General Hazmat Knowledge - Hazardous Material Transportation

A. From looking over the FAA press release information I was able to draw the following information. I used a tally system when going through each one to get numbers for each of these,I could possibly be off if I mistakenly double ticked any category but I will show my calculations for each category I analyzed. 

Out of 125 fines:

61.6 % involved being found by leaking packages and by ground handlers. ( 77/125 = 0.616)

10.4 % involved oxygen generator's (13/125= 0.104)

4.8 % involved some type of beauty product/ aerosol type of container or nail polish (6/125=0.048)

3.2% involved perfume/cologne (4/125= 0.032)

15.2 % involved paint/stain ( 19/125= 0.152)

4.8% involved batteries (6/125=0.048)

17.6% of fines were against airline companies (22/125=.176)

1.6% involved being found by a fire (2/125= 0.016)

5.6% involved being found by an odor (7/125=0.056)

7.2% were improperly labeled or had no labels at all (9/125= 0.072)

60% of the fines were hazardous materials other than oxygen generators, perfume, paint, batteries. Primarily of flammable materials. (75/125= 0.60)

B. Only two fines were specifically involving COMAT. In both instances the airlines were minor airlines. In both instances the COMAT wasn't properly labeled or contained the right paperwork. The parties that needed to be notified weren't notified either. One fine was substantially larger than the other, but the fines weren't proportional in relation. The supporting contractors were the ones with stricter policies that were the cause of the fines to be issued, due to their findings of negligence. 

C. The right training could not be getting to the right people for a number of reasons. These reasons may include:

New employees 

Companies not tracking who is properly trained.

Trained employees weren't tested on knowledge.

Employees weren't paying attention to markings on packages, put the articles on the wrong type of plane (passenger vs. cargo)

There is no standard SOP for companies and shipping.

Poor supervision of employees. 

Possible solutions:

Companies establishing SOPs.

Developing of training programs/tests and proper documentation of credentials for employees. 

Good supervision staff and checklists prior to shipment

New employees are to be trailed and double checked when handling hazardous materials.

Spot checks