# Greif Bros. Corporation — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation **Citation:** 98-0594 **Type / status:** guidance / guidance **Agency:** Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration **Effective:** Not stated **Published:** 1998-06-04 98-0594 response to Greif Bros. Corporation concerning 171.8, 178.503. ## Document text <<>> of Transportatiol .s. Departmen 400 Seventh Street, S.W. Research and Washington, D.C. 20590 Special Programs Administration JUN - 4 1998 - TREELI Mr. Joseph Grebe Manager, Testing and Technical Service Greif Bros. Corporation 1201-A South Houk Road Delaware, Ohio 43015 Dear Mr. Grebe: This is in response to your letter dated March 20, 1998, regarding the package marking réquirements in 49 CFR 178.503(a)(4)(ii) under the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180). Specifically, you ask us to define the terms "net mass" and "gross mass." The term gross mass is defined in § 171.8 as "the weight of a packaging plus the weight of its contents." The term "net mass" means the weight of the contents in a packaging. The difference between the two terms is the fact that you include the weight of the packaging in determining its gross mass but you do not include the weight of the packaging when determining its net mass. Therefore, a steel open head drum that weighs 35 kilograms and has a maximum net mass of 400 kilograms would be correctly marked as "IA2/X435/S..." in accordance with § 178.503(a)(4)(ii). I hope this satisfies your request. i Office of Hazardous Materials Standards ......... <<>> 2.52 ..: :..: ta". .:: •. GREIF BROS. CORPORATION ESTABLISHED 1877 1201-14 SouthH Testing & Technical Service Office • Del 0 43015 Rd RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT BUILDIN 1201A SOUTH HOUK ROA DELAWARE, OHIO 43015 FAX:(740) 549-61 (740) 549-61 March 20, 1998 740549 Mr. Edward Mazzullo 612( Director United States Department of Transportation Office of Hazardous Materials Standards (DHM-10) Washington, DC 20590-0001 400 7th St., S.W. Re: Emergency Interpretation of Packaging Marking Requirements solid hazardous materials. We have discovered a serious difference of interpretation with regard to maximum markings for containers certified for We manufacture steel salvage drums with a certification of 1A2/X435/S. These drums have a tare weight of This difference was brought to our attention during a DOT enforcement inspection at our Sparrows Point Maryland facility. approximately 35 kilograms and are intended to be filled with up to 400 kilograms of net contents. We have been told by the inspector, that the maximum marking that can appear on our packaging is 1A2/X400/S. We believe that this is an incorrect interpretation of the regulatory citations in 49CFR. The definition of net mass is "the weight of the contents only". Specifically, 178.504 "Standards for steel drums" (b)(9), and all other container standards reference net mass. The definition of gross mass is the package plus its contents. Paragraph 178.503(a)(4)(i) specifically requires that drums be marked with "... the maximum gross mass in kilograms;". Therefore in our situation, a salvage drum weighing 35 kilograms used to package the maximum net mass allowed in a steel drum [178.504(b)(9)](400kg) would be correctly marked as 1A2/X435/S -- 119 gallon drum made from lead sheet of very heavy gage. The drum would most definitely weigh in excess of 400 An extreme example of this problem in the enforcement branch's interpretation would be if l as a manufacturer designed a even when empty. kilograms. This drum would not be able to be used to ship any product and in fact would be in violation of the regulations I believe that this is the reason why the UN recommendations as well as 49CFR make the specific distinction between net weights and gross weights. difference between net and gross mass. We desperately need your assistance in correcting this error by issuing a letter of interpretation, which clearly defines the ( Sincerely, Jol Al. Manager, Testing and Technical Service net-gross.doc ## Provenance - Official: Yes - Source: - Source ID: `phmsa` - SHA-256: `2d027e8594c1819fde2dd8e9932cf427468018aaba15320ac71e6382587b3e2e` - Retrieved: 2026-08-20T00:59:31.977Z - Exported: 2026-08-23T13:55:24.546Z - Document slug: `phmsa-interpretation-98-0594` ### Source metadata ```json { "materialSubtype": "interpretation", "interpretationArea": "hazardous_materials", "representation": "full_text_from_official_pdf", "companies": [ "Greif Bros. 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