If your business needs to ship materials that might be classified as hazardous, you obviously understand that special precautions need to be taken. If you make a mistake while packaging hazardous materials, it could lead to an incident in transit that causes your company to be fined, and that might not even be that bad when compared with the bad press you'd receive. If you want your hazardous materials to make it to their destination without any trouble, keep the following tips in mind.

First, Double Check to Make Sure You Are Shipping Something Hazardous

Some materials or items are immediately obvious that they pose a hazard. If you are shipping devices or materials that are combustible, for example, there will be no question as to the danger that is posed. But the government body that regulates the transport of hazardous materials has a long list of other items that it monitors and some of them are not immediately obvious that they might be hazardous. For example, did you know that nail polish is combustible? The government entity that handles all of this is called the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration and you can find a full list of all potentially hazardous items here.

Document Everything

When your company is handling hazardous materials, you will want to make sure you keep track of everything at all times. You don't want to suddenly realize you aren't sure how much of a hazardous material was in a certain package or be confused as to whether or not you actually shipped something or if it went missing. Keep meticulous documents and make all employees update records the moment a hazardous material is shipped, disposed of or moved to another location in any way.

Ship With a Third Party Company with Experience

While it's possible for your company to get up to speed with your hazardous materials to the point that you can ship them safely, an easier option might be to just let another company handle it for you. A company with professional experience properly shipping and packaging hazardous materials will help ensure that your company is not out of its depth and open to a potential disaster if something goes wrong.

If you are going to ship with a third party company, make sure to give them as much information about the products or materials as possible and update your own records every time these materials leave your possession.