EN 12845 Annex C: Alphabetical Commodity Categories

Whether a product arrives in a carton or in plastic shrink looks like two lines in the commodity table — on site it is the difference between Category II and Category IV.

On a sprinkler replacement project for a logistics client, the first question was simple: "We store cosmetics, which category are we?" The answer was not simple. Half the racking held creams in cartons and the other half aerosol deodorant cases wrapped in plastic shrink. Cosmetics are not a single EN 12845 category; the product, its packaging and its storage orientation together determine it. This article covers how we use the alphabetical commodity list on site, the plastic container exceptions, and its link to the material factor annex.

What the commodity annex does

EN 12845 divides stored materials into four categories: Category I (lowest hazard) through Category IV (highest). Those categories are essential for selecting high-hazard storage density and area combinations. But broad headings like "paper", "paint" or "furniture" do not map to a single category. Annex C is a normative alphabetical list tying individual commodities to categories.

A critical caveat sits at the head of the table: the list applies where the packaging is no more hazardous than a carton or a single layer of corrugated board. That sentence draws the boundary. Where packaging includes plastic shrink, EPS corner blocks or foam infill, the commodity list alone is insufficient and the material factor annex takes over.

The workflow: finding the right category

On site we follow this sequence:

1. Look the product up in the alphabetical list. Where there is no exact match, take the nearest product of similar combustibility.
2. Read the comments column. The same product can sit in different categories depending on storage orientation (rolls flat or on end), packaging weight, or plastic content.
3. Check the packaging. If it is worse than a carton or corrugated board, apply the material factor annex and step up a category where needed.
4. Establish the storage configuration (ST1–ST6). The same category requires different density and area in block stacking (ST1) versus pallet racking (ST4).
5. Check the special hazards annex. Aerosols, flammable liquids, plastic pallets, hanging garments and polypropylene containers go beyond the commodity list, and the special hazards annex governs.

Twenty-one commonly encountered commodities

All values below come directly from the EN 12845 commodity annex.

Commodity	Category	Storage note
Adhesive, solvent based	III	Flammable solvent, special protection
Adhesive, solvent free	I	Water based
Batteries, dry cell	II	—
Batteries, wet cell	II	Empty plastic accumulators need special protection
Corrugated board rolls, flat	III	—
Corrugated board rolls, on end	IV	Flue effect
Carpet tiles	III	—
Electrical appliances (≤ 5 % plastic)	I	Predominantly metal construction
Electrical appliances (other)	III	—
Electrical cable and wire	III	In-rack sprinklers required if racked
Furniture, timber	II	—
Glass fibre, unprocessed	I	—
Canned food	I	In cartons or trays
Mattresses, expanded plastic	IV	—
Mattresses, other	II	—
Paper, < 5 kg/100 m², rolls on end	IV	Tissue and toilet paper type
Paper, ≥ 5 kg/100 m², rolls flat	II	Newsprint type
Footwear (> 5 % plastic)	III	Sports shoe soles
Tyres, stored flat	IV	Table C.1 refers to Annex P; in A2, Annex P refers to EN 12845-2
Paraffin wax	IV	—
Wood wool, baled	IV	—

Same product, different category: orientation and weight

The most confusing aspect of the commodity list is that the same product appears on several rows. The logic: the more freely the flame front can rise, the higher the category.

• Paper rolls: laid flat, Category II or III; standing on end, III or IV. In a roll on end, the core acts as a chimney.
• Bituminous paper: flat rolls II, upright rolls III.
• Roofing felt: flat II, upright III. Most builders' merchants stack felt upright, so the designer assumes II when it is actually III.
• Timber: ventilated (spaced) stacks III, tight stacks II. The air gap feeds the fire.

The plastic container exception: empty is worse than full

A small note on the wet cell battery row says empty plastic accumulators require special protection. That sentence heralds a much wider principle. Polypropylene and polyethylene storage containers are consistently classified as high-hazard storage Category IV in the special hazards annex, with the following conditions mandatory:

• On pallet racking (ST4), in-rack horizontal spacing no more than 1.5 m and vertical spacing no more than 2 m.
• Ceiling sprinkler sensitivity "special", in-rack "special" or "quick".
• In other storage arrangements, a maximum storage height of 3 m, non-combustible (e.g. steel) pallets only, a stack height of no more than 1 m per pallet, a lid on the uppermost container on each pallet, and special or quick response sprinklers (G.8.4).
• A suitable film-forming foam additive in the sprinkler water (G.8.5); according to the NOTE, AFFF has been shown to be effective in full-scale fire tests.

The logic is clear: liquid or granular contents absorb heat and delay ignition of the plastic wall. An empty container, with its high surface-to-volume ratio, releases fire load quickly. At a food filling plant, "we only store empty containers, the full ones went out" moves you not one category up but straight to Category IV plus foam.

The bridge to the material factor annex

The commodity annex gives you the base category. The material factor annex (Annex B) first assigns the goods, including packaging and pallet, a material factor of 1 to 4 (by plastic content, Figure B.1), then converts it into a category through the storage configuration in Table B.1. Under B.3.1, where Table C.1 also gives a category, the higher of the two is used, so category selection is incomplete without both.

A typical example: cream in glass jars is not listed in Annex C; in cartons on timber pallets it is material factor 1 with "no special configuration", so Category I. If the same pallet is shrink-wrapped in plastic, it has an exposed unexpanded plastic surface and B.3.3 raises the category to III or IV (the standard's own example is shrink-wrapped tinned food). If EPS corner blocks exceed 5 % by volume, the material factor rises as well (Figure B.1). The density and area combination rises accordingly.

Field errors

• Assuming "cosmetics equals Category II". If aerosol deodorant sits in the same aisle, the aerosol clause G.2 applies: aerosols must be segregated and stored in cages, and the ceiling protection in Table G.1 is 12.5–25 mm/min over 260–300 m².
• Overlooking plastic pallets. The client says "we use timber pallets"; on site you find a mixture. Clause G.5 requires, for plastic pallets in block storage, a maximum of 3.3 m, 25 mm/min over 300 m² and a 60 minute fire resistant compartment (Table G.5); in racks (other than unexpanded HDPE solid-deck pallets), an in-rack level with K115 at a minimum of 3 bar above the top of storage, 25 mm/min over 300 m² at the ceiling and a 60 minute compartment (Table G.6).
• Not asking about roll orientation. In printing and packaging plants the orientation changes seasonally, so the design must cover both scenarios — take the worse one.
• Guessing when the product is not listed. The list runs to more than 80 rows; check synonyms before concluding it is absent.

The NFPA equivalent

NFPA 13's commodity classification (Class I–IV plus Group A/B/C plastics) is the parallel, but structured differently. EN 12845 goes from product name to category; NFPA 13 assigns a class from the product's content — metal, predominantly carton, percentage plastic. A rough mapping:

• Category I ≈ NFPA Class I
• Category II ≈ Class II/III
• Category III ≈ Class IV or Group C plastics
• Category IV ≈ Group A plastics, expanded or unexpanded

There is no exact correspondence; on projects using both standards side by side, always take the more conservative.

Turkish context

BYKHY Article 96(5) requires sprinkler system design to TS EN 12845 but has no commodity classification list of its own, so on sprinkler projects in Turkey the commodity annex is the direct reference. Occupational safety inspections ask about the additional conditions in the special hazards annex for aerosols and plastic pallet storage; relying on the commodity annex alone causes problems at inspection.

Frequently asked questions

What if the product is not in the list?

The list covers typical products packaged in cartons or single-layer corrugated board. Where a product is absent, take the category of a commodity with similar combustibility; if the packaging contains plastic or is more hazardous than board, reassess with the material factor annex and step up where needed.

What category applies to goods on plastic pallets?

Plastic pallets are covered separately. In racks (Table G.6), unexpanded high-density polyethylene solid-deck pallets take Category IV protection like timber pallets, while all other plastic pallets require additional conditions: an in-rack level with K115 at a minimum of 3 bar above the top of storage, 25 mm/min over 300 m² at the ceiling and a 60 minute fire resistant compartment. In block storage, plastic pallets are limited to 3.3 m, protected at 25 mm/min over 300 m² and kept in a 60 minute compartment (Table G.5).

Why is an empty plastic container worse than a full one?

Empty containers ignite quickly because of their high surface-to-volume ratio and airflow, and release a great deal of heat. The special hazards annex classifies polypropylene and polyethylene storage containers as high-hazard Category IV in all cases and requires a film-forming foam additive in the sprinkler water.

Why can the same product be both Category II and III?

For roll goods such as paper, board and corrugated board, storage orientation sets the category. Flat rolls are lower, upright rolls one category higher, because the flue effect in an upright roll lets flame rise faster.

How are the commodity and material factor annexes used together?

The commodity annex gives the base category; the material factor annex assigns the goods, with packaging and pallet, a material factor of 1 to 4 and converts it into a category through the storage configuration; the higher of the two is used (B.3.1). A Category II product in plastic packaging may behave like Category III or IV, and the density and area combination is raised accordingly.

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