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At Glimpse, we've spent a fair bit of time understanding the ins and outs of shipping battery cells, both within and from the United States. When we realized that we weren't the only ones looking for best practices on how to safely prepare, package, ship, receive, and dispose of cells, we thought we’d share our findings with the rest of the industry.
This post lists the resources that we found the most useful as we were learning how to navigate the not-so-exciting-but-nonetheless-important rules and guidelines for shipping battery cells.
We hope that you’ll find this useful, and don’t be shy to contact us if you have any questions or feedback!
Transportation of Dangerous Goods (TDG) Training
All people involved in the shipping of cells (which includes packaging the cells for transport) are required to complete a Dangerous Goods training. These trainings are offered by many organizations in various formats, including but not limited to:
- FedEx Dangerous Goods Training
- UPS Dangerous Goods Webinars
- Dangerous Goods Training (self-guided)
- ShipHazmat Webinar Training
Lithium Battery Shipping Guides
There are numerous online resources to assist you in determining which regulations apply to your battery shipments. Again, the links below are far from exhaustive:
- FedEx Lithium Batteries & Cells Shipping Guide (interactive PDF)
- This is for shipments by air or ocean
- FedEx Dangerous Goods Hotline (PDF)
- Dial +1 (800) 463-3339 and say “dangerous goods”
- UPS Pack and Ship Batteries (PDF)
- DOT lithium batteries resources
- DOT Lithium Battery Guide for Shippers (PDF)
Lithium Battery Labels
The labels required for shipments containing lithium-ion cells can be purchased from many vendors, including but not limited to:
UN Packaging
UN (United Nations) approved packaging is a type of container that has been tested and certified to safely transport dangerous goods. Below is a list of common vendors of UN packaging.
Note: Refer to DOT and IATA regulations to confirm whether your package requires UN packaging; certain sizes and quantities of cells are excepted from the UN packaging requirement.
Additionally, vendors such as 18650batterystore sell plastic protective cases for cylindrical form factors such as 18650, 2170, and 26650.
Dangerous Goods Shipper’s Declaration (DGD)
Shipments which will be transported by plane are subject to IATA regulations, which require that a completed and signed Shipper’s Declaration accompany the shipment. There are various authorized vendor systems which you can use to prepare a DGD, including:
Damaged, Defective, or Recalled (DDR) Batteries
The regulations around shipping DDR cells are, understandably, more stringent.
- DDR cells can only be shipped via ground.
- FedEx does not accept DDR cells for any shipments.
- UPS requirements around DDR shipments can be found on this page.
Some organizations provide kits with the necessary DOT special permit and specialized packaging to facilitate ground shipment of DDR cells. Examples of these kits include:
Regulatory Documentation
- DOT: 49 CFR
- IATA: 2024 Lithium Battery Guidance Document (PDF)
- ERG: 2024 Emergency Response Guidebook
