The IMDG Code and the nine hazard classes in depth
How apprenticeship education is structured — the flow from school to work
Some of the goods crossing a terminal are not just ordinary goods — they are substances that can explode, burn, corrode or poison if handled incorrectly. Maritime transport of such goods is regulated by the IMDG Code (International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code), drawn up by the UN's maritime organization IMO. The code sets how hazardous goods must be classified, packed, marked and documented regardless of where in the world it sails from and to.
§Nine classes of dangerous goods
- 01Class 1 — explosive substances and articles, such as fireworks and explosives
- 02Class 2 — gases, such as pressurized cylinders with oxygen, propane or butane
- 03Class 3 — flammable liquids, such as petrol, ethanol and solvents
- 04Class 4 — flammable solids and substances that can self-ignite or develop flammable gas in contact with water
- 05Class 5 — oxidizing substances and organic peroxides
- 06Class 6 — toxic and infectious substances
- 07Class 7 — radioactive material
- 08Class 8 — corrosive substances
- 09Class 9 — other dangerous goods and environmentally hazardous substances that do not fit into the other classes
§UN number and shipping name.
Every dangerous substance transported has a four-digit UN number and an official proper shipping name that must appear on packaging, containers and documents. The UN number makes it possible to uniquely look up the substance and see what rules apply to it — which class it belongs to, how it must be packaged, and which substances it cannot stand together with.
§Marking on goods and container
Color difference.
§Documentation and your role
Dangerous goods always come with a transport declaration — a dangerous goods declaration — where the sender has stated the class, UN number and quantity. As a terminal worker, your job is to check that what you receive or deliver matches the papers and that the packaging and container are intact and correctly labelled. Leaking or damaged packages of dangerous goods should never be handled further on your own — they must be isolated and reported to the system immediately.
§Why the rules are strict
A terminal is a place where many different loads stand close together for a period, often under open sky and in changing weather. A leak, a fire or a chemical reaction can therefore spread quickly and affect both people, other goods and the harbor environment itself. The rules in the IMDG Code are strict precisely because the consequences of an error can be serious — and because the same rules apply equally regardless of which country the goods come from or are going to.
“Color wheel orders the colors so you can see their relationship. Each color can be described with three properties: the hue (which color it is), saturation (how pure or grayish the color is), and lightness (how light or dark it is). When you adjust a color, it's almost always one of these three you change.”