3.8 General precautions to be observed whilst working cargo.

1. reefer cargo should be loaded on-board only under the supervision of a

recognized surveyor,
2. cargo should not be allowed to wait for long time on the quay,
3. hold should be pre-cooled to temp below the carriage temp,
4. Damp, wet and torn packages should be inspected if the cargo has deteriorated.
If the cargo is fine then only it should be loaded after re-packing,
5. Contents of at least 5-10% cartons should be examined from each hold on a
random basis,
6. cartons with soft or dripping contents should be rejected,
7. Refrigeration of holds should be turned on during long breaks and during meal
breaks,
8. Once loaded, the cargo should be covered with tarpaulin,
9. During operations, the frost formed on top of the brine pipes should be brushed
carefully. It should not fall on top of the cargo.
10. In tropical climates avoid loading in the noon. try to load cargo during
night time,
11. Upon completion of loading, the reefer chamber must be closed air tight
and cooling resumed immediately.

Precautions during cargo ops.

1. Cargo must be stowed in order to allow free circulation of air through and
around the stow.
2. Laying of dunnage should be such that it does not obstruct designed air flow
pattern in the compartment,
3. Sides and bulkheads should be fitted with vertical dunnage to keep cargo away
from the structure,
4. Reefer chambers must be divided with air channels for each block not exceeding
3 mtrs. channel must be at least 10cms wide and aligned to face the cool air
outlets. There should be an even gap of at least 30 cms between the cargo top
and the lowest part of the deckhead.
5. Dunnaging should be efficiently carried out so as to avoid stow collapsing into
the air channels,
6. Each lot of cargo to be loaded according to the b/ls and separated by using
colour tapes or net.
7. Avoid loading cargo for more than 1 port in one chamber. Cargo once loaded
should not be shifted. These measures will help prevent temperature
fluctuations.