Drop and Compression Testing Basics for Packaging Buyers

Published 26 October 2026 · By Ranjeet Kumar, Proprietor, Solution Enterprises

Short answer: a drop test lets a filled package fall freely onto a hard surface, on its faces, edges and corners, to see whether the product survives handling. A compression test presses the package between two plates to find how much stacking load it carries. The common methods are ASTM D5276 and ISO 2248 for drops, and ASTM D642 and ISO 12048 for compression; India has identical IS 7028 parts for both.

What a drop test tells you

Drops happen when packs are handled by hand: off a tailboard, off a stack, onto a dock. The test reproduces that. A filled pack, with the real product or a dummy of the same weight, is lifted to a set height and released so it falls freely, usually onto a corner, then edges, then faces. Drop height depends on weight — heavier packs are dropped from lower, because nobody throws a 40 kg carton the way they throw a 5 kg one.

ASTM D5276 covers free-fall drop testing of loaded boxes, cylindrical containers, bags and sacks. Its scope says that for containers up to 50 kg it fulfils ISO 2206 and ISO 2248. The Indian equivalent of ISO 2248 is IS 7028 (Part 4):1987, Vertical impact drop test, listed by BIS as identical under dual numbering.

What a compression test tells you

Stacking is a slow, steady load, and over days in a warehouse or weeks in a container it crushes packs that pass every drop test. A compression tester brings one platen down on the pack at a controlled rate and records the force at failure or at a set deflection. ASTM D642 covers containers, components and unit loads, loaded on faces, diagonally opposite edges or corners, with or without contents, and its scope says it fulfils ISO 12048. India adopted ISO 12048 as IS 7028 (Part 9):2020, Compression and stacking tests using a compression tester.

The lab figure is a short-term peak. Real stacks sit for a long time in humid air, so the working load you plan for has to be well below what the tester shows. How edge protectors share that load on a pallet is covered in pallet stacking strength and edge protectors.

The standards at a glance

Standard	What it covers	Indian match
ASTM D5276	Free-fall drop of loaded boxes, cylinders, bags	—
ISO 2248	Vertical impact by dropping	IS 7028 (Part 4)
ASTM D642	Compression of containers and unit loads	—
ISO 12048	Compression and stacking with a tester	IS 7028 (Part 9)
ASTM D4169	A sequence of hazards by distribution cycle	—
ISTA series	Ready-made test sequences	—

The IS 7028 family has other parts too, including static-load stacking, vibration, horizontal impact, rolling, toppling and water spray tests, all under BIS committee TED 24.

Single tests or a sequence?

A single drop or compression test answers one question. A distribution test runs several in the order a pack meets them. ASTM D4169 builds a test plan from a sequence of hazard elements for a chosen distribution cycle. ISTA publishes ready-made procedures in series: its 1-series checks basic integrity without simulating any route, the 2-series is a partial simulation used to refine designs, and the 3-series is a general simulation of transport. One point that some pages online get wrong: ISTA 3A is for individual packaged-products up to 70 kg, as test labs describe it, not for whole pallets.

For an Indian exporter shipping palletised goods by sea, a lab will usually build the plan around unit-load compression, vibration and handling impacts rather than a parcel procedure. Say how the goods travel and let the lab propose the method.

Conditioning: why paper packs need it

Paper and board lose strength as they take up moisture. That is why the standards ask for samples to be conditioned at a set temperature and humidity before testing. A carton tested dry in a lab in January may behave very differently after a fortnight in a humid port in July. If your packs travel in the monsoon or to the Gulf in summer, ask the lab whether a humid conditioning is worth adding.

How to write a test into a spec

1. Name the method and edition, for example “IS 7028 (Part 4) / ISO 2248”.
2. State the pack as tested: product or dummy, weight, closure, any corner or edge protection.
3. State the conditioning.
4. State the drop sequence or the compression set-up.
5. Define pass: no product damage, or product still works, or pack still closed — whichever matters to you.
6. Say how many samples, and that one failure means a review, not a re-test until it passes.

The wider document this sits in is covered in how to write a packaging specification. If you are working out whether testing is worth the money, compare its cost with your damage claims using what transit damage really costs.

Our own position is simple. We make packaging components, not test reports, and we do not claim lab test results for our products. If your customer requires a drop or compression test on a pack that uses our paper angle boards, the test is run on your complete pack at an independent lab of your choice.

Common questions

Can I do a drop test without a lab?

An informal drop from a measured height onto concrete is a useful first check. It is not a standard test, so it cannot go on a certificate or a buyer’s report.

Which matters more for pallets, drop or compression?

For palletised loads, stacking and compression usually matter more, along with handling impacts from forklifts. Hand-handled cartons are where drops dominate.

Is an IS 7028 test accepted abroad?

The parts that are identical to ISO standards follow the same method. Still, check which standard your buyer names before booking a lab.

For the packaging side of a test plan — edge protection, strapping, pallet build — send us your pack details.

Sources

• ASTM International, D5276 Standard Test Method for Drop Test of Loaded Containers by Free Fall — scope.
• ASTM International, D642 Standard Test Method for Determining Compressive Resistance of Shipping Containers, Components, and Unit Loads — scope.
• ASTM International, D4169 Standard Practice for Performance Testing of Shipping Containers and Systems — scope.
• Bureau of Indian Standards, IS 7028 (Part 4):1987 and IS 7028 (Part 9):2020 — BIS standard details and catalogue listing.
• International Safe Transit Association, Test Procedures — description of the 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 and 7 series.
• Westpak, ISTA 3A Test Procedure — package types and 70 kg limit.

Last verified: 26 October 2026. A summary for buyers, not a substitute for the standards themselves; buy the current edition from ASTM, ISO, ISTA or BIS before writing it into a contract.