions enables participating lines to enter (or upload) and maintain the operator, vessel and port restrictions for their operations, check for dangerous goods compliance with partner lines and accept provisional bookings.

The portal started as an initiative with several major container lines that already used Exis Technologies’ range of Hazcheck compliance systems for their dangerous goods shipping operations, particularly to resolve issues posed under vessel sharing agreements.

The next phase of implementation involves encouraging container lines, ports, terminals, shippers and forwarders to upload their data into the portal free of charge for a minimum of two years. Facilitating the retrieval of the whole range of information from the portal for operational use may lead to a new global portal for the whole supply chain to use in helping to make operations more efficient and safer.

“TT Club has been working alongside Exis Technologies since 2009 to deliver e-learning training solutions to the global supply chain,” says Peregrine Storrs-Fox, risk management director at the Club. “The Hazcheck Restrictions portal is an ambitious initiative aimed at reducing incidents related to dangerous goods shipments. Stakeholder engagement, particularly from ports and terminals, has the potential to deliver a portal which will make a huge difference for the intermodal industry.”

James Douglas, director of Exis Technologies, adds: “We are delighted that TT Club and UK P&I Club have recognised the potential in our Hazcheck Restrictions portal. We hope that the supply chain will join us in our efforts to create this exciting new portal.” SIZE OF THE PROBLEM Container lines estimate that up to 10 per cent of all the boxes they carry have some type of dangerous goods inside. Given the size of modern containerships, that means that more than 1,000 containers on any given voyage require critical checks. Those checks need to be made against the particulars of the voyage, including each leg, port and carrier, for all dangerous goods being carried.

These checks are made more complex because some lines prohibit certain classes of dangerous goods, particularly explosives, radioactive materials and some organic peroxides in refrigerated containers. The line taking the initial booking needs to know if its partner lines are prepared to carry each container with dangerous goods.

Similarly, many ports or individual container terminals have restrictions on the types of dangerous goods that may be loaded or unloaded, or even be present on a ship in port, regardless of whether that container is to be handled at the terminal. Significant disruption can ensue if the ‘wrong’ dangerous goods are aboard a vessel.

Finally, strict segregation requirements in the International Maritime Dangerous Goods

DEVELOPMENT OF THE HAZCHECK SYSTEM WILL HELP

ALL THOSE INVOLVED IN THE CARRIAGE OF DANGEROUS

(IMDG) Code mean that space for dangerous goods on each vessel will be finite.

All these issues can cause frustration for shippers; they may have gone to great lengths themselves to ensure that their shipments are compliant with the IMDG Code but, given the various restrictions, that does not mean that they will necessarily be accepted for any particular voyage.

There are thousands of partner line dangerous goods bookings made each day; each has to be checked against the restrictions imposed by shipping lines, ports and terminals and this has to be done under time pressure. Unlike in the world of air transport, there is no single database of port and terminal restrictions or, indeed, operator restrictions. That means that each individual shipping line has to try to capture and keep its own record of port and terminal restrictions, which can and do change on a frequent basis anywhere in their global network.

The vision of the Hazcheck Restrictions portal is to take that burden away from the lines themselves and to deliver a much more simplified and comprehensive database available to all stakeholders; the ultimate aim is to improve compliance and, thereby, safety in the maritime supply chain, which is why insurance providers such as TT Club and the UK P&I Club (both managed by Thomas Miller) are keen to support its development.

NOT JUST BIG BOXES It is not just the global container shipping lines that are impacted by restrictions on dangerous goods shipments – much the same goes for ferry, cruise and roro vessel operators. E-Dea, an IT software development company that offers innovative solutions to this sector, has recently integrated Exis Technologies’ Hazcheck Web Service compliance module into its latest software platform.

The Hazcheck Web Service is a set of dangerous goods data packages and routines for incorporation into cargo booking, handling, ERP and planning systems. It offers IMDG Code compliance and the additional provisions and/or variations applicable when using other modal or regional dangerous goods regulations.

“E-Dea is delighted to be able to offer the Hazcheck functionalities within our software products,” says E-Dea CCO Marco Pavoncelli. “Several ferry companies have already approached us regarding integrating it into their current system. Many people do not realise that the IMDG Code regulations apply to passenger ships as well as deep sea container lines. Ferry and roro companies also need to be aware of the substances that are being carried on their ships for the safety of the passengers and the crew.” HCB hazcheck.existec.com www.ttclub.com www.ukpandi.com www.edeatech.eu