KENYA STANDARD KS EAS 988:2018

ICS 55.120
APPROVED
30-11-2020
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First Edition
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Plastic crates — Specification

© KEBS 2020
 KS EAS 988: 2018

TECHNICAL COMMITTEE REPRESENTATION

The following organizations were represented on the Technical Committee:

BillerudKorsnas AB/Business Sweden

Consumer Information Network
East African Packaging Industries Limited
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Environmental Institute of Kenya

Government Chemist’s Department
GS1 Kenya
Institute of Packaging Professionals Kenya (IOPPK)
Kenya Association of Manufacturers
Kenya National Cleaner Production Centre (KNCPC)
Kimberly-Clark Sub Saharan Africa East Africa Limited
Milly Glass Works Ltd.
National Public Health Laboratory Services
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Nestle
Safepak Ltd.
University of Kabianga
University of Nairobi
Kenya Bureau of Standards — Secretariat

REVISION OF KENYA STANDARDS

In order to keep abreast of progress in industry, Kenya Standards shall be regularly reviewed. Suggestions
for improvements to published standards, addressed to the Managing Director, Kenya Bureau of Standards,
are welcome.

© Kenya Bureau of Standards, 2020

Copyright. Users are reminded that by virtue of Section 25 of the Copyright Act, Cap. 130 of 2001 of the Laws of Kenya, copyright
subsists in all Kenya Standards and except as provided under Section 25 of this Act, no Kenya Standard produced by Kenya Bureau of
Standards may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system in any form or transmitted by any means without prior permission in writing
from the Managing Director.

ii © KEBS 2020 – All rights reserved

 KENYA STANDARD KS EAS 988:2018

ICS 55.120
Representaciones Oscar Jaramillo Ojara S

First Edition
Single Use License Only

Plastic crates — Specification

Kenya Bureau of Standards, Popo Road, Off Mombasa Road,

P.O. Box 54974 - 00200, Nairobi, Kenya
+254 020 6948000, + 254 722202137, + 254 734600471

info@kebs.org

@KEBS_ke

kenya bureau of standards (kebs)

© KEBS 2020 – All rights reserved iii

 KS EAS 988:2018

NATIONAL FOREWORD

This Kenya Standard was prepared by the Packaging Technical Committee under the guidance of the
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Standards Projects Committee, and it is in accordance with the procedures of Kenya Bureau of Standards.

This standard is identical with and has been reproduced from EAS 988, Plastic crates — Specification,
published by the East African Community (EAC). The National Standards Council has endorsed the adoption
of the 2018 edition of this standard as a Kenya Standard.

For the purposes of this standard, the EAC text should be modified as follows:

a) Terminology
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The words ‘this Kenya Standard’ should replace the words ‘this East African Standard’ whenever they appear.

b) References

The references to East African Standards should be replaced by references to the appropriate Kenya
Standards, where they have been declared.

iv © KEBS 2020 – All rights reserved

 EAS 988: 2018

ICS 55.120
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EAST AFRICAN STANDARD

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Plastic crates — Specification

EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY

© EAC 2018 First Edition 2018

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 EAS 988: 2018

Copyright notice
This EAC document is copyright-protected by EAC. While the reproduction of this document by
participants in the EAC standards development process is permitted without prior permission from EAC,
neither this document nor any extract from it may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form for
any other purpose without prior written permission from EAC.

Requests for permission to reproduce this document for the purpose of selling it should be addressed
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as shown below or to EAC’s member body in the country of the requester:

© East African Community 2018 — All rights reserved

East African Community
P.O. Box 1096,
Arusha
Tanzania
Tel: + 255 27 2162100
Fax: + 255 27 2162190
Single Use License Only

E-mail: eac@eachq.org
Web: www.eac-quality.net

Reproduction for sales purposes may be subject to royalty payments or a licensing agreement.
Violators may be prosecuted.

ii © EAC 2018 – All rights reserved

 EAS 988: 2018

Foreword
Development of the East African Standards has been necessitated by the need for harmonizing requirements
governing quality of products and services in the East African Community. It is envisaged that through
harmonized standardization, trade barriers that are encountered when goods and services are exchanged
within the Community will be removed.

The Community has established an East African Standards Committee (EASC) mandated to develop and
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issue East African Standards (EAS). The Committee is composed of representatives of the National
Standards Bodies in Partner States, together with the representatives from the public and private sector
organizations in the community.

East African Standards are developed through Technical Committees that are representative of key
stakeholders including government, academia, consumer groups, private sector and other interested parties.
Draft East African Standards are circulated to stakeholders through the National Standards Bodies in the
Partner States. The comments received are discussed and incorporated before finalization of standards, in
accordance with the Principles and procedures for development of East African Standards.
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East African Standards are subject to review, to keep pace with technological advances. Users of the East
African Standards are therefore expected to ensure that they always have the latest versions of the standards
they are implementing.

The committee responsible for this document is Technical Committee EASC/TC 066, Packaging
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be subject of patent
rights. EAC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.

During the preparation of this Standard, reference was made to the following document:

IS 15532, Plastic crates for fruits and vegetables — Specification

Acknowledgement is hereby made for the assistance derived from this source.

© EAC 2018 – All rights reserved iii

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 EAST AFRICAN STANDARD EAS 988: 2018

Plastic crates — Specification

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1 Scope
This East African Standard specifies the requirements and test methods for rigid plastic crates for holding and
transportation of beverages, fruits, vegetables, bread and milk among others.

2 Normative references
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The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes
requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references,
the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.

ISO 8256, Plastics — Determination of tensile-impact strength

3 Terms and definitions

No terms and definitions are listed in this document.

4 Requirements

4.1 General requirements

4.1.1 Description

The crates shall consist of a rigid or collapsible plastic container with base and side walls, either solid or
perforated or its combination.

4.1.2 Material

The base raw material for crates shall be plastic such as high density polyethylene (HDPE), polypropylene
copolymer (PPCP), polyethylene and any other approved plastic material. However, the base raw material for
crates for carrying fruits and vegetables shall be unpigmented plastic.

4.2 Performance requirements

In order to determine the following performance requirements, the designated carrying weight of the crate
shall be provided by the manufacturer.

4.2.1 Drop strength

When tested in accordance with Annex A at room temperature, plastic crates shall show no splitting,
permanent distortion or other signs of failure.

© EAC 2018 – All rights reserved 1

 EAS 988: 2018

4.2.2 Impact strength

When tested in accordance with ISO 8256 at room temperature, the plastic crate shall show no splitting,
permanent distortion or other signs of failure.

4.2.3 Deformation resistance

The lateral or longitudinal distortion of the crate shall not exceed 10 % when tested in accordance with Annex
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B.

4.3 Finish

4.3.1 The body of the crates shall be smooth and free from flashes and shall have no sharp edges.

4.3.2 Each plastic crate shall be formed in such a manner that a provision for handling is incorporated, with
two longitudinally firm gripping places located at the upper part of the crate. The gripping parts for handling
shall have no sharp corners or edges.
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5 Packaging
Plastic crates shall be so packed or protected as to prevent damage to the surfaces during transportation and
handling.

6 Labelling
The plastic crate shall be indelibly and legibly marked with the following information:

a) manufacturer’s name and registered trademark, if any;

b) date of manufacture;

c) instructions for correct effective use;

d) disposal and safety instructions;

e) country of origin;

f) dimension of the crate; and

g) batch or code number.

2 © EAC 2018 – All rights reserved

 EAS 988: 2018

Annex A
(normative)

Drop test
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A.1 Principle
The drop test is used to determine the ability of the plastic crate to withstand rough and sudden drop from a
height when loaded.

A.2 Procedure
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Fill the crate with sand or any other weight to designated load. Elevate it to a height of 3 m ± 0.05 m, keeping
it in a vertical position. Drop it from this position in such a manner as to fall freely and to strike the concrete
floor. Repeat the test three times.

After each drop observe any physical damage to the plastic crate.

© EAC 2018 – All rights reserved 3

 EAS 988: 2018

Annex B
(normative)

Deformation resistance test

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B.1 Principle
The deformation resistance test is used to determine the ability of the plastic crate to withstand compression
loads in a packed position when stored, one on top of the other.

B.2 Procedure
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B.2.1 With the plastic crate in a packed condition, record the top dimensions of the crate, both the width and
length.

B.2.2 On the top of the crate, add designated weight. After 60 min ± 5 min record the width and length of
the crate again.

B.3 Calculation
Calculate the distortion of the crate, expressed as percentage, using the formula below.

l  lo
Distortion (%), in length   100 %
lo

where,

l is the final length in millimetres,

lo is the original length in millimetres.

and

W  Wo
Distortion (%), in width   100 %
Wo

where,

W is the final width in millimetres, and

Wo is the original width in millimetres.

4 © EAC 2018 – All rights reserved

 EAS 988: 2018

Bibliography

[1] KS 2525, Plastic crates — Specification

[2] IS 15532, Plastic crates for fruits and vegetables — Specification

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EAS 988: 2018

© EAC 2018 – All rights reserved