KENYA STANDARD           DKS 2753:2016  
……………..  
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
Disposable Panty liners  – Specification  
 
 
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
   KEBS 2016      First Edition 2016 
 
  
TECHNICAL COMMITTEE REPRESENTATION  
 
 
The following organizations were represented on the Technical Committee:  
 
University of Nairobi – School of Medicine  
Kenya Industrial Research and Development Institute  
Kenya Medical Association  
National Environmental Management Authority  
Kenya Medical Supplies Authori ty 
Inter Consumer Products Limited  
Radbone Clark  
Procter and Gam ble 
Marvel Five Investments  
KIM FAY East Africa Ltd  
Kimberly -Clark  
Chalange Industries  
Consumer Information Network  
The Nairobi Hospital  
Nairobi Enterprises  Limited  
Ministry of Health  – Public Health  
Kenya Bureau of Standards — Secretariat  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
REVISION OF KENYA STANDARDS  
 
In order keep abreast of progress in industry, Kenya standards shall be regularly reviewed. Suggestion 
for improvements to published standards addressed to the  Managing Director, Kenya Bureau of 
Standards, are welcome.  
 
 
© Kenya Bureau of Standards, 2016 
 
Copyright. Users are reminded that by virtue of section of the Copyright Act, Cap. 130 of the Laws of Kenya, copyright subsis ts in all 
Kenya Standards and except as provided under section 7 of this Act, no Kenya Standard produced by Kenya Bureau of Standar ds 
may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system in any form or transmitted by any without prior permission in writing from th e 
Managing Director.   
© KEBS 2016  — All rights reserved  1  
 
 
 
 
   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Draft Standard               
 
 
 
 
 
Disposable Panty liners  – Specification   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
KENYA BUREAU OF STANDARDS (KEBS)  
 
Head Office :  P.O. Box 54974, Nairobi -00200, Tel.: (+254  020) 605490, 602350, Fax: (+254 020)  604031  
E-Mail: info@kebs.org,  Web:http://www.kebs.org   
 
Coast Region     Lake Region          Rift Valley Region  
P.O. Box 99376, Mombasa -80100   P.O. Box 2949, Kisumu -40100        P.O. Box 2138, Nakuru -20100  
Tel.: (+254  041) 229563, 230939/40  Tel.: (+254 057) 23549, 22396        Tel.: (+254 051) 210553, 210555  
Fax: (+ 254 041 ) 229448    Fax: (+254 057) 21814   
 Foreword  
 
 
This Kenya standard has been prepared by the Technical Committee on Towels, Medical and 
Hygienic Textile Products under the guidance of the Standards Project Committee, and it is in 
accordance with the procedures of the Kenya Bureau of Standards.  
 
Panty liners are designe d to absorb and retain fluid  discharges emanating from the  
vulvo -vaginal region.  
 
 
In preparation of this Kenya Standard reference was made to  
 
IS: 5405:1980 – Specification for sanitary napkins  
GB/T 8939 -2008 -Sanitar y absorbent pads( including panty liner)    
 
 
 
Acknowledgment is hereby made for the assistance received from these sources.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
© KEBS 2016  — All rights reserved  3  
 
KENYA STANDARD                 
 
 
1.0 SCOPE  
This Kenyan St andard specifies minimum requirements for disposable  panty liners  for external 
use. 
 
2.0 Normative References : 
The following standards were used as normative references.  
KS 08 -32, Conditions for the testing of textiles  
KS ISO 3071:2005 Determination of pH of aqueous extract of textiles  
KS ISO 9073 -6:2000 Absorption  
KS 2659:2016 Packaging of textile Products -Code of practice (First Edition)  
KS EAS 96:2008 -Specification of sanitary towels  
KS ISO 21149:2006 -Microbiology -- Enumeration and detection of aerobic mesophilic bacteria  
KS ISO 22717:2015 - Microbiology - Detection of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.  
KS ISO 22718:2015 - Microbiology - Detection of Staphylococcus aureus.  
KS ISO 18416:2015 - Microbiology - Detection of Candida albicans.  
KS ISO 21150:2015 - Microbiology - Detection of Escherichia coli.  
 
3.0 Definitions  
For the purpose of this standard, the following definitions apply  
 
3.1 Non -woven  
A fabric -like material made from long fibers, bonded together by chemical, mechanical, heat or 
solvent treatment. The term is used in the textile manufacturing industry to denote fabrics, such 
as felt, which are neither woven nor knitted.  
  
 4.0 MATERIALS  
 
4.1. Absorbent  Filler - The filler  material, such as cellulose pulp, cellulose  wadding,  tissue, 
cotton, etc, shall be free from lumps, oil spots, dirt  or foreign material.  
 
4.2 Covering  – The covering of  the absorbent filler shall be of a good quality cotton or rayon  
knitted sleeving, gauze or non -woven fabric with sufficient porosity  to permit the assembled 
panty liner to meet the absorbency requirements.  
 
5.0 SIZES  
 
5.1 Sizes for panty liners shall be as declared by the manufacturer.  
 
6.0 MANUFACTURE, WORKMANSHIP AND FINISH  
6.1 The absorbent filler material shall be arranged and neatly cut in the required size of the pad 
and form  a uniform thickness throughout, without an y wrinkle or distortion.  
6.1.1  The absorbent filler material shall be placed in the covering in such a way that it does not 
cause lump formation as a result of sudden pressure.  
6.1.2  The covering fabric  of the panty liner shall  cover the filler completely.  
6.1.3  The panty liner  shall have a non -absorbent barrier on one side which shall have an 
identifying thread or marking clearly  indicating the side of the barrier as well as the effective 
area of absorbing.  
6.1.2 The panty liner shall have a protective barrier on one side, if not clear, they shall have an  
identifying mark or color  indicating clearly the side of the barrier.  
 
6.2 When panty liners are claimed as disposable i.e disposable in lavatories they shall be 
manufactur ed from disposable material.  
6.2.1  If cotton hose or gauze is used as covering,  the instructions for th e use of panty liners  
shall indicate that the non – absorbent barrier should be removed before flushing.  
6.3 The panty liner shall have a very soft feel and when worn shall not chafe or give any 
uncomfortable feeling . 
6.3.1  The panty liner shall be free from all sorts of foreign matter .  
6.3.2  The panty liner shall have no unpleasant od uor either in dry state im mediately after 
sampling  from the packages or after wetting the sample with distilled water.  
 
  
© KEBS 2016  — All rights reserved  5 7.0 REQUIRMENTS  
 
7.1 Absorbency  Capacity : The panty liner shall absorb a minimum of 1ml when tested by the 
method given in Annex 1  
7.1.1  Liquid wicking  rate - Use method in KS ISO 9073 -6 :2000  Absorption  and check for 
compliance in table 1 
7.2 pH value  
The panty liner  shall be free from acidic and alkali material and the pH of t he absorbent material 
shall be 5.5  to 8.5 when tested by the method given in KS ISO 3071. Check for compliance in 
Table 1 
7.3 Securing Mechanism  
Shall have adhesive strip or patch . 
7.4 Microbiological Limits  
The microbiological limits shall be as defined in Table 1  
 
Characteristic  Unit  Requirement  Test Method  
Absorbency Capacity  min No leakage  Annex 1   
Liquid wicking rate  Mm/sec  8mm / 43 sec  KS ISO 9073 -6:2000  
pH  5.5 – 8.5  KS ISO 3071:2005  
Size Mm As declared in the label  Measure by ruler  
Total Viable Count  cfu/g  <10 KS ISO 21149:2006  
Pseudomonas 
aeruginosa   Not detectable per gram of 
sample  KS ISO 22717:2015  
Staphylococcus 
aureus  cfu/g  <10 KS ISO 22718:2015  
Candida albicans   Not detectable per gram of 
sample  KS ISO 18416:2015  
E.coli   Not detectable per gram of 
sample  KS ISO 21150:2015  
Quantity  No of pieces  As declared  Sensory  
Florescence of filler 
material   None  KS EAS 96:2008  
Securing Mechanism   Adhesive strip or patch  KS EAS 96:2008  
 
 
Table 1   
  
 
8.0 PACKAGING  
8.1 Shall be done in accordance with  KS 2659:2016  Packaging of textile Products -Code of 
practice (First Edition)  
 
8.2 Primary Package  
8.2.1 Panty liner s shall be supplied in packages made of suitable materials, which are sealed so 
as to  protect them from moisture, soiling and contamination during storage and transportation.  
8.2.2 Each primary package shall indicate number of pan ty liners.  
 
8.3 Secondary Package  
8.3.1 Packages shall be supplied in bales made of suitable materials, which are strong enough 
to hold the  number of declared packages.  
8.3.2 The bale shall withstand pressure during transportation and stockpile during storage.  
8.3.3 The bale shall be properly sealed to prevent the packages spilling.  
8.3.4 Only packages bearing the same date of manufacture (o r batch identification) and 
containing the same type shall be packed together in a bale.   
 
9.0 LABELLING  
Labelling on the primary package shall be legible, in English  and or Kiswahili  imprinted 
in indelible ink and have the following information  
9.1 the manufacturer’s name and/or registered trade mark;  
9.2 the words “ panty liner ”; 
9.3 Date of manufacture and expiry date . 
9.4 Country  of origin stated clearly.  
9.5 Name of  the product  and production batch number .  
9.6 Quality m ark on the primary packaging at point of sale.  
9.7 Instructions for Use.  
9.8 Instructions for Storage and disposal  
9.9 No. of Panty liners in a pack  
9.10 words or symbol indicating whether flushable or not  
  
   
© KEBS 2016  — All rights reserved  7  
ANN EX A  
(normative)   
 
 
Method for determination of absorbency capacity  
 
A.1 Apparatus  
 
A.1.1 Flat level surface  
 
A.1.2 Burette  
 
A.1.3 Metallic block, of mass 1 kg and dimensions 150 mm x 50 mm x 15 mm  
 
A.2 Reagents 1 % solution of potassium dichromate made by dissolving 1 g K2Cr2O7 in 100 mL 
distilled water  
 
A.3 Procedure  
 
A.3.1 Lay the Panty Liner on a flat level surface.  
 
A.3.2 Drip at the minimum  1.0 mL of the fluid (see A.2) on to the centre of san itary towel from a 
height of approximately 2 mm.  
 
A.3.3 After the panty liner has absorbed the full amount of fluid, place a metallic block of mass 1 
kg A.1.3) for one minute on the portion where the fluid was absorbed.   
 
A.4 Test report  
 
Observe the back and sides of the sanitary towel for any leakage.