W hen moving or handling hazardous materials, “complacency kills,” says Ryan Paquet, president of HazMat Safety Consulting. “If you get complacent with dangerous goods, bad things can happen very quickly.” In contrast to conventional freight, shipments of hazardous materials or dangerous goods ( see sidebar, next page, for more details ) can create risks that impact not only the products and companies involved, but public safety, environmental systems, infrastructure, and emergency-response capabilities, says Ginger Ke, Ph.D., a professor at Memorial University in Newfoundland, Canada. As a result, logistics decisions involving hazardous materials (hazmat) can’t be based solely on cost or transit time. Safe and effective handling of hazardous materials requires care on the part of shippers and logistics providers alike. Even when shippers engage partners to handle their hazmat shipments, they retain responsibility for the products and need a solid understanding of the risks the products present, as well as the ability to ensure their shipments are classi ed, handled, packaged, labeled, and shipped correctly. They also need to con rm that relevant regulations are followed across all steps in the supply chain. “Outsourcing your ful llment shares
July 2026 • Inbound Logistics 131
Powered by FlippingBook