Gestion des risques relies au transport de matieres dangereuses au Quebec Un outil d'aide a la decision pour le choix des transporteurs.

摘要

A literature review on hazmat allowed us to identify several points of interest: the full supply chain is not simultaneously taken into account; the hazmat transportation risk analyses are mainly based on technical criteria; the decisions of the shipper with regards to the choice of his carrier are based almost completely on cost criteria, leaving out risk criteria; and some characteristics of hazmat transportation (class of hazmat material, quantity carried, etc.) have an influence on the level of risk. There is therefore a need for a tool to assist the choice of carriers by shippers that would allow the sender to consider risk as well as costs during the selection process.;Following the literature review, a conceptual model was built. It allows to link organizational safety practices, the risk of accident, and the specific characteristics of hazmat transportation. Amongst other hypotheses, the model assumes that specific characteristics of the hazmat transportation have an influence on the number of organizational safety practices that are implemented by the carrier.;To help in the development of such a tool, we have firstly performed a questionnaire-based survey among Quebec hazmat carriers which allowed us to see to which degree each organizational safety practice is implemented, grouping the practices in five wide themes: drivers and training; equipment and technology; company policies; sub-contracting management; and finally, emergency response preparedness. We developed and mailed a questionnaire to 1485 hazmat carriers in the province of Quebec and received 211 answers, for a response rate of 14.6%. Most of the respondents have adopted adequate organizational safety practices and are generally aware of the risks generated by the cargo. Companies doing road transportation of hazmat materials appear well prepared for dealing with emergency situations. The results nevertheless indicate that some risks are underestimated. Driver training is not uniform across firms and outsourced activities are not always closely monitored. Analysis of the results also reveals that carriers seem to under estimate the risk associated to different phases of the transportation that are loading, transportation proper, and unloading. The results are encouraging but further awareness would be beneficial.;The results of our survey have allowed us to develop a decision support tool to guide the choice of hazmat carriers based on risk. First, the survey highlighted that some practices are not used uniformly amongst carriers. Some organizational practices are applied by all carriers. Others are applied by only very few carriers. Some others are applied to varying degrees as a function of other specific characteristics: the type of material (bulk, tank, hazmat required an Emergency Response Assistance Plan (ERAP), etc.), the hazmat classes or logistical characteristics (delivery to multiple clients, quantity carried, short-term storage requirements, and long distance deliveries). From this, we have defined two types of safety organizational practices. First, safety organizational practices that should be required to reduce the risk of accidents. These constitute the baseline requirements for risk management at hazmat carriers. The absence of any one of these required practices should de facto cause the elimination of a carrier from the list of potential carriers. Second, practices that are not widely used in the industry, but for which the adoption rate is significantly different between carriers with and those without a given characteristic. These practices are not strictly required but are a strong signal to the shipper revealing that the carrier is risk aware.;After modeling the links between organizational safety practices, the hazmat transportation risk of accident and the specific characteristics of the transport, and having conduct further required statistical analyses, we were able to develop a software decision support tool that will help shippers select a fitting carrier. Selecting the specific characteristics of transport that he needs, the shipper will get a list of organizational safety practices that are a) required or b) of interest that will allow him to select a hazmat carrier as a function of risk. Combining the risk criterion with the cost of transportation, the shipper will be able to make a more enlightened decision. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)