Transport of dangerous goods
We help fuel distributors, ADR transport operators, manufacturing and processing facilities to remain compliant with the Carriage of Dangerous Goods legislation, as well as REACH, by offering a 24-7 specialist chemical advice service.
The service is available on an annual subscription and we build a tailored service to meet your needs.
Our Incident Advisors are all qualified Dangerous Goods Safety Advisers (DGSA) by Road and most are chemists. They are trained to authoritatively and calmly help those in need. We build a picture by asking questions of the caller and using our expertise, judgement and product information (such as Safety Data Sheets) we offer bespoke advice on the best actions to take to minimise the risk to people, the environment and property. Spill response can also be organised in the UK and some other territories.
Advisors can provide advice in the following situations:
- Spilled product
- Product ingested, inhaled or exposed to skin or eyes
- Alarm on site
- Fire on site
- Moving product from one location to another
We can also signpost callers who do not have an emergency, for example in wanting to buy products or who have a technical question.
Benefits
- 24-7 emergency chemical advice meets industry Best Practice standards for Level 1 advice.
- Calls answered directly on a land line phone by one of our Incident Advisors
- Calls dealt with by qualified DGSAs and chemists
- Multi-lingual advice using language recognition skills and the latest in telecommunication technology, and, if necessary, an interpreter can be brought into the call.
- Worldwide coverage compliant with legislation.
- We build a bespoke call handling protocol that meets your needs in terms of escalation of incidents.
Carriage of Dangerous Goods (CDG)
For the transport of dangerous goods in bulk, UK CDG Regs require a telephone number to be shown on the tank or tanker where specialist advice for the load can be obtained in English, at any time during carriage.
Carriers or consignors often retain external contractors to provide specialist advice outside of normal working hours or act as an initial point of contact, with enquiries being referred to appointed 'duty officers' within the company.
Inspectors are advised that the above arrangements are acceptable provided the advice at the point of contact is appropriate, prompt and involves only one referral.
Our response is compliant with the HSE guidance on specialist advice telephone numbers. The Chemsafe Liaison Group publication Chemsafe - Assistance in Chemical Distribution Emergencies requires that the initial call to the number will:
- Be picked up as might be expected of a normal telephone call.
- Provide product-based information within 10 minutes of receipt of the initial request, and any further technical information and advice, as necessary, within 30 minutes.
Inspectors that encounter vehicles carrying dangerous goods in tanks will consider enforcement action where there is:
- No telephone number displayed
- No response, or
- A seriously inadequate response
Inspectors will ask for information relating to the load such as the UN number(s) and Emergency Action Code which are displayed.
Dangerous Goods Safety Adviser
There is a legal requirement (under Section 1.8.3 of ADR) for anyone involved in the loading, intermediate unloading, or transportation of dangerous goods, above certain thresholds, to appoint one or more DGSA. Since 1st July 2023 there is also a requirement to appoint one or more DGSA if you consign dangerous goods above certain thresholds.
If you are unsure as to whether or not you need a DGSA, then we can advise you. The irony is that you may need a DGSA to tell you that you do not need a DGSA!
The DGSA is often someone outside of your business who can act as a trusted and objective advisor ensuring safety and compliance.
We have a team of qualified DGSAs that can offer expert advice or act as your representative DGSA. We can inspect and audit your operations, offer advice, make recommendations, and provide you with the annual report that you need. We can also advise you on the movement of chemicals by other modes (air, sea, or waterway).
Responsible Care initiative
Increasingly manufacturers and distributors of hazardous goods are concerned about reputational management and are subscribing to the standards set by the chemical industry’s Responsible Care initiative. Companies that commit to the programme are required to implement a wide range of health, safety and environmental measures including the provision of a reliable Level 1 response (telephone advice available at any time).
REACH
In Europe, REACH compliant Safety Data Sheets show an emergency telephone number in section 1.4 which should give access to someone who is competent to assist and “…..should be able to address requests/calls in the official language(s) of the Member State(s) for which the SDS is intended.”.
This telephone number can also be used in providing advice as part of Poisons Centre notification in EU Member States.
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