Recently I’ve been working with different logistic documents (SAP IDoc/X12/EDIFACT and CIDX/ChemXML) which contain information about Hazardous Materials/Dangerous Goods. I used a lot of sources to find information about the data and its usage, and want to share my humble knowledge here.
As always, it is just an idea, and your implementation might be different. But in the most cases the core logic will follow this idea. Mention should be made that HazMat data is very important and you must understand what you are doing. If you have any concerns, or not sure you understand it completely – you must contact subject matter experts (SMEs). This article is more about “HazMat data from EDI point of view” rather than ready-to-use implementation guide.
So, I want to focus on the main entities of HazMat/DG data and show you connection between different formats (SAP IDoc, X12 and EDIFACT). In X12 I’ll be using H1 and LH1 – LH6 segments, DGS for EDIFACT and E1EDD10 data from SAP IDocs.
X12
- H1 – Hazardous Material
- LH1 – Hazardous Identification Information
- LH2 – Hazardous Classification Information
- LH3 – Hazardous Material Shipping Name
- LH4 – Canadian Dangerous Requirements
- LH6 – Hazardous Certification
EDIFACT
SAP IDoc
- E1EDD10 – DG item data 1 (delivery)
- E1EDD11 – DG item data descriptions 1 (delivery)
- E2EDD15 – DG item data descriptions 2 (delivery)
- E1EDD12 – DG item data 2 (delivery)
- E1EDD16 – DG item data descriptions 3 (delivery)
- E1EDDH3/E1EDDP3 – DG text (delivery item)
| Entity | X12 H1, LH1 – LH6 | EDIFACT DGS | SAP IDoc E1EDD10 group |
| Identification | |||
| United Nations Dangerous Goods (UNDG) Number or UN Number – a class/code Hazardous Material belongs to. Originally its format is 4 digits (XXXX), but X12 uses “UNXXXX” notation. | H1-01 (Hazardous Material Code); LH1-03 (UN/NA Identification Code) |
DGS / C234 / 7124 (UNDG number) | E1EDD10 / DGNU (Identification Number), E1EDD10 / TKUI (Identification Number Type) = “UN” |
| Proper Shipping Name. This is the name used to explain the dangerous nature of hazardous material. Example: “UN 1760, CORROSIVE LIQUID, N.O.S. (1,1,3-Trichloropropene, Dibromoethane)”. Sometimes UNDG number/Class/Packaging group (see below) is included into this proper shipping name, sometimes – not. When hazmat belongs to some generic groups of materials (like corrosive or flammable liquids), the term “N.O.S” (“NOS” – “Not Otherwise Specified”) is used. Update: as Manuel corrected me below, the proper shipping name is “CORROSIVE LIQUID, N.O.S.” in this case. “UN 1760, CORROSIVE LIQUID, N.O.S. (1,1,3-Trichloropropene, Dibromoethane)” is the “printable summary of hazmat details”. | H1-04 (Hazardous Material Description); LH3-01 (Hazardous Material Shipping Name) with LH3-02 (Hazardous Material Shipping Name Qualifier) |
FTX / C108 / 4440 where FTX / 4451 = AAD (AAD Dangerous goods, technical name) | From what I saw, E1EDD10 / E1EDDH3 / E1EDDP3 / TDLINE is used (you’ll need to find out correct IDENTIFIER/TDOBNAME/TDID values used) |
| Regulation | |||
| Hazardous Material Regulations Code – usually a code of organization which provides transport-specific HazMat regulations (like IATA for air, or IMO for maritime, or ADR for road transportation) | H1-03 (Hazardous Material Code Qualifier) | DGS / 8273 (Dangerous goods regulations, coded) | E1EDD10 / LWDG (Dangerous Goods Regulation) |
| Classification | |||
There are 9 common classes of hazardous materials:
Plus classes may have sub-divisions. For example, “Class 1: Explosives” contains “Division 1.4: Substances and articles which present no significant hazard; only a small hazard in the event of ignition or initiation during transport with any effects largely confined to the package” HazMat might belong to more than one class. |
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| Hazardous Class Primary Code. If HazMat belongs to multiple classes (it is possible), it should be the class which represent the highest hazard. | H1-02 (Hazardous Material Class Code); LH2-01 (Hazardous Classification) where LH2-02 = P (P = Primary) |
DGS / C205 / 8351 (Hazard code identification) | E1EDD10 / DGCL (Dangerous Goods Class) |
| Hazardous Class Secondary/Subsidiary Code | H2-02 (Hazardous Material Classification); LH2-01 (Hazardous Classification) where LH2-02 = S (S = Secondary); LH4-04/05/06 (Subsidiary Classification) |
DGS / C205 / 8078 (Hazard substance/item/page number) | E1EDD10 / DGSC (Dangerous Goods Subclass) |
| Labels/Marks | |||
| Labels are connected to the Classes and represent the way HazMat should be marked (labeled). SAP IDoc E1EDD10 and EDIFACT DGS have a place for labels while in X12 Class ~= Label.
Usually they are diamond-shaped labels of different colors with some description and the class code (from Wikipedia): |
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| Labels. | H1-02 (Hazardous Material Class Code); LH2-01 (Hazardous Classification) where LH2-02 = P or S (P = Primary, S = Secondary); LH4-04/05/06 (Subsidiary Classification) |
DGS / C236 (Dangerous goods label) / 8246 (Dangerous goods label marking) | E1EDD10 / HPN1, HPN2, …, HPN7 (Danger Label)
Plus E1EDD15 / HPN1D, HPN2D, …, HPN2D (Description for Danger Label) contains description for labels. |
| Placards. Sometimes “placards” can be used in addition to Labels. Placard’s upper part is related to the name/code used on labels (for example, “FLAMMABLE” or “1219”), and lower part – to the class code (for example, “3”). | LH2-03 (Hazardous Placard Notation). This is AN 14..40 element, so I saw “PLACARDED: ” prefix is being used. | From what I saw, in EDIFACT placard data (DGS / C235 (HAZARD IDENTIFICATION)) might contain 2 sub-elements – DGS / C235 / 8158 (Hazard identification number, upper part) and DGS / C235 / 8186 (Substance identification number, lower part). Usually the upper part is UNDG number and the lower – (primary) class code. | E1EDD10 / HPN1, HPN2, …, HPN7 (Danger Label) – might be used as lower part; E1EDD15 / HPN1D, HPN2D, …, HPN2D (Description for Danger Label) – might be used as upper part |
| Packaging information | |||
| Packaging Group code. Represents level (I, II or III) of packaging protection level (where “I” is the highest level) | H1-09 (Packing Group Code); LH1-10 (Packing Group Code); LH4-03 (Packing Group Code); |
DGS / 8339 (Packing group, coded) | E1EDD10 / PGRO (Packing Group) |
| Emergency plan/guide/contact | |||
| This is a kind of “what to do in case of emergency” information. Different organizations provide their own plans/guides, often transport-specific. Also, emergency/hazmat contact information (name/phone) must be provided. | |||
| Emergency Response Plan (or EmS – Emergency Response Procedures for Ships Carrying Dangerous Goods). Usually 2 sets, each set is 2 letters, separated by “-” (like “F-E, S-E”). These codes are being used to find “what to do” in the EmS guide book. | LFH-02 (Hazardous Material Shipment Information) where LFH-01 = EMS (EMS Emergency Schedule (EMS) Page Number) | DGS / 8364 (EMS number) | E1EDD10 / EMSN1 (EmS/ERG Number 1), E1EDD10 / EMSN2 (EmS/ERG Number 2). Used for both Emergency Response Plan or Page/Guide Number (I saw both) |
| Page/Guide Number. Refers to the Guide number (under “GUIDE” bold label at the top of the page) in Emergency Response Guidebook (ERG). The guidebook includes information about “what to do” in case of emergency situation with different HazMats (based on their class(es)/UNDG number). ERG looks to be more specific for (North) America | H1-06 (Hazardous Materials Page); LH1-04 (Hazardous Materials Page) |
Assumption: one of DGS / 8364 (EMS number) -or- DGS / C205 / 8078 (Hazard substance/item/page number) could be used |
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| Medical first aid guide/identifier or MFAG. To be honest, I’ve seen this once or twice, and looks like it is similar to EmS/ERG, but for situations when someone was injured/exposed to HazMat. | LFH-02 (Hazardous Material Shipment Information) where LFH-01 = MFA (MFA Medical First Aid Guide (MFAG) Page Number) | DGS / 8410 (MFAG, Medical first aid guide) | E1EDD10 / MFAG1 (MFAG Number 1) and E1EDD10 / MFAG2 (MFAG Number 2) |
| Emergency Contact. A person/organization which should be contacted in case of emergency. Usually name + phone number(s) | H1-05 (Hazardous Material Contact); LH4-02 (Communication Number, used for the emergency response plan telephone number), LH4-11 (Communication Number, an additional telephone number); PER segment where PER-01 = EM (Emergency Contact) or EC (Emergency Contact-Shipper) or ED (Emergency Contact-Consignee) |
CTA/COM segments where CTA / 3139 = HE (Emergency dangerous goods contact) | As I can see, there is not any dedicated structure for Emergency Contact data in IDocs. |
| Misc parameters (temperatures, …) | |||
| Flashpoint Temperature. The lowest temperature when HazMat may ignite. | H1-07 (Flashpoint Temperature), H1-08 (UoM), LH2-07 (Temperature; indicate the flashpoint temperature), LH2-06 (UoM) |
DGS / C223 / 7106 (Shipment flashpoint), DGS / C223 / 6411 (Measure unit qualifier) | E1EDD10 / E1EDD12 / FLTMP (Flash Point), E1EDD10 / E1EDD12 / TPFUN (Temperature Unit (Flame)) |
| Control Temperature | LH2-09 (Temperature; indicate the control temperature), LH2-08 (UoM) | TMP segment where 6245 (Temperature qualifier) is 5 (Transport control temperature; The maximum temperature at which certain products can be safely transported.) | E1EDD10 / E1EDD12 / COTMP (Control Temperature), E1EDD10 / E1EDD12 / TPCUN(Temperature Unit (Control)) |
| Emergency Temperature | LH2-11 (Temperature; indicate the emergency temperature), LH2-10 (UoM) | TMP segment where 6245 (Temperature qualifier) is 4 (Transport emergency temperature. The temperature at which emergency procedures apply for the disposal of temperature-controlled goods.) | E1EDD10 / E1EDD12 / EMTMP(Emergency Temperature), E1EDD10 / E1EDD12 / TPEUN (Temperature Unit (Emergency)) |
Now, let’s very shortly review some data samples (created mostly manually).
X12 404
LH1***UN1495*140******II~ LH2*5.1*P*PLACARDED CLASS 5.1 LH3*SODIUM CHLORATE*C LH4***II
UNDG code: 1495
ERG Page/Guide number: 140
Packaging class: II
Class (primary): 5.1
Proper shipping name: SODIUM CHLORATE
EDIFACT IFCSUM
DGS+RID+6.1+2078+132:CEL+2++++60+6.1' FTX+AAD+++RID?: 60, UN 2078 TOLUENE DIISOCYANATE 6.1, II'
Regulator: RID (Railways)
UNDG code: 2078
Packaging class: II
Class (primary): 6.1
Flashpoint: 132, Celsius
Proper shipping name: 60, UN 2078 TOLUENE DIISOCYANATE 6.1, II
Update: as Manuel corrected me below, the proper shipping name is “TOLUENE DIISOCYANATE” in this case. “60, UN 2078 TOLUENE DIISOCYANATE 6.1, II” is the “printable summary of hazmat details”.
I hope it would help you to read EDI HazMat data as well as use it in your mapping.
EDI shortcuts 
Concerning proper shipping name in EDIFACT, the section “RID?: 60, UN 2078 TOLUENE DIISOCYANATE 6.1, II” is a printable summary of hazmat details (e.g. it contains the label/undg code and packaging group code). The actual proper shipping name in this case would actually be “TOLUENE DIISOCYANATE”. Other than that a stellar article as usual.
Thanks! I was trying to find the exact definition and examples, and saw this “printable summary of hazmat details” being used as a proper shipping name in some data. Will fix it