MIL-STD-2073.pdf

This is an informational guide on packaging and marking requirements for Department of Defense (DoD) contracts and solicitations, published by the Defense Contract Management Agency in March 2014.

The guide provides comprehensive guidance on military packaging standards, preservation methods, and marking requirements for items being shipped to or stored by the DoD. It covers the application of MIL-STD-2073-1E (Standard Practice for Military Packaging) and MIL-STD-129 (Military Marking for Shipments and Storage), along with ASTM D-3951 standards for commercial packaging. The document details five basic preservation methods: Method 10 (physical protection), Method 20 (preservative coating only), Method 30 (waterproof protection), Method 40 (watervaporproof protection), and Method 50 (watervaporproof protection with desiccant). It includes visual examples of packaging methods (31-52), explaining the specific components, containers, and materials required for each level of protection from Level A (most severe worldwide conditions) to Level B (moderate conditions). The guide addresses packaging requirement codes (PRCs) used to specify packaging details in contracts, quality assurance provisions including preservation and leakage testing, and package marking requirements including identification markings, bar codes, address markings, and special markings for hazardous materials, shelf-life, project codes, fragile items, expedited handling, and Method 50 designations. Additional topics include heat-treated wood packaging material requirements, palletization standards per MIL-STD-147, RFID tag specifications, and references to key specifications such as MIL-DTL-117 (heat-sealable bags) and MIL-DTL-6060 (watervaporproof bags).