Color penetration.
Classification, labeling and why certain goods require special qualifications
Color wheel and color properties.
§What is ADR?
ADR is the European convention on international transport of hazardous goods by road. It establishes how hazardous goods are classified, packaged, marked and documented, and what requirements apply to vehicle, driver and company. In the warehouse, you encounter ADR because goods that are to be transported on a truck must be correctly classified, packaged and marked before it leaves the ramp.
§The nine hazard classes
All dangerous goods are divided into nine classes according to the dominant hazard. Learn to recognise them, because the class governs both labelling and which substances may not be stored together:
| Class | Type of hazard |
|---|---|
| 1 | Explosive substances and articles. |
| 2 | Gases (e.g. flammable, non-flammable, toxic) |
| 3 | Flammable liquids |
| 4 | Flammable solids, self-igniting substances and substances that develop flammable gas with water |
| 5 | Oxidising substances and organic peroxides |
| 6 | Toxicity by inhalation |
| 7 | Radioactive substances |
| 8 | Corrosive substances |
| 9 | Different dangerous substances and goods (miscellaneous) |
Several of the classes are subdivided — e.g. class 2 distinguishes between flammable non-flammable and toxic gases and class 4 has three subclasses. The exact division and associated requirements are found in the current ADR edition.
§UN number goods designation and hazard labels.
Each dangerous substance or article is classified with a four-digit UN number and an official proper shipping name, and where relevant, a packing group indicating the hazard. Packages are marked with hazard labels (the diamond-shaped hazard signs) showing the class, and larger units and vehicles may require hazard labels and orange hazard plates. The marking is what makes the hazard visible throughout the transport.
§The safety data sheet
Chemicals come with a safety data sheet that describes the substance's hazards, safe handling, storage, what protective equipment is required, and what to do in case of spill and first aid. Always read the data sheet and hazard label before handling a substance, and ask a responsible person if labelling or data sheet is missing — never handle unknown hazardous goods blindly.
§Qualifications and training
The one who handles or prepares dangerous goods for transport must have training appropriate to the task (function-specific training). Companies involved to a certain extent in dangerous goods transport must also appoint a safety adviser who has passed a special exam and among other things provides oversight and prepares annual reports. As a warehouse worker you must know your role and only do what you have been trained to do.
§The exempting exception
ADR has more lenient rules below certain thresholds — e.g. with small quantities per package and per transport unit (the so-called exempt quantity/value table) — where a number of the heavy requirements fall away. The thresholds depend on the substance and class and are set out in the ADR. Do not rely on a loose estimate: if you are in doubt about whether a shipment is below the threshold, you should ask the safety adviser or a responsible person.
ADR and the nine hazard classes are the core of safe handling of hazardous goods. When you can recognize the class, read markings and data sheets, keep incompatible substances separate and know the limits of your own training, you protect yourself, your colleagues and the environment.