For the safe and efficient transport of liquids in dangerous goods logistics, logistics companies must take into account a wide variety of requirements for “ideal transport conditions”. Tank containers and flexibags play a major role here. How do these two alternatives actually differ? This article attempts to bring clarity to an often confusing discussion.
Tank containers are closed, robust containers made of high-quality stainless steel and offer a high level of protection and great safety against external influences, against leakage and contamination. They can be used to transport a wide variety of liquids, including toxic chemicals, sensitive food ingredients and pharmaceutical products.
In contrast, flexibags are flexible plastic containers that are placed inside conventional freight containers. They are limited exclusively to the transport of non-hazardous liquids.
Due to the use of standard containers, transport costs are often lower with Flexibags, which makes this transport solution interesting. Not to be underestimated, however, are possible additional costs for recycling and the use of heating pads. In the latter case, additional linings are needed to the multilayer packaging.
Another difference arises when loading and unloading are considered. In the case of the tank container, this is done through specialized connections and equipment available at the respective loading and unloading points. The resulting rapid loading and unloading of tank containers leads to short downtimes in an efficient supply chain.
For flexibags, these operations require more elaborate preparation and careful handling. This is significantly more time-consuming.
In terms of sustainability, flexibags are always promoted as more environmentally friendly. However, ITCO has clearly taken a different position in a statement dated 17.06.2022 and has also supported this with facts. The “ITCO Flexibag Statement – Tank Containers are Eco-friendly and Sustainable” states that flexibagsareneither eco-friendly nor sustainable because they are made from plastic films, consisting of polyethylene and a polypropylene shell. With a total weight of approximately 40kg, one Flexibag is equivalent to more than 7,500 disposable shopping bags. To avoid cross-contamination, such flexibags can also be used only once.
And the fact that they do not have to be cleaned after use like ISO tank containers is not true either – at least not as a general rule: depending on the cargo, e.g. after use with petroleum products, cleaning is mandatory before disposal. And even the often positively mentioned recycling is only possible to a limited extent with plastic films. If anything, it is costly and therefore often not economical. In addition, there are no uniform rules or controls for the disposal of flexibags. Rather, this is the responsibility of the recipient.
Tank containers are cleaned in approved and specialized depots. It is true that cleaning tank containers is resource and energy intensive. But the tank container is reusable and has a very long life of about 20-30 years. Due to safely established metal recovery processes, a tank container can be recycled up to 90% even after this time. All in all, the tank container is clearly the more sustainable alternative to the Flexibag.
Both tank containers and flexibags offer solutions for bulk liquids. What is the best method of transportation depends on the specific requirements. Flexibags can be quite useful for certain constellations. In principle, however, tank containers offer a number of advantages. In terms of safety, efficiency, versatility, efficiency, but especially environmental friendliness, they are the more reliable and significantly more sustainable solution.
Illustrations: Leschaco; Torsten @ stock.adobe.com; Kefa01 – Own work, CC BY 3.0
There are important current changes in RAS-Cargo, which I will present below. France has taken on a pioneering role here. It is about changes that will increase the safety of air freight transportation in the future. After all, a not inconsiderable proportion of dangerous goods transported worldwide are now transported by air.
The European Union has been taking care of the central collection of chemicals since 2016. The European Chemicals Agency ECHA has set up a central online platform for this purpose. It lists all registered substances and also provides a lot of additional information on handling chemicals. However, after six years, the underlying technical platform was no longer able to cope with the enormous data volumes of more than 360,000 chemicals. That is why the European Chemicals Agency announced a new system as early as 2022. The new version went online a few weeks ago, specifically on January 30, 2024.
Very few families have a supply chain expert. Many people forget that small quantities of dangerous goods are an essential part of our everyday lives and must be handled and transported with care. This is because even small quantities can cause injuries or burns, trigger fires and explosions and pollute the environment if handled improperly or if damaged. Therefore, always remember that hazardous goods are everywhere in our daily lives and must be handled with special care. Hidden components can cause injuries if used improperly or if unprofessional repair attempts are made.
The Leschaco Group is a global logistics service provider that combines Hanseatic tradition with cosmopolitanism and a spirit of innovation. “Experienced. Dedicated. Customized.” This is a fitting summary of the company’s philosophy: On the basis of decade-long experience teams of specialists set up customized solutions
› Sea Freight
› Air Freight
› Tank Container
› Contract Logistics
› Supply Chain Solutions
› Intermodal Transports
› Industrial Solutions
› Services
Lexzau, Scharbau GmbH & Co. KG
Kap-Horn-Straße 18
28237 Bremen
Deutschland
phone (49) 421.6101 0
fax (49) 421.6101 489
info@leschaco.com
Copyrights 2022/23: Lexzau, Scharbau GmbH & Co. KG, Bremen (Germany). Concept and realization vibrio | Imprint | Privacy | Cookie Settings
