After a first collaborative study related to air permeability, which is an important parameter of wrapping papers for tobacco products, the Physical Test Methods (PTM) Sub-Group decided to carry out a regular collaborative study related to this parameter. The method for measuring air permeability is specified in ISO 2965:2019.  This ISO standard allows the use of the 2×15 mm² measuring head for air permeability measurement on cigarette paper, whenever the available area on the paper sample is too small for the 10×20 mm² measuring head. This may be the case for measurements on paper samples taken from cigarettes or other finished tobacco products.

The first collaborative study related to air permeability provided the repeatability and reproducibility data for the 2×15 mm² measuring head used on conventional cigarette paper. This second collaborative study serves to verify these results.

In addition, this study allows the participating laboratories to monitor their performance in comparison to other laboratories, to derive actions for improvement of their internal processes and to fulfil accreditation requirements.