MIL-STD-2073.pdf

This is an informational guide for packaging and marking procedures applicable to Department of Defense federal contracts and solicitations. The guide is not officially adopted by DoD but serves as an instructional resource compiled from current government packaging documents, pamphlets, and technical manuals, originally prepared in March 2014 by the Defense Contract Management Agency.

The guide covers packaging requirements located across multiple sections of solicitations and contracts (Sections A through J), including Commercial Item Descriptions, Military or Federal Specifications, aperture cards, drawings, special packaging instructions, DLA Master Solicitations, FAR and DFARS clauses, product specifications, Military Standard Drawings, ASTM industry standards, and Packaging Requirement Codes. For hazardous materials, items must be packaged in accordance with modal regulations including Title 49 CFR for land transport, IMO/IMDG for water, ICAO/IATA for commercial air, and AFMAN 24-204_IP for military air, with markings and labels complying with appropriate modal regulations and MIL-STD-129 when specified. The guide presents five basic military preservation methods (Methods 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50), two military packing levels (Level A for severe worldwide conditions and Level B for moderate conditions), and detailed visual examples of specific packaging methods including waterproof and watervaporproof bag configurations, rigid container options, and floating watervaporproof bag assemblies. Additionally, the guide includes information on Packaging Requirement Codes per MIL-STD-207331E(1), quality assurance provisions, inspection criteria, package marking standards, container labeling examples, Military Shipping Labels, special markings (shelf-life, project codes, fragile handling, Method 50, hazardous materials, expedited handling), heat-treated wood packaging material requirements, palletization standards per MIL-STD-147, and RFID tag specifications per DFARS Clause 252.211-7006.