GlossaryEN1 min readUpdated: Sep 2, 2026

Heat Number

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Last updated: 2 September 2026

Source: Frachtportal-News «EU Stahlimporte, Melt and Pour, Mill Test Certificate, Heat Number, TARIC» (01.09.2026); Durchführungsverordnung (EU) 2026/1963

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Logistics Concept

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1 min

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Definition & Explanation

Anyone who has to trace a steel consignment works with the heat number: the customs declarant matches the number stamped on the pipe against the Mill Test Certificate and thereby proves which melt the material came from. The heat number is the unique identifier assigned by the steel mill to a single melting batch, permanently linking the physical material to its inspection certificate. It is typically stamped, rolled or labelled onto the product and travels with the material through every processing stage. Under the EU Steel Regulation it serves, together with the melt-and-pour country, as the core data point of the traceability evidence. It should not be confused with a batch number in the general supply-chain sense: a heat number always refers to one metallurgical melting operation, not to a delivery lot or packaging unit.

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Heat Number

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Related Terms

Pallet Heat Treatment Certification

Mill Test Certificate (MTC)

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Wood Packaging ISPM 15

Melt and Pour

NCTS guarantee number

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