ISO Tanks – Case of the upside down Hazardous Placards

I wished to share with you a case that we encountered a few years ago. One of our regular shippers booked a shipment with us from Mundra (India) to Rotterdam with Hazardous Cargo - Ethyl Alcohol in ISO Tanks. The shipment went off without a hitch until the time that the cargo reached the destination. The Rotterdam Port - Hazardous Inspection authority levied a penalty on the Ocean Carrier for placards being placed on the tank upside down ! The penalty was passed on by the carrier to the ISO Tank Operator and onwards to the Shipper.  The penalty for this mistake was around USD 2000 (if I can recall correctly). Upon further investigation, it was found that the shipper had instructed their transporter to affix the placards on the ISO Tank and someone in a tearing hurry did a shoddy job of it.  Something as easy as affixing placards on the ISO Tank was not done correctly and it cost the shipper a huge amount of money. Such additional costs can easily be saved if sufficient attention is given to the training of unskilled labour.  Exporters must invest time and effort to develop checklists to ensure that all required steps are taken to ensure safe transportation of cargo by sea. Points to Ponder : Whose responsibility is it to ensure that the placards are placed correctly on the ISO Tanks ? Are Shippers educating their vendors and subcontractors enough ? Is there a checklist provided to the subcontractor to ensure that the shippers interest is taken care of ? Take care to ensure that such unforeseen costs do not affect your shipments profitability. Connect with us to learn more about shipments in ISO Tanks. Warm Regards,  Bejoy Follow us on Linkedin @King Star Freight Pvt Ltd