IMSBC Segregation Requirements: Section 9.3 Explained
IMSBC Code section 9.3: the two mandatory segregation matrices at 9.3.3 and 9.3.4, the four segregation terms, the foodstuffs rules, and how an individual schedule overrides an X cell.
The IMSBC Code carries two mandatory segregation matrices, contrary to the common belief that it defers entirely to the IMDG Code. Section 9.3.3 governs a Group B bulk cargo against packaged dangerous goods, and section 9.3.4 governs one bulk cargo against another. Both are built on the same four-term model the IMDG Code uses.
The full article will set out the four terms verbatim, with the 3 metre horizontal separation that away from requires, the different-holds rule for separated from, and the vertical and longitudinal alternatives under the two complete-compartment terms. It will cover the thirteen general requirements at 9.3.1, including the exclusion of packaging material, ceiling and dunnage from the combustible-materials rule, the most-stringent-grade rule, the prohibition on simultaneous handling of incompatible materials, and the four foodstuffs rules at 9.3.1.8.
It will also explain why the MHB row reads X against every column except class 7 in both matrices, which means a cargo classified only as materials hazardous only in bulk takes its segregation entirely from its own schedule, and why the COAL schedule appendix therefore has to spell out its own segregation in full.