Two-Part Harmony

There are 96 jurisdictions in North America with distinct load-securement rules. There are local-level interpretations, a variety of cargo-specific requirements that differ among federal, provincial, and state governments, and some cargoes that simply defy definition.

The picture was supposed to clear up with the introduction of the North American Cargo Securement Standard, a model regulation meticulously developed by Canadian and U.S. transport officials over the past 10 years.

The expectation was that jurisdictions would adopt the final draft of the standard “by reference,” a legal manoeuvre designed to bypass the time-consuming and costly need to officially process an identical regulation through each government. With uniform rules would come more uniform enforcement across North America.

But a final rule that becomes law in the United States on Dec. 26 omits a key element of the standard: that all anchor points, tie-downs, friction, blocking straps, chains, and other securement devices be rated and marked with a working load limit (WLL) and the identity of the manufacturer.

Currently, inspectors look for those rating indicators — in pounds or kilograms for most components, in a grading system for chains — when trying to determine the WLL for each tie-down assembly, and when tallying up the sum of the WWLs for all the tie-down assemblies used to hold a piece of cargo in place.

The U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration says prohibiting unmarked equipment would be an economic burden to equipment manufacturers and their customers.

“Instead, the U.S. will assign default working load limits for equipment that is not marked,” says Ottawa-based consultant John Pearson, one of the architects of the standard. “In Canada, however, there is the thinking that if a performance test is to be applied, we should know the working load limit.” That would mean prohibiting equipment that is not marked and rated. A proposed deadline is January 2009.

Meantime, the U.S. will enforce its rule starting in January 2004. Pearson expects the provinces will be ready with their own rules by that date. The North American standard is available from the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators at 613/736-1003, or online at www.ab.org/ccmta/draft.htm. You can see the FMCSA rule by searching for docket number FMCSA-97-2289 at dms.dot.gov.