DOT specification packages evaluation

During the late 1960s and early 1970s, the Department of Transportation (DOT) specification package system was implemented to serve as a useful and equivalent alternative to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and the Bureau of Explosives approval systems for Type B and fissile radioactive material package designs. When a package design was used by a large number of organizations, the package design was added to the DOT regulations as a specification package authorized for use by any shipper. In the mid-1970s, the NRC revised its package design certification system to the one in use today. This paper reports that, while the NRC and DOT transportation regulations have evolved over the years, the DOT specification package designs have remained largely unchanged. Questions have been raised as to whether these designs meet the current and proposed regulations. In order to enable the NRC and DOT to develop a regulatory analysis that will support appropriate action regarding the specification packages, a study is being performed to compile all available design, testing, and analysis information on these packages.