Packaging and Marking Guide for DoD

This document is an informational guide prepared by the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) in March 2014 to familiarize contractors with Department of Defense packaging and marking requirements. The guide is not officially adopted by DoD and does not replace contractual requirements, specifications, or regulations.

The guide addresses packaging requirements located across multiple sections of solicitations and contracts (Sections A through J), including specifications, statements of work, and attachments. Hazardous materials must be packaged according to appropriate modal regulations: Title 49 CFR for land transport, IMO/IMDG for water, ICAO/IATA for commercial air, and AFMAN 24-204_IP for military air. Hazardous materials must also be marked and labeled per modal regulations and MIL-STD-129 when specified. The five basic military preservation methods are Method 10 (physical protection), Method 20 (preservative coating only), Method 30 (waterproof protection), Method 40 (watervaporproof protection), and Method 50 (watervaporproof protection with desiccant). Military packaging applies two protection levels: Level A for severe worldwide conditions and Level B for moderate conditions. Commercial packaging per ASTM D-3951 may be appropriate for items intended for immediate use, depot consumption, or not-for-stock supply. The guide includes detailed illustrations of preservation and packing methods, packaging requirement codes, marking specifications (identification, bar code, address, and special markings), Military Shipping Label formats, quality assurance provisions, and examples of unit pack, intermediate, and exterior container labels with both linear bar codes and 2D (PDF417) symbols. Key specifications referenced include MIL-STD-2073-1E (military packaging standard), MIL-STD-129 (marking for shipments and storage), MIL-DTL-117 (heat-sealable bags), MIL-STD-147 (palletization), and ASTM standards for commercial packaging.