Packaging and Marking Guide for DoD

This is an informational guide prepared by the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) in March 2014 that provides standard practices and requirements for packaging and marking supplies being delivered to the Department of Defense. The guide is not officially adopted by DoD but serves as an instructional reference document derived from current government packaging documents, pamphlets, and technical manuals.

The guide establishes that packaging requirements in federal solicitations and contracts are typically located in Section D (Packaging & Marking) and must comply with applicable standards including ASTM D-3951 for commercial packaging, MIL-STD-2073-1E for military packaging, and MIL-STD-129 for military marking. Hazardous materials must be packaged according to 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. The guide identifies five basic military preservation methods (Method 10—physical protection; Method 20—preservative coating; Method 30—waterproof protection; Method 40—watervaporproof protection; Method 50—watervaporproof with desiccant) and specifies packaging levels including Level A for severe worldwide conditions and Level B for moderate conditions using designated containers and materials.

The guide covers military packaging requirement codes (PRCs) used to translate packaging specifications from contracts, marking requirements including identification, bar code, address, and special markings (such as shelf-life, project codes, fragile/delicate, Method 50, expedited handling, and hazardous materials designations), quality assurance inspection provisions for preservation and packing, and specialized requirements including heat-treated wood packaging material compliance, palletization standards per MIL-STD-147, RFID tag requirements, and Military Shipping Label (MSL) application. It provides visual examples of packaging methods, labeling formats, and includes references to key specifications such as MIL-DTL-117 for heat-sealable bags and MIL-STD-3010 for packaging material test procedures.