# Single Parcel Distribution Test Design for E-Commerce

- Link: https://flexitest.in/blogs/single-parcel-distribution-test-design-for-e-commerce/
- Published: 2025-05-07T15:11:32+05:30
- Author: flexitest

# Single Parcel Distribution Test Design for E-Commerce

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 3. Single Parcel Distribution Test Design for E-Commerce

## Overview

The COVID-19 pandemic has provided a major boost to e-commerce, with the [U.S. Census Bureau reporting](https://web.archive.org/web/20240914203102/https://www.census.gov/retail/mrts/www/data/pdf/ec_current.pdf)
a 45% year-over-year increase from the second quarter of 2019 to the second quarter
of 2020. For brands experiencing a significant increase in e-commerce sales or embracing
e-commerce for the first time, designing packaging to hold up under the conditions
a single parcel may face in shipping can be a challenge. Products that are damaged
during shipping are costly to your brand’s reputation and can ruin your relationship
with customers.

Testing your packaging to ensure it can protect the product at all points along 
its journey from your packaging line to its destination is integral to the process
and to your brand. While the process can be daunting, there are two main things 
you need to understand before you get started: the distribution environment your
product and its packaging will encounter during shipping and the available testing
standards that simulate how your package will perform in that environment.

## Know Your Distribution Environment

Distribution environments can be complicated. Depending on the product, a package
may encounter a wide variety of conditions between packaging and arrival at its 
destination. These conditions can be broken down into two main categories, ambient
conditions, and handling conditions.

## Ambient Conditions

Ambient conditions can vary wildly depending on the distance your package will travel
and the geographic location(s) it will travel through. Factors to consider include
the humidity it will experience, the range in temperatures it will face and how 
much exposure it will have to elements such as sun light and, potentially, precipitation.
Some products may even need to remain refrigerated or frozen during shipping to 
preserve quality.

## Handling Conditions

Handling conditions have a similarly broad range and depend on whether your packaging
will ship via rail, truck, air or some combination of the three. While we’re primarily
focusing on products that will ship as single parcels, there may be portions of 
their journey where they travel as part of a unitized load. Packaging decisions 
can also vary depending on whether a package is primarily hand-carried or if it 
will be lifted with a crane or forklift. At times, other packages may be stacked
on top of it, meaning the package will need to support additional weight without
being crushed.

## Insights from Technology

While an expert can make a fairly accurate projection about the conditions a package
will face in the distribution environment, there are ways to take some of the guesswork
out of the process. Several companies make small, disposable sensors that can be
placed in test packages and shipped through the normal distribution channels to 
capture a variety of information about shock, temperature, and sunlight, along with
location and time, to provide an opportunity for real-time data analysis.

## Know Your Testing Standards

There are two main bodies that issue widely accepted single parcel test standards.
ASTM is one of the world’s largest international organizations that develops standards.
It is comprised of a large group of experts who develop and democratically approve
those standards. The other organization, ISTA is a private industry association 
with standards generated by its board of directors. While the standards developed
by both organizations are valuable, ASTM standards are more widely accepted than
ISTA standards. For food and beverage brands, for example, the FDA recognizes more
than 400 ASTM standards, but recognizes only the _ISTA 3A, 3B _and _3E _series.

These organizations have developed hundreds of standards that cover the wide variety
of options for packaging sizes, shapes, and materials. It would be impossible to
summarize all of them here, but an example that compares a few of the available 
standards is helpful in illustrating the relationship between knowing your distribution
environment and knowing what options are available for testing.  The table below
lays out the steps in three testing standards that can be applied to double-walled
carton that is 1.8 cubic feet in size and weighs 5 lbs.

## Testing Standards Example

Compare packaging test sequence steps across ISTA 3A Series, ASTM D4169 DC 13 AL
II, and ASTM D7386 standards.

 ← Swipe to see full table →

 Packaging test sequence: ISTA 3A vs ASTM D4169 vs ASTM D7386  |  Step |  ISTA 3A Series |  ASTM D4169 DC 13 AL II |  ASTM D7386 |  
   |  1 |  Precondition to ambient for 12 hours |  Condition to adjusted settings from standard of 73.4 ±2°F (23 ±1°C) and 50% ±2% RH for 72 hours |  Condition to adjusted settings from standard of 73.4 ±2°F (23 ±1°C) and 50% ±2% RH for 24 hours |  
 |  2 |  Condition to determined temperature and humidity – “Controlled” conditions use 73°F and 50% RH for 72 hours |  Handling – Six drops from 15″ |  Handling – Four drops from 18″ and two drops from 20″ |  
 |  3 |  Shock – Eight drops from 18″ plus one drop from 36″ |  Vehicle Stacking – Apply and release 278 lbs |  Vibration under Compressive Load – Bottom face for 60 min and side face for 30 min |  
 |  4 |  Vibration – Random at 0.46 Grms overall with 105 lbs topload for 120 minutes |  Loose Load Vibration – Fixed Displacement for 30 minutes |  High Altitude _(optional)_ |  
 |  5 |  Vibration – Random at 0.46 Grms overall for 30 minutes |  Low Pressure _(optional)_ |  Handling – Two drops from 20″ and four drops from 18″ |  
 |  6 |  Shock – Seven drops from 18″ plus one drop from 36″ |  Vehicle Vibration – Random: 60 min at 0.54 Grms overall; 120 min at 1.05 Grms overall |  Vibration – Bottom face for 30 min and side face for 30 min |  
 |  7 |  – |  Handling – Five drops from 15″ plus one drop from 30″ |  Handling – Two drops from 14″, three from 20″ and one from 32″ |  
 |  8 |  – |  – |  Concentrated Impact – Drop height 36″ |

* Step sequences are summarised for comparison. Refer to the full standard document
for complete test conditions and acceptance criteria.

Compare packaging test sequence steps across ISTA 3A Series, ASTM D4169 DC 13 AL
II, and ASTM D7386 standards.

### ISTA 3A Series

 1. Precondition to ambient for 12 hours
 2. Condition to determined temperature and humidity – “Controlled” conditions use 
    73°F and 50% RH for 72 hours
 3. Shock – Eight drops from 18″ plus one drop from 36″
 4. Vibration – Random at 0.46 Grms overall with 105 lbs topload for 120 minutes
 5. Vibration – Random at 0.46 Grms overall for 30 minutes
 6. Shock – Seven drops from 18″ plus one drop from 36″

### ASTM D4169 DC 13 AL II

 1. Condition to adjusted settings from standard of 73.4 ±2°F (23 ±1°C) and 50% ±2%
    RH for 72 hours
 2. Handling – Six drops from 15″
 3. Vehicle Stacking – Apply and release 278 lbs
 4. Loose Load Vibration – Fixed Displacement for 30 minutes
 5. Low Pressure _(optional)_
 6. Vehicle Vibration – Random: 60 min at 0.54 Grms overall; 120 min at 1.05 Grms overall
 7. Handling – Five drops from 15″ plus one drop from 30″

### ASTM D7386

 1. Condition to adjusted settings from standard of 73.4 ±2°F (23 ±1°C) and 50% ±2%
    RH for 24 hours
 2. Handling – Four drops from 18″ and two drops from 20″
 3. Vibration under Compressive Load – Bottom face for 60 min and side face for 30 
    min
 4. High Altitude _(optional)_
 5. Handling – Two drops from 20″ and four drops from 18″
 6. Vibration – Bottom face for 30 min and side face for 30 min
 7. Handling – Two drops from 14″, three from 20″ and one from 32″
 8. Concentrated Impact – Drop height 36″

* Step sequences are summarised for comparison. Refer to the full standard document
for complete test conditions and acceptance criteria.

The details included for each step are instructive in deciding which standard best
applies to your package and its distribution environment. Differences include the
temperatures the packages are exposed to during testing, drop heights, the amount
of compression force applied to the package, and other factors. _ISTA 3A _requires
dropping the package from a height of 18 inches seven times and a height of 36 inches
once, while _ASTM D4169 DC 13 AL II _calls for five drops from 15 inches and one
from 30 inches. A thorough understand of your package’s shipping environment will
help you decide which of those standards best simulates the conditions your package
is likely to encounter.
**Source:** [Adept Group — Single Parcel Distribution Test Design for E-Commerce (15 October 2020)](https://adeptpackaging.com/blog/single-parcel-distribution-test-design-for-e-commerce/)

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