BS EN ISO 16104:2003 was developed to provide requirements and test procedures to meet the multi-modal United Nations Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods - Model Regulations and successful passing of the tests may lead to the allocation of an appropriate packaging mark (e.g. UN, RID/ADR). The UN Recommendations have been developed by the United Nations Committee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous Goods as a "model regulation" (referred to in this document as the UN Recommendations) in the light of technical progress, the advent of new substances and materials, the exigencies of modern transport systems and, above all, the need to ensure the safety of people, property and the environment.
Amongst other aspects, the UN Recommendations cover principles of classification and definition of classes, listing of the principal dangerous goods, general packing requirements, testing procedures, marking, labelling or placarding, and shipping documents. There are in addition special recommendations related to particular classes of goods. The UN Recommendations are given legal entity by the provisions of a series of international modal agreements and national legislation for the transport of dangerous goods. The international agreements include:
- The European Agreement Concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR) (covering most of Europe).
- Regulations concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Rail (RID) (covering most of Europe, parts of North Africa and the Middle East).
- The International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code (IMDG Code) (worldwide). [4]
- The International Civil Aviation Organization’s Technical Instructions for the Safe Transport of Dangerous Goods by Air (ICAO TIs) (worldwide).
The application of this Standard will need to take account of the requirements of these international agreements and the relevant national regulations for domestic transport of dangerous goods. Occasionally during adoption as a modal regulation the text has been modified; RID/ADR permit some variations to tests for light gauge metal packagings and these are included in annex A.
The cross references between this Standard, the UN Recommendations and the International Agreements are summarized in this document. It is important to note that there will be certain modal differences from the UN Recommendations and that the schedule for revision of the Recommendations and modal provisions may lead to temporary inconsistencies with this Standard, which is regularly updated to the latest version of the UN Recommendations.
It is noted that success in the tests and the allocation of an official UN mark do not on their own authorize the use of a packaging for any dangerous goods, which are subject to the packing instructions published in the various modal regulations.
This standard is based on Revision 12 of the UN Recommendations.