Inland Paperboard and Packaging, Inc. — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation

Page 1U.S. Department of Transportation OCT 22 2004 Washington, D.C. 20590 400 Seventh St., S.W. Research and special Programs Administration Ms. Nadine Helm Reference No. 03-0094 Office Manager Inland Paperboard and Packaging, Inc. 136 East York Street Biglerville, PA 17307 Dear Ms. Helm: This is in response to a request from Ms. Sally Banks of your company concerning the recordkeeping requirements contained in § 178.601(1) of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180). She asked if the fiberboard box manufacturer or the facility that packages the hazardous material is required to retain the test report certifying that a knocked- down, unassembled UN 4G fiberboard box meets the performance test requirements in 49 CFR Part 178, Subpart M. Your company manufactures the box and prints the UN certification mark on the box on behalf of your customer, the UN standard package assembling facility, who performs and certifies the test results for the completed hazardous materials packagings. We apologize for the delay in responding and any inconvenience it may have caused. Under the HMR, a fiberboard box manufacturer who provides knocked down, unassembled boxes that are certified by its customer as meeting a UN standard and assembled by the customer is considered to be a packaging component manufacturer, A packaging component manufacturer need not maintain any record of testing done on the assembled UN 4G packaging even when it may have marked the outer packaging with a certification at its customer's behest. Both the UN standard packaging facility and/or a third-party approval agency certifying design qualification tests and periodic retests must ensure the tasks you perform as a component manufacturer are done in accordance with the HMR, and they must produce and retain test reports as prescribed in § 178.601(I). The test reports must be maintained at each location where the packaging is manufactured and each location where the design qualification tests are conducted, for as long as the packaging is produced and for at least two years thereafter. In addition, the test reports must be maintained at each location where the periodic retests are conducted until such tests are successfully performed 178.601 (K) (1) 030094#

Page 2again and a new test report produced. When requested, the test report must be made available to a user of the packaging or a representative of the Department of Iransportation. I hope this satisfies your request. Sincerely, Hattie L. Mitchell, Chief Regulatory Review & Reinvention Office of Hazardous Materials Standards#

Page 303731/63 13:17 FAX 717 677 7016 -CUST SERVICE Ø001 Edmonson $118.601 (к)(1) Packaging INLAND 03 - 0094 1 Tample-frland Comparry facsimule tansm To: Lato Center / Ed Mazzullo Fax: 202-366-3753 From: Sally Banks Date: 3/31/3 Re: HAZMAT Letter of Interprétation Pages: 4 CC: Fax: • Urgent D For Review • Please Comment • Please Reply • Please Recycle • • • My customer is telling me that the box manufacturer is not required to retain a copy of the certification letter. All the recent HAZMAT training we have had at our facility tells me otherwise. The customer has referred me to a letter they received from DOT, but is 10 years old. My facility ships out a flat, printed, comugate container. I have been under the impression that by printing the un certification marking on a carton you need to have a copy of the certification letter in case of an audit. My questions to you are: 1. Must Inland have a copy of the certification letter on file to avoid penalties and fines should a problem arise? 2. Without copies of certification paperwork, we would not be able to guarantee we were running the proper board grade or printing per the certification. Would DOT look to the actual packing facility or would it fall back to the box manufacturer? Any answers you can give me would be greatly appreciated. My fax number is 717-677-7016 and direct line is 717-677-3156. Thank you for your time. Sally Banks Sales Service CONFIDENTIAL • • •#

Page 403/31/03 13:17 FAX 717 677 7016 CUST SERVICE @002 The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Inspection Inspections The Hazardous Maserials Regulations (HMR) authorize federal inspections of any facility that a inspection. Regional DOT field offices have been established for this purpose. Following are som anufactures hazmat packages [§173.3(a)]. All facilities that manufacture hazmat packages should expe guidelines to help prepare for an inspection: • Designate a person (and, if possible, an alternate) who will accompany the inspector. • Interview the inspector prior to conducting any tour, if possible: - Determine the purpose for the inspection. - Find out what the inspector wants to see. - Attempt to keep the inspection focused. A written evaluation will be provided at the end of the inspection. Review it and keep it If violations are cited, respond within the given timeframe. Keeping Records hazmat records. Production files should include: Unless the inspector is investigating a specific incident, the focus of a box plant inspection is typically the • Records of the materials used and the box design. These must be kept at least two years from final production. • Proof of testing of certified packages, such as certification reports or other reasonable substitutes. • Customer communications, such as authorizations of print cards, desiga info forms, etc. • Appropriate quality assurenco systems and doculaentation necessary to comply with the • If you are the certifyang party, a copy of the instructions to the customer for assembly and requirements of §178.516. closure, as appropriate. These must be kept at least two years from issuance. • Hazmat training documentation. It may be useful to provide a "model file" to ensure that all pertinent information is obtained and filed. In anticipation of inspections, consider duplicate files for hazmat orders (if the customer's file is required elsewhere) or some kind of hazmat order flagging system. Anlands. Hazmat Page fir manual. tRaining 12#

Page 503/31/03 13:18 FAX 717_677 7016 CUST, SERVICE 0003 of Transportation US. Department Washingion DC Special Programs Research and Administrution FEB 10 1994 Ms. Michelle Jepsen Distribution Compliance Coordinator Ames, Iowa 50010 Post Office Box 907 Dear Ms. Jepsen: This is la response to your letter of December 2, 1993, and subsequent sunmarized in the following paragraphs: Facts: 49 CFR 178.3(a) (2) requires that a packaging manufactured to a UN standard be "with the 32333032 subchapter." 49 CFR 178.601(k) requires that "the person who certifies the tested design periodic retests) "at each location where that packaging is manufactured" and type" shall keep records of performance tests (desigo qualification tests and at each location where design qualification tests and periodić retests axe conducted. Hach Company Is a registered manufacturer (M4508) of a variety of UN 4G packagings are manufactured "knocked down" (I.e., flat and unassembled) by fiberboard boxes which are conbination packagings. The outer fiberboard Hach's direction, vith a specification marking which uses Hach's registration varlous fiberboard box manufacturers and marked by these manufacturers, fac1lity. Performance testing (design qualification and periodic retests) is The combination packagings are assembled at Hach's Anes, Iowa testing is done at the fiberboard box manufacturers' locations and no test perforned at the Hach facility and test records are retalned there. records are kept. 1364 Aplofz#

Page 603/31/03 13:18_ FAX 717 677 7016 -_ CUST SERVICE Ø004 2 Issues: Are the fiberboard box manufacturers required to keep test records at their violation of § 178.3(b)? manufacturing facilities? If they do not have test records, are they in Interpretation: the fiberboard box manufacturers are not required to keep tesi heir manufacturing facilitles and axe not in violation of §':178.3(b) If the records at do not keep test records. Discussion: Ihrough display of its registratíon number as part of the UN standard marking, Hach is the "manufacturer certifying coupliance with the UN standard", as required by § 178.3 (a) (2). manufacture the packaging components, it directs their nanufacture througa Although Hach does not physically contracts vith component manufacturers (e.g.. fiber box and bottle facility. manufacturers) and assembles the components into complete packagings at its responsible for keeping test records, as required by § 178.601(k). As the person certifying compliance, it is obvious that Hach is Although the Individual box manufacturers are physically applying the marks contractual arrangenent. addressed In § 178.3(b), they apply then on behalf of In effect. It is Hach that applies the marks. Hach, through Therefore, they axe not responsible for establishing that the packaging box manufacturers responsible for compliance with § 178.3(b) Is that they are conforms to applicable requirenents. A further arguzent for not holding the Itself. It is Hach that manufactures the complete packaging. manufacturing a component of a UN packaging, rather than the packaging please contact us. I trust this satisfies your inquiry. If we can be of further assistance, Sincerely. 42737 gull Director, Office of Hazardous Materials Standards cc: Omaha Box Company Colorado Container Corporation 1364 ,20f2 AP#