UL Issues First 'Marine Use' Marking & Labeling Certification for Hazardous Chemicals

UL's Recognition Program helps address the safety concerns of the label industry with respect to labeling of hazardous goods for marine transport.

NORTHBROOK, Ill., Feb. 24, 2016 /CNW/ -- UL Performance Materials, a division of UL (Underwriters Laboratories), today announces that it has issued its first 'Marine Use' Marking & Labeling certification to Avery Dennison, a supplier of labeling materials. Label and label materials covered under this certification program are intended to be used to durably mark dangerous and hazardous goods (such as chemical containers or drums) for marine transport in international waters.

The Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS) and the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code are internationally accepted codes that address the safe transportation or shipment of dangerous goods or hazardous materials by water on vessel. Under these codes, it is a requirement that packaging continuing dangerous goods shall be identifiable and withstand immersion in the sea for 3 months. British Standard (BS) 5609:1986 "Specification for printed pressure-sensitive, adhesive-coated labels for marine use, including requirements for label base material" is the defacto standard used by the labeling industry to show compliance to the IMDG code requirements and evaluates label materials (under Section 2) and printing (under Section 3) for "durability of markings".

Avery Dennison is the first company to have their products certified by UL to Marking & Labeling Systems Marine Use (PGDT2), under UL's Recognized Component Program, in accordance with the BS 5609:1986 standard (Section 2: base material and section 3: printed labels). UL certified materials that comply with the above standard are authorized to bear UL's Recognized Component Mark and the statement "Certified to BS 5609." The UL certification can be found here PGDT2.MH61182 or by searching www.ul.com/database.

"We are pleased to continue our close working relationship with UL," said Mark Pickner, regional segment director, Durables, Avery Dennison Label and Packaging Materials – North America. "This recognition, in conjunction with our UL-recognized North American DAP lab and United Kingdom water immersion testing facility, allows us to address the BS 5609: 1986 Section 2 and 3 certification needs of our converters and their end users while carrying the trusted mark of UL."

"Our Recognized Component certification program enables label material manufacturers and labelconverters to substantiate their claims with UL's trusted third-party certification," said Todd Denison, VP and GM of Performance Materials. "This not only helps manufacturers differentiate their product from other competitors, but also it increase confidence and peace of mind of end users on the product's durability."

For decades, UL has played an important role in the development of label requirements for Safety Certification under our marking and labeling program, which enables end-users to preselect certified labels that comply with their safety standards. This new "Marine Use" program builds on UL's Marking & Labeling expertise to serve the evolving needs of the label industry.

For more information, please contact Ryan J Houle, labels segment leader, via email at [email protected].

About UL

UL is a premier global independent safety science company that has championed progress for more than 120 years. Its nearly 11,000 professionals are guided by the UL mission to promote safe working and living environments for all people. UL uses research and standards to continually advance and meet ever-evolving safety needs. We partner with businesses, manufacturers, trade associations and international regulatory authorities to bring solutions to a more complex global supply chain. For more information about our certification, verification, validation, testing, inspection, advisory and education services, visit http://www.UL.com.

Michelle Press
PR Manager, UL
847-664-1966
[email protected]

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SOURCE UL