Andrew Morton
Andrew Morton, customs and traffic coordinator at the
Central Ontario University, in Toronto, had just received a
call from Melissa Downing, finance manager at Canadian
Marine Lines in Vancouver. It was April 3, and Melissa
informed Andrew that representatives from Transport
Canada had held up a shipping container because a uni­
versity shipment from Shanghai had not been labeled and
documented in accordance with regulations stipulated
in the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act. Andrew
was particularly concerned because there were a number
of other consignees of goods in the container, and he
recognized that he needed to act immediately to resolve
the situation.
CENTRAL ONTARIO UNIVERSITY
Central Ontario University was one of Canada's largest
universities, with approximately 1,200 faculty and ahnost
25,000 students. Research was an integral part of the uni­
versity's mission, and most full-time faculty were engaged
actively in research projects.
Andrew Morton was the university's customs and traf­
fic coordinator, which was part of the university's pur­
chasing department. He was responsible for assisting fac­
ulty and s ff with inbound and outbound transportation
arrangements, including domestic shipments, imports,
Company (Shouwu) in Shanghai, China, FOB destina­
tion, freight prepaid. Shouwu was selected because they
produced the chemical with the purity that Peter required.
When Peter placed his order, Shouwu's sales representa­
tive, Haiyu Zhao, assured him that the shipment would
be sent in compliance with the international maritime law
and it would comply with Canadian regulations regarding
the transport of dangerous goods.
Andrew first became aware of the shipment on March
15, when he received a bill of lading from Shouwu that
indicated that shipment was expected to reach the Port of
Vancouver in early April. He was concerned that a dec­
laration of dangerous goods did not accompany the bill
and the university could be held liable for any incidents
once it entered the country. Consequently, Andrew de­
cided to call Melissa Downing at Canadian Marine Lines,
who would be handling the shipment in Vancouver. He
informed her of the dangerous nature of the shipment,
the shipper, the name of the vessel, the bill of lading
number, the shipping company in China, and the port of
origination. Andrew also prepared a package containing
the appropriate shipping labels and documents so that the
shipment could be legally transported from Vancouver to
the university.
Later that same day, Andrew called his contact at
Transport Canada, Sheryl Henderson, to inform her of
the situation. Sheryl indicated that Transport Canada's
policy was to hold Canadian importers fully liable for
any and all violations of transport of dangerous goods
regulations, even if the fault lay with the shipper. She
expected that customs inspectors would isolate the con­
tainer when it arrived and that the shipment could be
delayed several days.
Peter was also able to get a copy of the invoice that
afternoon. He found that the order value was $7,650 and
it had been paid in full two months earlier.
Melissa contacted Andrew three days later to report
that over a teleconference that morning Haiyu Zhao had
claimed that the shipment was not hazardous but con­
tained only common, nontoxic household chemicals.
Andrew now wondered if the shipment had been inten­
tionally misrepresented.
exports, internal equipment moving, and addressing of
claims for lost or damaged shipments. The university did
not have a central receiving facility for incoming freight,
and all shipments were delivered by the carrier directly to
the unloading dock of the building indicated on the order.
A formal university shipping procedure documented re­
sponsibilities of parties involved in·each transaction, such
as the receiver, recipient, and document matcher.
THE BROMINE PENTAFLUORIDE
SHIPMENT
Six months earlier, Peter Goris, a faculty member in the
Department of Earth Sciences, placed an order for supply
of bromine pentafluoride (BrF5). Bromine pentafluoride
is a colorless to pale yellow liquid chemical that is highly
corrosive and reactive. It can be used as an oxidizer and
a fluorinating agent in making fluorocarbons. However,
breathing bromine pentafluoride fumes can cause kidney,
liver, and lung damage.
Peter was conducting advanced research that required
bromine pentafluoride of exceptional purity to be used in
his experiments. Using the university's low-value purchase
order process, which allowed users to deal directly with
suppliers for purchases under $1,000, he placed an order for
bromine pentafluoride with Shouwu International Trading
ARRIVAL OF THE SHIPMENT
On April the 3rd, Andrew received a telephone message
from Melissa Downing that the container with the ship­
ment of bromine pentafluoride had arrived and was being
isolated by Canada Customs inspectors. As Andrew had
feared, the shipment had been improperly identified on
the shipping documents by the shipper as a nonhazardous
substance. Melissa indicated that the container had be­
gun incurring demurrage and handling costs, which were
$44.90 and $43.00 per day, respectively. Furthermore,
it appeared that there were other shipments in the same
shipp g container, possibly foodstuff and personal items,
and there could be claims and other costs associated with
holding up these shipments.
Later that afternoon, Andrew received the following
e-mail from Melissa:
Andrew, I just received a call from one of the consignees
of goods in the container being held up in Vancouver due
to this shipment from China. The company is Kohlpec
Canada in Montreal and the contact person is Jason Kohl.
Apparently the goods they have in the container are for
Walmart, which plans to assess them a late penalty if the
shipment is delayed further. Walmart has also threatened
to cancel their next order. It is increasingly clear that you
may be sued for damages if we can't get this problem
resolved. It looks like there are 21 consignees in the
container with our goods. Get back to me with how you
intend to handle this situation.
Andrew recognized that he had to take steps to remedy
the situation quickly. He felt that his earlier dealings with
Sheryl Henderson had gone well under the circumstances
and that she recognized that he had reacted in a respon­
sible and timely manner.
As Andrew considered what could be done regard­
ing the immediate situation, he also wondered what steps
could be taken to avoid similar problems in the future.
The director of purchasing, George Kerr, was aware of the
situation and had asked Andrew to implement appropriate
changes to the university's purchasing and transportation
policies by the end of the month.