Transportation and Distribution

NPCA has made safe transport and distribution of its industry’s raw materials and finished goods a leading priority. The association’s Transportation and Distribution Committee is responsible for recommending NPCA policy on matters relating to the safe and economic movement of members’ products. The committee also facilitates communication between the industry and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (DOT/PHMSA).

Another role of the committee is to keep NPCA members apprised of developments that may affect the transportation and distribution of hazardous materials (hazmat) and provide guidance documents to encourage full compliance among association members. In every way, NPCA is an advocate of its industry’s commitment to safe and responsible transportation and distribution of its products.

NPCA is committed to providing its members with the latest and best information and tools they may use to comply with multiple regulations governing transportation and distribution of hazardous materials. As such, NPCA remains attentive to transportation regulatory activity affecting its members, meeting with DOT, providing comments on developing rulemakings and interfacing with members to keep them informed. The association also encourages members to implement the principles of Coatings Care®, NPCA’s landmark health, safety and environmental management program, which counts safe transportation and distribution as one of its four pillars. The Transportation and Distribution Code under Coatings Care® seeks to ensure the safe shipping of coatings products to the industry’s customers, and to reinforce the integral role of health, safety and environmental considerations in the distribution chain.

Toward that end, NPCA has published the Coatings Care® Transportation and Distribution Implementation Guide, which includes sample policies, procedures, and other program resources, as well as descriptions of key management practices germane to hazmat shipping.

Training

Because training is fundamental to any sound hazmat program for the safe transport of goods, NPCA does its part in providing its members the means for learning about the training as well as the training itself. Through the years, NPCA has sponsored many hazardous materials training seminars for hazmat suppliers, vendors, and customers, offering instruction from experienced members of NPCA’s Transportation and Distribution Committee to help fulfill DOT’s training requirements. Training covers a range of topics from classification, placarding, loading and unloading, shipping documentation, penalties and violations, and labeling and packaging, in addition to specialized training for aerosol shipments. NPCA also publishes and provides to all members the Guide to Training Hazardous Materials Employees Involved in Transportation, designed to assist paint and coatings manufacturers in complying with DOT’s regulations on hazardous materials employee training. NPCA’s members genuinely rely on the guide and use it in their employee training.

Transportation Beyond our Borders

Since many of its members export raw materials and products, NPCA remains on top of the hazmat transportation regulations they need to comply with abroad. In fact, NPCA regularly works in concert with international regulatory agencies akin to DOT in an effort to harmonize shipping practices and regulatory requirements. For example, when the Canadian Clear Language Amendments modified Transport Canada’s (DOT equivalent) Transport of Dangerous Goods regulations, NPCA participated in the public process and argued that deviation from the UN Recommendations and U.S. regulations would be counter to the goal of international harmonization. As a result, NPCA members continue their safe transport of goods virtually uninterrupted. Similarly, NPCA updates its members on new requirements for air transport, and has even published a brochure entitled “Paint Doesn’t Fly,” which addresses potential risks associated with shipping paint by air or carrying paint aboard a passenger aircraft. NPCA has encouraged its members to circulate the brochure in locations or with persons responsible for the shipment of paint, including stores, warehouses, salespeople and customers. In this way, NPCA is taking steps not only to ensure that the roads on which its members’ raw materials and products are traveling are safe, but that the skies are safe as well.