PHMSA Response Letter

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October 10, 2009

Mr. Christian Prickett
All-Pak Inc.
Corporate One West
1195 Washington Pike
Bridgeville, PA 15017

Ref. No.: 09-0191

Dear Mr. Prickett:

This responds to your letter of August 19, 2009, regarding testing of specification packagings under the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180). Specifically, you ask if your company may use another manufacturer’s cap in place of the cap currently being used on the inner packagings of a combination packaging intended for the transportation of liquid hazardous materials.

According to your letter, your company uses combination packagings consisting of four one-gallon plastic inner packagings placed inside of a UN 4G fiberboard box. The inner packagings were tested with a Van Blarcom 7.7 gram 38-CRC cap. You ask if you may substitute an alternative cap manufactured under the same process as the Van Blarcom cap – a Mold rite 38-CRC cap.

The answer is yes. Section 178.601(g) of the HMR provides a series of conditions for the selective testing of packagings that differ in only minor respects from a tested design-type (see §178.601(g)(l)(i)(A)-(F)). In accordance with § 178.601(g)(1)(i)(C), you may vary the closures on inner packagings of a tested combination packaging without further testing of the package provided the inner packagings have the same or smaller openings as the tested
design and the closure is of similar design as the tested design. The information provided with your letter indicates that the cap you wish to use is of the same design type as the cap used in the tested design; therefore you may substitute the Mold rite cap for the Van Blarcom cap.

I hope this information is helpful. If we can be of further assistance, please contact us.

Sincerely,

Charles E. Betts
Chief, Standards Development
Office of Hazardous Materials Standards
178.601(g)