Who are the specialists in shipping dangerous goods and lithium batteries? – Metro of course!

Metro are specialists in shipping dangerous goods and lithium batteries worldwide, with qualified personnel providing documentation, handling, transport and logistics solutions for all types of hazardous cargoes. Globally.

Dangerous and hazardous goods are items or substances that could pose risks to health, safety or the environment, like lithium batteries, which can easily overheat and ignite, and have been involved in a number of incidents in recent times. 

Over 70 reported fires on container ships in the past five years, have been blamed on hazardous cargo, chemicals and batteries and strict regulations control the air transport of batteries since an onboard Li-ion fire caused the fatal crash of a UPS Flight in 2010.

Regulations governing the transport of dangerous goods are based on the UN classification system and generally structured by the mode of transport: with IATA’s Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR) for air; the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code for sea; and the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR).

The UN use a classification system in which each dangerous substance or article is assigned to one of nine classes, depending on the nature of the danger it presents, which defines its hazard.

Many everyday ‘harmless’ products, such as perfume, paints and plastics may be classified as dangerous, if the shipping quantity exceed specified limits, or if a particular type of packaging is used. Where the ADRM/IMDG rules allow – i.e. the limit is above zero – our dangerous goods (DG) team can quantity the limits for safe transport.

When clients are shipping dangerous goods, hazardous materials or lithium batteries, our DG team can advise them which class their goods fall under, what quantity limits may apply and what documentation, packaging and labelling requirements will apply, as well as providing guidance on the right transport modes.

For a 400kgs EV lithium battery air freight shipment to the US we obtained approvals from the Civil Aviation Authority, the VCA packaging approvals database, European air transport authorities for overflight and two carrier partners, for a shipment which has provided the template for our Lithium battery air freight platform for five years.

Members of our operations and transport teams, including those working with automotive and chemical clients have completed health and safety training for the transport of dangerous goods, including DGR, IDMG and ADR, with supporting dangerous goods safety advisers (DGSA).

It is critical that shippers have all the proper documents, correctly completed, when shipping dangerous goods, because non-compliance could be dangerous if there were an accident and can be costly, with companies facing significant penalties for incorrect paperwork.

We can assist with the labelling and documentation that is required by all dangerous goods shipments and particularly the Dangerous goods notes/declaration and Materials safety data sheet (MSDS) that ensure that hazardous cargo is handled appropriately and loaded for transportation in a way that reduces potential risks.

Shipping dangerous goods can be, and usually is,  hazardous for the shipper, which is why so many automotive companies, chemical suppliers and manufacturers turn to our experts, to ensure their products have been correctly classified and appropriate documentation produced, because getting one piece of detail wrong can have severe consequences. We don’t make mistakes and attention to detail is our mantra.

The safety of the product, people and environment in storage and during transit is our priority. We ensure that you have an emergency response plan in place, in the event of an accident at any point.

For further information and details on your logistical hazardous requirements, please EMAIL our industry heavyweight, Matt Weight, who will ensure you are connected with the correct person, in the correct office, with the correct information – applicable to wherever your products are demanded. It’s what we do – deliver bespoke specialist solutions based on your needs!