To explain this question we need to distinct liquid, gas and solids.

Liquid means a substance or mixture which at 50°C has a vapour pressure of not more than 300 kPa, which is not completely gaseous at 20°C and at a standard pressure of 101.3 kPa, and which has a melting point or initial melting point of 20 °C or less at a standard pressure of 101.3 kPa.

Gas means a substance which at 50 °C has a vapour pressure greater than 300 kPa; or is completely gaseous at 20 °C at a standard pressure of 101.3 kPa.

Solids are the substance or mixtures that do not meet the definitions of liquid or gas.

You can easily verify the physical state of a product by checking it material safety data sheet (MSDS). Section 9 indicates whether it is liquid, solid or gas. Section 14 gives transport information including UN number and packaging group.

CurTec supplies UN-certified packaging for hazardous solids. CurTec does not supply UN-certified packaging for hazardous liquids.

Packaging for shipping hazardous materials has to be certified to UN standards. The international agreements for the carriage of dangerous goods require packaging to be of a design-type certified by a national competent authority. This involves testing the packaging to ensure its suitability for the carriage of certain dangerous goods. Such packaging is often referred to as "UN certified" and carries a UN mark containing codes, the details of which may be found in part 6 of ADR. CurTec offers UN certified packaging for hazardous solids.

UN stands for United Nations. The United Nations have established a universal system for the classification, packaging, marking and labelling of dangerous goods to facilitate their safe transport. National and international regulations governing road, rail, sea and air transport are all based on the UN system. Under the regulations, packaging must meet or exceed minimum standards of performance before it can be authorised for the carriage of dangerous goods. Package performance is established by subjecting specimens of the packaging to the tests described in Chapter 6.1 of the UN Model Regulations. If they pass the tests, packaging subsequently manufactured to the same specification, (known as a design-type) may be regarded as meeting the requirements and marked accordingly.

The transportation of hazardous goods is only permitted with packaging that bears a UN marking. A UN marking indicates the type of package and the levels to which the packaging has been approved.

For example: UN/1H2/Y26/S/13/NL/CURTEC 3278

UN = United Nations
1H2 = Plastic open top drum
Y = Packaging group II/III
26 = Max. gross mass of the packaging including the contents in kg
S = Approved for solids
13 = Last two digits of the year of manufacturing
NL = Country where UN certificate has been issued
CURTEC = Manufacturer name or code
000066 = Certificate registration number

A UN marking is unique for a single product or series of products and should not be confused with a product reference.

Packaging bearing a UN marking is valid for maximum 5 years. A UN marking is recorded in a UN test report. The validity of a UN marking depends on the validity of the UN test report which is different per country. All our UN test reports have unlimited validity because they were issued in Belgium and The Netherlands. Read more in the article ‘How long is a UN test report valid for?’.

Read the article ‘How long is a UN test report valid for?’.

The shelf life of UN certified packaging is determined according to a maximum duration of use, which is prescribed by law. Drums, plastic jerry cans and rigid plastic or combination IBCs with plastic inner packaging which are approved for the transport of hazardous materials have a useful life of five years. This period is calculated from the date of production, in accordance with the provisions of (the) ADR, unless a shorter useful life is applicable due to the nature of the substance to be transported.

HDPE or High Density Polyethylene is a rigid, high density plastic that is used for most CurTec products. HDPE is impact resistant (even at low temperatures), chemical resistant, and offers excellent protection against moisture.

Some products however require a raw material that fills the mould more easy during the injection process because of its complex shape. For those items we select a Polypropylene (PP) that is easier to process and has mechanical properties almost similar to HDPE.

CurTec only uses raw materials which have their origin in Europe. We do not use raw materials from Japan or China.

CurTec drums are manufactured of HDPE. HDPE is compatible with a wide range of chemical products including acids and caustics but is not always compatible with solvents. Click here to download a chemical resistance chart of HDPE. In case you cannot trace your particular solvent, please contact CurTec for assistance.

Yes, your powders are protected. CurTec’s range of packaging products includes drums, nestable and small volume containers with screw top closure and integrated gasket that provide a water and water vapour tight closure. All products are tested according to rigorous ASTM standards, with moisture vapour transmission fully measured and registered.

CurTec drums with screw lid and integrated gasket provide an air tight closure. Airtight means air cannot enter the drum from the outside through the closure.

Airtight does not mean air cannot escape the container. The closure has not been designed to withstand any pressure so air will escape the container when outside pressure drops or pressure is built up inside the container. Please contact CurTec for advice.

CurTec products can be customised to reflect your corporate identity by changing colour, embossing, screen printing and/or labelling. Other customising options include gaskets, packaging quantities/ units and different hygiene measures. Customising a CurTec product requires certain minimum quantities and involves different lead times. Please contact CurTec for more info about terms of delivery and cost.

Conductive and UV safe drums are often confused because they are both black. Although they both look the same, they are black for different reasons. A conductive drum is able to conduct static electricity caused by surface contact and separation, thus avoiding ignition. A conductive drum is made of a special HDPE blend with a high percentage of carbon black which of course colours the drum black. Adding other colorant does not have any visible effect. A UV safe drum protects against UV light. It is made of regular HDPE. CurTec adds black colorant because of all colorants it offers the best possible UV protection at low dosage.

A conductive drum needs to be properly earthed so that it can safely dissipate static electricity. It is important to use static earthing systems that can determine if a drum is actually static dissipative to a maximum resistance of 1x10⁸ ohms. This will ensure that ‘rogue’ containers made of normal plastic cannot be used in the hazardous area. A static earthing system will also ensure that the static dissipative content of the container has not degraded through normal lifecycle effects and is reliably performing its intended safety function of dissipating potentially hazardous electrostatic charges from its surface once it has been connected to earth.

Conductive drums have a surface resistance ≤10⁶ Ohm. During manufacture, every two  hours a drum and a lid are is measured using a Metriso 3000 resistance meter. The maximum limit for product acceptance is 10,000 Ohm.

All CurTec products are manufactured of high quality plastics. The shelf life of plastic is very long. The shelf life of plastic CurTec products is most influenced by several factors: exposure to sun light and heat, transmission of humidity and mechanical stresses. Frequency of use is also of influence. CurTec cannot recommend a shelf life for its products. For use with hazardous goods, the shelf life of UN certified packaging is limited to five years after production date.

According to the UN certificate and UN regulation, the production date on the drum is leading, because the drum is the most critical part during UN testing. Based on UN requirements, the shelf life of UN certified packaging is limited to five years after production. Lids are always manufactured ahead of the drums because they need to be closed immediately after production for quality purposes. CurTec’s stock control procedure ensures that drum lids are no longer than six months on stock prior to assembly.

CurTec advises to ship packaging in pressurized cargo holds during air transport. We also recommend a minimum filling level of 95%. Following these instructions can reduce the risk of implosion and product loss considerably.

CurTec has no control over customer applications of its packaging. It is the responsibility of the end user to test whether a filled packaging complies with relevant transport regulations. CurTec refers to the regulations mentioned in the UN certificates

CurTec products can be supplied directly or via a local distributor. Please contact Sales for the criteria.

All CurTec products are suitable for food contact and comply with following regulation:

• EC regulation 1935/2004 (Materials and articles intended to come into contact with food)
• EC regulation 10/2011 (Plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with foodstuffs)
• EC regulation 2023/2006 (Good Manufacturing Practice applicable to all food contact materials)
• EC directive 2004/12 (Modifies EC directive 94/62) Heavy metals
• FDA regulation CFR 21 177.1520 (Olefin polymers)

Click here to download our Regulatory Affairs Data Sheet.

All our drums, pails and jars meet the requirements of phthalates according the tolerances as listed in EC Decision 99/815 and Annex III of the EC directive 2002/72.

Extractables are chemical entities that will extract from components of a container closure system or device into solvents under controlled conditions. They are used to identify and quantify potential leachables. Leachables are chemical entities that migrate from components of a container closure system or device into a product over the course of its shelf-life.

CurTec products contain leachables. We have submitted all our drums, Click Packs and Packo’s to  Migration Testing as described in EC directive 10/2011. Packaging products are in compliance with EC 10/2011 and EC 1935/2004.

All CurTec packaging products and some lidded crates are UN certified and suitable to ship hazardous solids. All our packaging products with exception of conductive products comply with relevant EC directives and FDA regulations regarding food contact and are included in Drug Master File #16388. CurTec has a certified hygiene management system. Click here to download our Regulatory Affairs Data Sheet.

All our packaging products are manufactured of 100% mono material and fully recyclable. However recyclability is greatly determined by exposure to (chemical) content and needs to be carefully considered by the end user.

CurTec’s manufacturing facility will be located at Oconee Industrial & Technology Park in Westminster, SC.

Including the facility in Oconee county, CurTec will have two production locations.

CurTec’s head office and main production site are located in Rijen (Netherlands).

CurTec products can be supplied directly or via a local distributor. Please contact sales for the criteria.

CurTec designs, manufactures and distributes plastic high performance packaging. Across the world, CurTec helps leading pharmaceutical, specialty chemicals and food ingredients companies, to whom hygiene, safety and security are imperative, to protect, identify and market their valuable products.

CurTec is a GMP certified packaging company. Our development, production and logistic processes are certified by independent bodies, regularly audited and comply with the high requirements of our customers and other parties involved. CurTec products manufactured in the US will have the same quality certification as the products produced in the Netherlands.

CurTec products manufactured in the US will meet the same strict UN certification as the products produced in the Netherlands. The UN markings will remain the same.

As part of our commitment to the local Oconee County community, we will definitely include local companies in working with us to realize our ambitious plans.

By manufacturing in the US, CurTec will be closer to its North American customers, which will decrease the carbon footprint of transportation.

You can visit our careers page for all US job openings and internships.

You can visit our careers page for all US internships.

Please contact Marc Martens (MarCom Manager) or John Jansen (Marketing Manager) with press or marketing related questions.