Communication rules: shipping papers, marking, labeling, placarding
Communication rules: shipping papers, marking, labeling, placarding
This domain tests the paper and visual warnings that must travel with a hazmat shipment: the shipping paper, package markings and labels, and vehicle placards.
Core rules
- The shipping paper basic description generally shows the proper shipping name, hazard class or division, UN/NA identification number, and packing group, in that order. It must include a monitored emergency response telephone number and the shipper's certification. The driver must keep it within reach while driving and give it to responders.
- Package markings identify the material, such as the proper shipping name and UN number. Labels are the diamond hazard warnings on packages; subsidiary labels show secondary hazards.
- Placards are the large diamond warnings on the vehicle. Table 1 materials must be placarded in any quantity. Table 2 materials require placards when the aggregate gross weight of all Table 2 hazmat loaded at one facility is 1,001 pounds or more. Placards go on both sides and both ends of the vehicle, and must be readable.
Worked example
A driver loads eight drums of a Table 2 flammable liquid, 200 pounds each. Total is 1,600 pounds, which exceeds 1,001 pounds, so the vehicle needs the flammable liquid placard. If the load were only four drums, 800 pounds, no placard would be required for that Table 2 material unless another rule applies.
Traps
The 1,001-pound trigger is aggregate weight, not per package. Labels are for packages; placards are for vehicles. A shipping paper description in the wrong order, a missing emergency number, or a placard hidden by dirt loses marks. Do not use a DANGER placard unless its specific conditions are met.