The military understands, probably more than any other entity, the importance of proper protective packaging. From storing large vehicles to transporting complex weapon systems, the right military packaging materials can determine an item's safety and integrity.

1. Military Spec Packaging
Case Studies from Protective Packaging
DEFENSE
The US Military, as well as many defense contractors have come
to PPC with a problem. How do we preserve the nation’s defense materials in conditions across
the world? We have packaged jet fighters for international shipment, and military vehicles for
dometic storage between deployments. (The case studies below exemplify some of our larger
projects.) We also supply military spec packaging materials such as mil-prf-131 in bags, tubes,
sheets and rolls. We produce hundreds of thousands of bags each year for custom orders.
Case Studies Outlined:
Antenna Telescope Array
Army Unit Vehicles
Deep Sea Radar
F35 Joint Strike Fighter
JDAM Weapons System
Shoulder Fire Weapon

2. ALMA VERY LARGE ANTENNA TELESCOPE
ARRAY
Protective Packaging Corporation has been called on many times
to handle diverse but demanding assignments where there isn't much time for a learning curve,
and the job must absolutely be done right the first time.
General Dynamics of Kilgore, Texas charged Protective Packaging with the challenge of
packaging and transporting a very large antenna, nicknamed "The Blob", that was to become the
first unit in the "Atacama Large Millimeter Array," or ALMA. Protective Packaging was to
design and install packaging for the 161,000 lbs unit that would provide protection against
moisture and corrosion during transport over the road from Kilgore to Houston, over the water
from Houston to Santiago, Chile and over the road again from Santiago to the foothills of the
Andes Mountains.
We performed our protective packaging work at the General Dynamics manufacturing facility in
Kilgore, Texas. Protective Packaging first installed a fully enveloping moisture barrier bag of a
material we call PROPAK 7000 and then covered the device with a reinforced tarp material
called Armorlon AT-200. Finally, the protected assembly was placed upon a substantial steel
"lifting frame" by the manufacturer's rigging dept. We are completely confident (as in a 100%
guarantee) the wrapping process will ensure corrosion-proof arrival at the site.

3. U.S. ARMY UNIT VEHICLES AND TRAILER FLEET
A U.S. Army unit was deployed overseas. They had 23 five ton
vehicles, and 10 trailers assigned to their unit that were not sent with the unit. Therefore, these
very expensive vehicles would be left practically unattended for up to two years with very little
preventive maintenance, and there was no covered area to place this equipment.
Each vehicle of the fleet needed a strong barrier from the adverse elements that would last an
extended period of time. The protective barrier must also be able to protect against moisture
leakage caused by snow and rain. Corrosion Prevention was also a major priority due to the long
period of time the vehicles would be out of commission and their strategic importance.
Each vehicle was sealed completely inside moisture barrier bags. Desiccant was placed inside the
bag to remove any moisture in order to prevent corrosion or mildew. Then, a heavy duty,
reinforced, custom made tarp was placed over the barrier bag to give added protection against
snow and high winds up to 80 mph. This protection was guaranteed for up to two years. Our
onsite team completed the job within 4 days at a cost of approximately $1200 per vehicle.

4. Deep Sea Radar
A defense contractor needed to preserve a radar component while it was being transported along
the eastern seaboard. The unit had to be protected from electrostatic discharge as well as a
minimal amount of shock. First we covered the unit with an ESD barrier material to provide the
needed static protection. Next we wrapped the unit in foam padding to provide shock absorption.
Lastly, we applied shrink wrap to hold the protective layers in place and protect the unit from
debris during transport.

5. F35 Joint Strike Fighter
Recently Protective Packaging was asked to protect Lockheed Martin's new F35 Joint Strike
Fighter for a shipment, first by truck to the Houston port, then by boat across the Atlantic to
England. Since every imaginable harmful possibility comes to mind in such a trip, PPC had to
prepare for the worst.
Three different layers of protective materials were heat sealed, stitched, and shrunk to protect the
jet. Desiccants and VCI emitters were added to remove absorb any additional moisture and
provide a chemical rust protective coating for the extra insurance a multi-million dollar machine
requires. The fighter made it safe and sound to its final destination and PPC has partnered up
with Lockheed Martin for many more shipments of the newly designed fighter plane.

6. JDAM PRECISION GUIDED WEAPONS SYSTEM
Protective Packaging provides stringent MIL-SPEC packaging solution to major defense
contractor for the preservation of moisture, heat and static sensitive JDAM weapons
system
Protective Packaging was contacted by a major defense contractor in March of 1997. The
contractor shared that they had a new weapon system that consisted of a WWII and Vietnam era
"dumb bomb" married with a modern GPS guidance system to achieve surgical precision
accuracy in its delivery.
The challenge came when they shared that they must provide a 20 year warranty against any
damage caused by corrosion or ESD (electrostatic discharge) and asked if Protective Packaging
had any ideas. They had already contacted several other flexible packaging companies, but were
told they needed to provide drawings and specifications before any type of quotation could be
issued. Within 48 hours of being contacted, Protective Packaging President, Steve Hanna and
Vice President Jim Hiller were at their facility in St. Louis working on a solution. After a 3 hour
discovery meeting, Protective Packaging returned to Dallas and began aggregating materials that
would deliver a package that:
was moisture proof
was vapor proof

7. was heat sealable
had a conductive interior
had MVTR of .002 or less
was durable
was dull not shiny
was able to hold an indefinite vacuum
Two weeks later, Protective Packaging returned to St. Louis with 3 different materials that would
meet or exceed the outlined requirements. By the end of the meeting, a decision had been
reached as to the material to be utilized.
After several more visits and severe testing, which included thermal, vibration, altitude, loose
cargo and drop tests, the material was approved and a quotation for the original requirement of
1,500 barrier bags was issued.
U.S. MARINE SHOULDER FIRE WEAPON
The U.S. Marines needed a flexible carrying case for a shoulder fired
weapon system. The case needed to be lightweight, extremely durable and have a moisture
barrier quality to it to protect the system from water as well as diesel and gasoline.
Because of the physical actions of the U.S. Marines, it was very important that the bag be
extremely durable yet light. It was also critical that wet weather and damp conditions did not
compromise the feasibility of the weapons system.
A canvas bag was designed with a foil barrier material sewn to the inside of the two materials.
This gave the bag the required moisture barrier qualities while maintaining the olive drab
appearance and the carrying straps that needed to be attached to the bag.
About Protective Packaging Corporation
Protective Packaging provides military packaging, export packaging, corrosion protection,
moisture barrier bags and a variety of other protective packaging solutions.
Visit us at http://www.protectivepackaging.net/ to browse our corrosion prevention and
military spec packaging material.