The American National Standards Institute has approved the revised safety and performance standard: ANSI/BIFMA X5.9-2019, Storage Units. This new national consensus standard was finalized and approved by ANSI on Feb. 1, 2019. It supersedes and replaces the 2012 edition.
The BIFMA Subcommittee for Storage Units Standards and diverse industry stakeholders worked for two years to revise this standard. The 2019 version incorporates several updates and improvements, the most significant of which are to the Stability Tests. Public input along with round-robin testing provided valuable improvements to several of the stability tests. A detailed Summary of Changes is listed in Appendix C of the document.
The X5.9-2019 standard defines the specific tests, laboratory equipment, conditions of test and recommended minimum levels to be used in the testing and evaluation of the safety, durability, and structural adequacy of Storage Unit products. BIFMA will formally withdraw the X5.3 Vertical Files standard as the tests in X5.9-2019 now apply to these units also.
Copies of the new standard are available from BIFMA immediately. This and other standards may be ordered online at https://www.bifma.org/store/ListProducts.aspx?catid=185078.