9.7.3. Shipping Equipment

Visitors should contact the NIF User Office or NIF Visitor’s Office for specific guidance and assistance on shipping equipment to and from LLNL.

When shipping equipment to LLNL, it is important to package equipment in a manner that will prevent damage during transit. Each equipment package or crate shall be labeled (as applicable) with part number, revision level, serial number, etc. In addition, a packing slip shall be provided for each shipment, which shall include the LLNL sponsor’s name, sponsor’s contact information, a brief description of the item, and the final delivery location within LLNL (e.g., “NIF Receiving” and building number).

Visitors and equipment custodians must follow LLNL’s requirements when shipping equipment or property to another LLNL worker or to an off-site or on-site organization for repair, reuse, maintenance, storage, or excess. Visitors must coordinate with the LLNL sponsor and shall:

• Follow containment, labeling, and transportation procedures specified by the LLNL sponsor.
• Provide all available information about the property’s historical use, including a description of any use or contamination with hazardous or radioactive materials.
• Certify that the equipment or property is free of contamination and encapsulated (no free-flowing liquids).

Packaging materials shall conform to the following requirements:

• All precision-clean equipment that will be used in precision-clean environments of the NIF beam path shall be packaged and labeled as specified in Packaging of Precision Cleaned Components for NIF.²⁶
• All gross-clean equipment that will be used in gross-clean environments of the NIF beam path, including the NIF Target Chamber, shall be packaged and labeled as specified in Packaging of Gross Cleaned Components for NIF.²⁷
• All equipment that will be used in LLNL-designated clean areas or cleanrooms but that will not be used inside of the NIF precision- or gross-clean beam path must be cleaned as specified in Section 4 of Guidelines for Maintaining a Clean Area or Clean Room,28 and then packaged with at least the innermost layer of packaging material in accordance with Packaging of Gross Cleaned Components for NIF.
• All other equipment must be packaged in such a way as to maintain the equipment in a standard clean condition as defined in Section 6 of the NIF Clean Protocol.²⁹
  • Only new clean packaging material shall be used.
  • Items shall be dry prior to packaging.
• Large or heavy (over 50 pounds) items shall be packaged in a secured and fully enclosed crate (i.e., merely strapping to a pallet is not acceptable). Crates shall have a base capable of supporting the weight of the material safely during transport. In particular, the design shall ensure that legs or other features of the packaged equipment shall not “punch through” the base’s surface during rough handling and/or transport. Large crates (pallet-size or larger) shall provide for forklift access from all sides. Items shall be secured in the crate in such a manner as to assure that the cleanliness barrier wrapping layers remain intact.

All material can be shipped from LLNL with the exceptions of hazardous waste, radioactive material, and explosives. When shipping equipment from LLNL, a shipping request application is required for all material shipments with the exception of domestic shipments of printed matter weighing less than 5 lbs. All material leaving LLNL must be inspected by LLNL shipping. The User Office can coordinate and provide additional assistance and guidance upon request.