1. EUROPEAN
STANDARDS OF BODY
MEASUREMENT

2. The European Clothing
Standard
EN 13402
EN 13402 is a European standard for labelling clothes sizes. It is based on body
dimensions, measured in centimetres. It aims to replace many older national
dress-size systems, starting in the year 2006.
There are three approaches for size-labelling of clothes:
Body dimensions: The product label states for which range of body
dimensions the product was designed. (Example: bike helmet labeled "head
girth: 56–60 cm", shoe labeled "foot length: 28 cm")
Product dimensions: The label states characteristic measures of the
product. (Example: jeans labeled with their inner-leg length in centimeters or
inches, i.e. not the – several centimeters longer – inner leg length of the
intended wearer)
Ad-hoc size: The label provides a size number or code with no obvious
relationship to any measurement. (Example: Size 12, XL)

3. EN 13402-1: Terms, definitions and body measurement
procedure
The first part of the standard defines the list of body dimensions to
be used for designating clothes sizes, together with an anatomical
explanation and measurement guidelines:
-Head girth:
maximum horizontal girth of the head measured above the ears.
-Neck girth:
girth of the neck measured with the tape measure passed 2 cm
below the Adam's apple and at the level of the 7th cervical
vertebra.
-Chest girth:
maximum horizontal girth measured during normal breathing
with the subject standing erect and the tape-measure passed
over the shoulder blades (scapulae), under the armpits (axillae),
and across the chest.

4. Continued…
Bust girth
Maximum horizontal girth measured during normal breathing with the subject
standing erect and the tape-measure passed horizontally, under the armpits
(axillae), and across the bust prominence (over a brassiere that shall not deform
the breast in an unnatural way and shall not displace its volume)
Underbust girth
Horizontal girth of the body measured just below the breasts
Waist girth
Girth of the natural waistline between the top of the hip bones (iliac crests) and
the lower ribs, measured with the subject breathing normally and standing erect
with the abdomen relaxed
Hip girth
Horizontal girth measured round the buttocks at the level of maximum
circumference
Height
Vertical distance between the crown of the head and the soles of the feet, 4
measured with the subject standing erect without shoes and with the feet
together (for infants not yet able to stand upright: length of the body measured
in a straight line from the crown of the head to the soles of the feet)

5. Continued…
Inside leg length
Distance between the crotch and the soles of the feet, measured in a straight
vertical line with the subject erect, feet slightly apart, and the weight of the body
equally distributed on both legs.
Arm length
Distance, measured using the tape-measure, from the armscye/shoulder line
intersection (acromion), over the elbow, to the far end of the prominent wrist
bone (ulna), with the subject's right fist clenched and placed on the hip, and with
the arm bent at 90°.
Hand girth
Maximum girth measured over the knuckles (metacarpals) of the open right hand,
fingers together and thumb excluded.
Foot length
Horizontal distance between perpendiculars in contact with the end of the most
prominent toe and the most prominent part of the heel, measured with the
subject standing barefoot and the weight of the body equally distributed on both
feet.
Body mass
Measured with a suitable balance in kilograms.

6. EN 13402-2: Primary and secondary dimensions

9. EN 13402-3: Measurements and intervals
The third part of the standard defines preferred numbers of
primary and secondary body dimensions.
The product should not be labeled with the average body
dimension for which the garment was designed (i.e., not "height:
176"). Instead, the label should show the range of body
dimensions from half the step size below to half the step size
above the design size (e.g., "height: 172-180").
For heights, for example, the standard recommends generally to
use the following design dimensions, with a step size of 8 cm:

10. For trousers, the recommended step size for height is 4 cm:
The standard defines similar tables for other dimensions and
garments, only some of which are shown here.

11. Men
The standard sizes and ranges for chest and waist girth
are:

12. The above table is for drop = -12 cm, where
drop = waist girth - chest girth.
Example: While manufacturers will typically design clothes for
chest girth = 100 cm such that it fits waist girth = 88 cm, they
may also want to combine that chest girth with neighboring
waist girth step sizes 84 cm or 92 cm, to cover these drop types
(-16 cm and -8 cm) as well.
The standard also suggests that neck girth can be associated
with chest girth according to this table:

14. Women
Dress sizes
The standard sizes and ranges for bust, waist and hip girth are:

15. Bra sizes
The standard sizes for brassiere are:

16. The secondary dimension bust size can be expressed in terms of
the difference
cup size = bust girth - underbust girth
and can be labeled compactly using a letter code appended to
the Underbust girth:
Example: Bra size 70B is suitable for women with underbust
girth 68-72 cm and bust girth 84-86 cm.

17. Letter codes
For clothes were a larger step size is sufficient, the standard also
defines a letter code. This code represents the bust girth for
women and the chest girth for men. The standard does not
define such a code for children.

18. EN 13402-4: Coding system
The fourth part of the standard is still under review and is
expected to be published in early 2006. It describes a compact
coding system for clothes sizes. It is mostly intended for
industry to use in databases and as a part of stock-keeping
identifiers and catalogue ordering numbers. Writing out all the
centimetre figures of all the primary and secondary measures
from EN 13402-2 can in some cases require up to 12 digits. The
full list of centimeter figures on the pictogram contains a lot of
redundancy and the same information can be squeezed into
fewer digits with lookup tables. EN 13402-4 defines several such
tables. They list all in-use combinations of EN 13402-3 measures
and assign a short 2- or 3-digit code to each.

19. REFERENCE
 www.OnlineConversion.com
 www.Wikipedia.org
 www.dresssizes.org/uk.htm
 www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clothing_sizes
 www.onlineconversion.com/clothing_en13402_standard.htm
 www.sewingpatterns.com/simplicity-charts2.html