kSIST FprEN 18183:2026

• Abstract:

  This document provides a method of describing the materials, impregnates and lubricants for various types of yarn and ribbon based packings intended for use as gland seals in mechanical equipment such as pumps, mixers, etc as a guide for packing manufacturers, pump OEM’s and end users. It does not include similar products intended for other duties such as thermal insulation.; Guidance is also given regarding dimensional and physical quality aspects of the packings and requirements for packaging and marking.; Tests are specified for the determination of lubricant content, size and mass.; NOTE 1 The information supplied by the purchaser at the time of enquiry and/or order is given in Annex B.; NOTE 2 All packings are free from introduced asbestos fibres in conformance with Annex XVII of REACH.

• Status: Not Published
• Public Enquiry End Date: 29-Jun-2025
• ICS: 21.140 - Seals, glands
• ICS: 23.080 - Pumps
• Technical Committee: I13 - Imaginarni 13
• Current Stage: 5020 - Formal vote (FV) (Adopted Project)
• Start Date: 09-Jul-2026
• Due Date: 27-Aug-2026
• Completion Date: 10-Jul-2026
• Ref Project: EN 18183:2026 - Pumps - Specification for gland packings manufactured from yarns and ribbons

kSIST FprEN 18183:2026 is a SIST standard for gland packings manufactured from yarns and ribbons. It specifies how these packings are described by material type, impregnants, lubricants, reinforcement and density for use as gland seals in mechanical equipment such as pumps and mixers. It is intended as a common reference for packing manufacturers, pump OEMs and end users who need to specify, order, inspect or test these products.

What does kSIST FprEN 18183:2026 specify?

kSIST FprEN 18183:2026 specifies a way to describe yarn- and ribbon-based gland packings, plus guidance on their dimensional and physical quality, packaging and marking. It also sets test methods for lubricant content, size and mass, and gives purchaser information in a normative annex.

The document is organized into:

• Scope, normative references, terms and definitions
• Packing types, construction, shape and cross-section, size, physical quality, packaging, marking
• Quality of materials for yarns and packings
• Annex A with test methods
• Annex B with information to be supplied by the purchaser

Annex	What it covers
Annex A	Methods of test for lubricant content, size, density, tensile strength, shrinkage and creep resistance
Annex B	Information the purchaser provides when enquiring or ordering

What are the key requirements of kSIST FprEN 18183:2026?

kSIST FprEN 18183:2026 turns a packing into a coded description. In practice, that code is how manufacturers, buyers and inspectors identify the yarn group, the yarn blend, impregnation, lubricant, reinforcement, density range and whether the packing has an elastomeric core.

Clause 4 - packing types and coding

Clause 4 requires each packing to be described by a unique code. The code captures:

• yarn group and yarn type
• minimum yarn content by weight
• impregnant type and amount
• lubricant type and amount
• reinforcement type
• finished density range
• whether an elastomeric core is present

This matters because the code is the ordering and traceability language for the product.

Clause 4.4 - elastomeric cored packings

kSIST FprEN 18183:2026 allows any packing type to be made with an elastomeric core of circular, square or rectangular cross-section. The core area is limited, and the code must end with E. That gives users a clear way to specify a cored product when sealing behavior depends on core geometry.

Clauses 5 to 7 - construction, shape and size

Clause 5 sets a minimum number of tracks for most packing constructions, depending on nominal cross-section. Clause 6 says the packing is supplied in length form unless rings or die-formed pieces are requested, and the nominal section is square unless otherwise specified. Clause 7 gives cross-section tolerances and refers to Annex A for the measurement method. In practice, these clauses define what is acceptable to receive and measure.

Clause 8 - physical quality

Clause 8 requires a dense, firm yet flexible packing with a regular surface, no obvious faults, no twisted or badly joined yarns, and no significant colour variation. This is a visual acceptance check that helps reject poor manufacture before installation.

Clauses 9 and 10 - packaging and marking

Clause 9 requires gland packings to be coiled in sealed parcels and protected from damage and dirt. Clause 10 requires marking with the manufacturer, document number and packing code, section size and length or weight, and month and year of manufacture. This supports storage control, identification and installation checks.

Clause 11 - material quality

Clause 11 sets performance requirements for yarns and for finished packings. It covers tensile strength and elongation at break, shrinkage, creep resistance, and special limits for PTFE packings and expanded graphite packings. For buyers and quality teams, these are the acceptance tests that confirm the packing material behaves as expected.

What terms does kSIST FprEN 18183:2026 define?

kSIST FprEN 18183:2026 uses the glossary in the FSA/ESA Compression Packing Technical Manual 4th Edition for its terms and definitions. Key terms in the document include:

• Packing code - the coded description that identifies the packing build-up and density range.
• Yarn group - the generic family of yarns used in the packing, such as natural, synthetic or carbonaceous.
• Impregnant - a material added to the packing, such as PTFE, mineral grease/oil, silicone grease/oil, graphite or mica.
• Lubricant - the oil or grease content added to the packing and stated by weight.
• Reinforcement - an added material such as glass, cotton, carbon, PTFE filament, stainless steel or Ni/Cr.
• Elastomeric core - a core inserted into the packing, allowed in several cross-sectional shapes.
• PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) - a fluoropolymer used in several packing types and related material requirements.

Who uses kSIST FprEN 18183:2026?

kSIST FprEN 18183:2026 is used by packing manufacturers, pump OEMs and end users. Manufacturers use it to classify products, control materials and mark parcels. Pump OEMs and end users use it to specify the packing type, dimensions and form needed for a sealing application.

Quality teams and test laboratories also use it for acceptance checks on size, density, lubricant content, yarn strength, shrinkage and creep resistance. Procurement teams use it to compare products on a common code rather than by free-text descriptions.

Which standards are used with kSIST FprEN 18183:2026?

Standard or document	What it contributes
ISO 18067	Method for shrinkage determination on packing yarns
FSA/ESA Compression Packing Technical Manual 4th Edition	Glossary of terms and definitions
EN ISO 527 or ASTM D2256	Tensile strength and elongation at break of packing yarns
EN ISO 4797, ISO 4793, BS 2071, BS 572	Glassware and extractor apparatus for the lubricant-content test
ASTM C561, ASTM D4239, ASTM D4327, ASTM D5373	Test methods used for expanded graphite packing properties
REACH Annex XVII	Restriction reference for introduced asbestos fibres and for PFOA/PFOS-related requirements

What does the kSIST FprEN 18183:2026 document contain?

kSIST FprEN 18183:2026 contains packing type tables, coding rules and worked code examples that show how to build a product description. It also contains construction guidance, cross-section tolerances, physical quality checks and packaging and marking instructions.

Annex A provides the test set-ups and procedures for lubricant extraction, size measurement, density calculation, yarn tensile testing, yarn shrinkage and creep resistance. Annex A also includes the calculation approach for lubricant content and a simulated stuffing-box test arrangement for creep.

Annex B gives the information the purchaser should supply with an enquiry or order, namely the packing type, dimensions and whether rings are required.

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
oSIST prEN 18183:2025
01-junij-2025
Črpalke - Specifikacija za tesnila iz preje in trakov
Pumps - Specification for Gland Packings manufactured from Yarns and Ribbons
Pumpen - Spezifikation für Stopfbuchspackungen gefertigt aus Garnen und Bändern
Pompes - Spécifications pour les garnitures de presse-étoupe fabriquées en fil et ruban
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: prEN 18183
ICS:
21.140 Tesnilke, mašilke Seals, glands
23.080 Črpalke Pumps
oSIST prEN 18183:2025 en,fr,de
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

oSIST prEN 18183:2025
oSIST prEN 18183:2025
DRAFT
EUROPEAN STANDARD
prEN 18183
NORME EUROPÉENNE
EUROPÄISCHE NORM
April 2025
ICS 23.080
English Version
Pumps - Specification for Gland Packings manufactured
from Yarns and Ribbons
Pompes - Spécifications pour les garnitures de presse- Pumpen - Spezifikation für Stopfbuchspackungen
étoupe fabriquées en fil et ruban gefertigt aus Garnen und Bändern
This draft European Standard is submitted to CEN members for enquiry. It has been drawn up by the Technical Committee
CEN/TC 197.
If this draft becomes a European Standard, CEN members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations
which stipulate the conditions for giving this European Standard the status of a national standard without any alteration.

This draft European Standard was established by CEN in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other
language made by translation under the responsibility of a CEN member into its own language and notified to the CEN-CENELEC
Management Centre has the same status as the official versions.

CEN members are the national standards bodies of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,
Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway,
Poland, Portugal, Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye and
United Kingdom.
Recipients of this draft are invited to submit, with their comments, notification of any relevant patent rights of which they are
aware and to provide supporting documentation.

Warning : This document is not a European Standard. It is distributed for review and comments. It is subject to change without
notice and shall not be referred to as a European Standard.

EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR STANDARDIZATION
COMITÉ EUROPÉEN DE NORMALISATION

EUROPÄISCHES KOMITEE FÜR NORMUNG

CEN-CENELEC Management Centre: Rue de la Science 23, B-1040 Brussels
© 2025 CEN All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved Ref. No. prEN 18183:2025 E
worldwide for CEN national Members.

oSIST prEN 18183:2025
prEN 18183:2025 (E)
Contents Page
European foreword . 3
Introduction . 4
1 Scope . 5
2 Normative references . 5
3 Terms and definitions . 5
4 Packing types . 5
4.1 Description . 5
4.2 Coding system . 7
4.3 Coding system example . 8
4.4 Elastomeric cored packings . 8
5 Packing construction . 8
6 Shape and cross-section . 8
7 Size . 8
8 Physical quality. 9
9 Packaging . 9
10 Marking . 9
11 Quality of materials . 9
11.1 Yarns . 9
11.1.1 Tensile Strength and Elongation at Break . 9
11.1.2 Shrinkage . 10
11.2 Packings . 11
11.2.1 Creep Resistance . 11
11.2.2 PTFE Packings (Group 5) . 12
11.2.3 Expanded Graphite Packings (Group 6D) . 12
Annex A (normative) Methods of test . 13
Annex B (normative) Information to be supplied by the purchaser . 16
Bibliography . 17

oSIST prEN 18183:2025
prEN 18183:2025 (E)
European foreword
This document (prEN 18183:2025) has been prepared by Technical Committee CEN/TC 197 “Pumps”,
the secretariat of which is held by AFNOR.
This document is currently submitted to the CEN Enquiry.
oSIST prEN 18183:2025
prEN 18183:2025 (E)
Introduction
This document was originally drafted by a joint Technical Task Force of the Packings Division of the
European Sealing Association (ESA) and the Compression Packing Division of the Fluid Sealing
Association and is approved by both organisations as a suitable reference for the packing types described.
Certain of the packings contain polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) which, when heated to elevated
temperatures, can produce fumes which give unpleasant effects if inhaled. Care should be taken to avoid
contamination of tobacco products with PTFE.
oSIST prEN 18183:2025
prEN 18183:2025 (E)
1 Scope
This document provides a method of describing the materials, impregnates and lubricants for various
types of yarn and ribbon based packings intended for use as gland seals in mechanical equipment such
as pumps, mixers, etc. It does not include similar products intended for other duties such as thermal
insulation.
Guidance is also given regarding dimensional and physical quality aspects of the packings and
requirements for packaging and marking.
Tests are specified for the determination of lubricant content, size and mass.
NOTE 1 The information supplied by the purchaser at the time of enquiry and/or order is given in Annex B.
NOTE 2 All packings are free from introduced asbestos fibres in conformance with Annex XVII of REACH.
2 Normative references
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 18067, Textiles — Synthetic filament yarns — Determination of shrinkage in dry-hot air (after
treatment)
FSA/ESA, Publication ‘Compression Packings Technical Manual - 4th Edition
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in the Glossary of Terms in the
th
FSA/ESA Compression Packing Technical Manual 4 Edition, 2018, apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https://www.iso.org/obp/
— IEC Electropedia: available at https://www.electropedia.org/
4 Packing types
4.1 Description
Each packing shall be described by a unique series of codes which define the following attributes:
1. The generic yarn Group or Groups,
2. The specific yarns within the Group,
3. The minimum weight of each yarn as a percentage of the total weight of the packing,
4. The minimum total weight of yarns as a percentage of the total weight of the packing,
5. The type of impregnation (where used),
6. The amount of impregnant percentage by weight,
7. The type of lubricating oil or grease (where used),
oSIST prEN 18183:2025
prEN 18183:2025 (E)
8. The amount of lubricant percentage by weight,
9. The type of reinforcement (where used),
10. The allowable density range in g/cm ,
11. Whether the packing has an elastomeric core.
Table 1 indicates the packing types.
Table 1 — Packing types
Group Yarn
Yarn group Yarn Type
number code
A Ramie
B Cotton
1 Natural C Flax
D Hemp
E Micaceous
2 Glass A Glass
3 Ceramic A Ceramic
A Para aramid
B Meta aramid
C Acrylic
D Polyimide
4 Synthetic
E Novoloid
Polyphenylene Sulfide
F
(PPS)
Polybenzimidazole
G
(PBI)
A PTFE Filament
B ePTFE
5 PFTE C ePTFE/Graphite
D ePTFE/Graphite/Oil
E ePTFE/Talc/Oil
A Preox. PAN
B Carbon
6 Carbonaceous
C Graphite
D Expanded graphite
oSIST prEN 18183:2025
prEN 18183:2025 (E)
Table 2 indicates the impregnant and lubricant types.
Table 2 — Impregnant and Lubricant Types
Impregnant or Lubricant Code
None X
PTFE P
Mineral grease/oil L
Silicone grease/oil S
Graphite G
Mica M
Table 3 indicates the reinforcement types.
Table 3 — Reinforcement Types
Impregnant or Lubricant Code
None Y
Glass Gl
Cotton Co
Carbon Ca
PTFE filament P
Stainless steel SS
Ni/Cr NC
4.2 Coding system
Each packing description shall consist of a sequence of codes separated by semi-colons as follows:
1. Yarn group, yarn code as shown in Table 1, (e.g. 5A),
2. Minimum total yarn content by weight %.
Where more than one yarn is present the details for each yarn should be followed by its percentage
by weight of the total packing and the details for each yarn shall be separated by a point sign
(e.g. 5C50.4A40),
3. Impregnant type as indicated in Table 2 and minimum % by weight (e.g. P10),
4. Lubricant type as indicated in Table 2 and minimum % by weight when determined by the method
specified in A.1 (e.g. S15),
5. Reinforcement type as indicated in Table 3 (e.g. Gl),
6. Density range of finished packing when determined by the method specified in A.3
(e.g. 1.6/1.9 g/cm ).
Where the yarn and/or lubricant content of the packing varies depending on the cross-section size, the
values quoted should be for the size for which these values are lowest.
oSIST prEN 18183:2025
prEN 18183:2025 (E)
4.3 Coding system example
A packing coded ‘5C50.4A40;P10;X;Y;1.6/1.9’ describes a packing manufactured from a combination of
50 % ePTFE/graphite and 40 % Para –Aramid yarns (i.e. a minimum total yarn content of 90 %)
impregnated with a minimum of 10 % PTFE impregnation and no additional lubricant or reinforcement
-1
having a finished density between 1.6 and 1.9 g.cm .
4.4 Elastomeric cored packings
Packings of any of the types can also be manufactured with an elastomeric core of circular, square or
rectangular cross-section.
The cross-sectional area of such cores shall not exceed 50% of the packing cross-sectional area.
Where the packing contains an elastomeric core the packing code shall be as specified in 4.2 with the
addition of the letter E (e.g. 5C;70;P10;X;Y;1.6/1.9;E).
5 Packing construction
All packing types except those in expanded graphite and glass or ceramic shall be manufactured using
the minimum number of tracks indicated in Table 4.
Table 4 — Construction
Nominal cross-section Minimum Number of Tracks
[mm]
From 3.0 up to and inc. 6.4 2
Above 6.4 up to and inc. 12.7 3
Above 12.7 4
6 Shape and cross-section
The packing shall be provided in length form unless requested as dye-formed or cut rings.
The packing shall have a nominal square cross-section unless otherwise specified.
7 Size
The cross-section size of the packing when determined in accordance with the procedure
...