In order to comply with the ASTM D4169 standard it is necessary to pass a series of tests that depend on the type of distribution cycle. “By applying the ASTM D4169 standard, shipments are better protected, preventing damages to the goods and reducing costs ” There are also different ISTA procedures that, likewise, seek to optimize the packaging based on the company’s own distribution cycle, even though it is a decision of each company whether to comply with one standard or the other. This is a guideline to evaluate the capabilities of shipping units that do not exceed 150 lb. There are other standards that supplement ASTM D4169, such as D7386, Standard Practice for Performance Testing of Packages for Single Parcel Delivery Systems. Furthermore, it helps prevent the poor image conveyed to the customer when receiving a damaged product. Therefore, it affects all companies that are concerned about optimizing they loads during the distribution cycles.Įven though companies are not required to perform this procedure, it is advisable for them to do so in order to prevent economic losses due to shrinkage, over-packaging, etc. It works as a guide to evaluate the suitability of packaging systems with the purpose of testing their capabilities and level of protection under the same conditions as those under which they are to be shipped.īy applying the ASTM D4169 standard, shipments are better protected, preventing damages to the goods and reducing costs. This procedure arose from the need to create a real simulation of the package shipping & handling environment. “ASTM D4169 is a practice that provides a uniform base to evaluate in a laboratory the ability that shipping units have to withstand the shipping environment ” Within each of these types, the tests to be performed are established based on the hazards that the load is exposed to depending on the distribution cycle, vibration tests, impacts, falls, compression and pressure.Įach of these tests determines the so-called “ assurance level ”, which is the level of intensity that based on the probability that an incident occurs during the distribution cycle.

This standard proposes 18 different distribution cycles based on the type of load, as well as the type of transport. Within the ASTM standards list, D4169 outlines different testing protocols based on the distribution cycle, and it is the client who decides which resembles his own the most. To this end, loads are subjected to specific hazards that may arise during the various distribution cycles, in order to learn about their behavior in the face of specific situations and correct potential problems as a result. 4 Why Safe Load Testing Technologies ASTM D4169: what it isĪSTM D4169 is a practice that provides a uniform base to evaluate in a laboratory the ability that shipping units have to withstand the shipping environment.

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