Packing Cargo Transport Units.

Many incidents in transport are attributed to poor practices in the packing of cargo transport units, including inadequate securing of the cargo, overloading and incorrect declaration of contents. This is of major concern particularly because the victims may be the general public or transport and supply chain workers, who generally have no control over the packing of such units.

The Code of Practice for the packing of cargo transport units(CTU Code) is a joint publication of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), addresses these concerns through a non-mandatory global code of practice for the handling and packing of shipping containers for transportation by sea and land.

Within the CTU Code, comprehensive information and references on all aspects of loading and securing of cargo in containers and other intermodal transport are provided, taking account of the requirements of all sea and land transport modes. The CTU Code applies to transport operations throughout the entire intermodal transport chain and provides guidance not only to those responsible for packing and securing cargo, but also to those who receive and unpack such units. It also addresses issues such as training and the packing of dangerous goods.

The CTU Code is intended to assist the industry, employers’ and workers’ organizations as well as Governments in training their staff on the safe stowage of cargo in containers. The CTU Code could also be used as a reference base for national regulations and could become a model for internationally harmonized legislation in this field, should such requirements arise.

The CTU Code is currently available through a searchable website and is downloadable in multiple languages through the Key Documents section below.

Bill Brassington acted as the Consultant Author of the CTU Code and Informative Material along with a Group of Experts taken from all aspects of the intermodal transport industry, including National and Regulatory Authorities and employee and employer organisations.

The CTU Code is published in many languages Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Russian and Spanish

Associated with the CTU code are a number of Informative Material Papers which are only available in English.

Other papers on packing CTUs will be included on the website shortly