Guide

What to print on a ceramic tile carton (ISO 13006)

ISO 13006, the international standard for ceramic tiles, requires tiles and/or their packaging to carry ten items: the manufacturer and country of origin, first quality, the tile type and group, the nominal and work sizes, glazed or unglazed, any surface treatment, the number of tiles, the batch, the shade and the maximum weight of the box. Ethiopia adopted the standard as ES ISO 13006.

By Eastern Dragon Package Tech PLCLast updated 24 September 2026

Key facts

The standard	ISO 13006:2018, Ceramic tiles: definitions, classification, characteristics and marking
Ethiopian standard	ES ISO 13006:2005 (Ethiopian Standards Agency)
Where the marking goes	On the tiles and/or their packaging
Items to mark	Ten, listed in clause 8.1
Changes with every run	Batch and shade
On each tile	The country where it was made, on the back or edge

What does ISO 13006 require on a tile box?

Clause 8.1 of ISO 13006:2018 lists the marking that tiles and/or their packaging must carry. In practice the marking goes on the carton: the fixed items are printed on it, and the items that change with each production run are stamped or labelled by the factory line.

Item	What it means	Printed or stamped
Manufacturer and country of origin	Your mark or trademark, and “Made in Ethiopia”	Printed
First quality	The quality of the tiles in the box	Printed
Tile type and group	Dry-pressed or extruded, and the group and annex, e.g. Group BIa, Annex G	Printed
Nominal and work sizes	e.g. 60 × 60 cm (work size 598 × 598 × 10 mm), and “M” if modular	Printed or stamped
Surface	Glazed (GL) or unglazed (UGL)	Printed
Surface treatment	Any treatment applied after firing, such as a protective sealer	Printed if used
Number of tiles	The tiles in the box	Printed or stamped
Batch	The manufacturer’s production run or batch number	Stamped
Shade	The colour consistency, as defined by the manufacturer	Stamped
Maximum dry weight	The weight the tiles and packaging will not exceed	Printed or stamped

What does a complete marking look like?

ISO 13006 gives worked examples. One, for a porcelain floor tile, reads: “The 123 Tile Co., Made in Spain, Ceramic Tile of First Quality. Dry-pressed porcelain tile, ISO 13006:2018, Annex G, Group BIa, Rectified. 60 cm × 60 cm (Sw 598 mm × 598 mm × 10 mm) UGL. 3 pcs/box, batch B52, 0590-Slate, Max dry weight: 16 kg.” For an Ethiopian factory, the same marking names your company and “Made in Ethiopia”. The standard also asks that each tile shows the country where it was made on its back or edge.

Why do the batch and the shade matter?

Tiles from different production runs can differ slightly in colour and size, so installers lay a floor from boxes of the same batch and shade. That is why these two items should be easy to read on the end of the carton, where boxes stacked on a pallet or a shop shelf can be checked without moving them.

How should the carton be designed around the marking?

Plan the marking with your carton maker before the artwork is final.

Print the fixed items (your mark, origin, first quality, tile type and group, surface) on the carton.
Leave a clear, light panel on each end for the batch, shade, size and count your line stamps or labels.
Size the carton to the tiles and the count, so nothing moves and edges cannot chip.
Choose the board for the full box weight and the stacking height on the pallet.
Show the maximum weight clearly: tile boxes are lifted by hand on site.

How strong does a tile carton have to be?

Strong enough for a heavy, dense load. The examples in ISO 13006 give maximum box weights of 16 to 20 kg, and boxes of large floor tiles are often heavier. The carton should fit tightly, because tiles that can move chip their edges, and the board is chosen for the box weight and how high boxes are stacked. For export, allow for the road or rail journey to Djibouti and for sea freight.

Questions

Does the marking go on the tile or on the box?

ISO 13006 allows either: the marking is required on “tiles and/or their packaging”. In practice it goes on the box, and each tile shows only the country where it was made, on its back or edge.

What do GL and UGL mean on a tile box?

GL means glazed and UGL means unglazed. The nature of the tile’s surface is one of the items ISO 13006 requires in the marking.

What is the difference between nominal size and work size?

The nominal size describes the tile, such as 60 × 60 cm. The work size is the size it is made to, such as 598 × 598 × 10 mm. ISO 13006 asks for both on the marking.