The National Road Traffic Act incorporates SANS 1518 in Chapter 8 . This incorporation of the standard thus makes it a legal requirement to comply with SANS 1518 when building a dangerous goods vehicle . SANS 1518 was issued for the first time at the end of March 2004 ( SANS 1518:2004 ), followed by SANS 1518:2008 in March 2008 and then SANS 1518:2011 in March 2011 . The next revision , being SANS 1518:2017 will be published shortly .

The current relationship between SANS 1518 and ADR is that SANS 1518 refers to certain sections of ADR by direct reference to specific sections and paragraphs . These ADR requirements are not repeated in SANS 1518 . This reference to ADR started with SANS 1518:2008 . The current version of SANS 1518 , being 2011 , states that it is based on the “ latest ” edition of ADR . As author of SANS 1518 , I know this was ADR 2009 . SANS 1518:2017 , in turn , states that it is based on ADR 2015 .

A key issue to consider , is that SANS 10231 ( the dangerous goods operating standard , also incorporated in the Act ) states that the tank construction standard applicable at the time of construction will apply . This , for example , means that a tank built , say , in October 2008 , will comply with SANS 1518:2008 and it does not have to comply with later editions of SANS 1518 ( unless of course there are specific matters that need to be attended to retroactively !). A second item of major importance is that the operator of the vehicle is fully responsible to ensure compliance with

the tank construction standard and any other statutory requirements . Operators must thus ensure that they understand the requirements and that the vehicle compliance is confirmed before taking ownership and deployment . It is not acceptable to live with the belief that the tank builder alone should know what the requirements are .

The references to ADR include those to the actual tank design standard to be applied . For example , SANS 1518:2011 refers to the use of EN14025 for pressure vessels and EN12493 for LPG tanks ( remember , SANS 1518 only applies to road tankers , not static tanks or rail tankers ). The third-party inspection body ( or the competent authority as referred to in SANS 1518 ) may allow the use of another tank design ( for example BS5500 or ASME VIII ), but the tank must still comply with the minimum technical requirements of EN14025 or EN12493 .

UNDERSTANDING THE TANK CODE

SANS 1518:2004 introduced the concept of the four-character tank code for the first time . Each product listed in section 3 of ADR ( a section referenced by SANS 1518 ) has an applicable tank code shown against it . For example , if we look at anhydrous ammonia , UN1005 , the code is PxBH ( M ) ( the ‘( M )’ is not really a fifth character , it is merely an extension of the fourth , being the ‘ H ’). This is interpreted as follows :

P A pressure vessel for liquefied or dissolved gasses . x This is the calculation pressure for the tank . In the case of UN1005 , the ‘ x ’ will be replaced by a ‘ 26 ’ for a tank with thermal insulation , or a ‘ 29 ’ for a tank without thermal insulation . The ‘ 26 ’ and ‘ 29 ’ is the pressure in bar . B A tank for bottom-filling or discharge with three closures on the filling / discharge line .

H A hermetically closed tank . The ‘( M )’ means that the product may be carried in a UN Multiple Element Gas Container ( UN MEGC ). ( An LPG tanker , by comparison , requires an ‘ N ’ as the fourth character and thus has to be fitted with pressure relief that is not hermetically closed .)

The term ‘ hermetically closed ’ means that :

• The tank has no pressure or vacuum relief ; or

• The tank has no pressure relief but has vacuum relief ; or

• If pressure relief is fitted to the tank , it must consist of a pressure relief valve preceded by a bursting disc .

The tank code must be displayed on the tank manufacturer ’ s plate .

Pressure vessel construction , however , also falls under the control of SANS 347 , which is the standard governing conformity assessment of pressure vessels as applied by the Department of Labour . This standard includes SANS 1518 as a recognised safety standard that pressure equipment may comply with . CLA

Operators must thus ensure that they understand the requirements and that the vehicle compliance is confirmed before taking ownership and deployment .

* WHAT IS ADR ?

ADR — formally , the European Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road ( ADR ) — is a 1957 United Nations treaty that governs transnational transport of hazardous materials . ADR is derived from the French name for the treaty , Accord européen relatif au transport international des marchandises Dangereuses par Route .

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Hentie van Jaarsveldt has been intimately involved in the road transportation of dangerous goods in southern Africa for the past 30 years . He has gained extensive experience and in-depth knowledge in the operation , design , construction , and maintenance of the related vehicles as transport manager of a multinational oil company and managing director of a leading manufacturer of road tankers . He has furthermore been a longstanding member of the SABS technical committees for SANS 1518 , 10231 , and 10232 ; attends the ADR technical meetings in Switzerland ; and can be regarded as the lead author of SANS 1518 . As specialist technical and operational consultant since 2005 , he has assisted a number of bluechip clients across sub-Saharan Africa with the specification , procurement , and maintenance of vehicles and equipment and the associated operational management and control systems , among other functions .