UNHCR FRT 16 m² Family Relief Tent
The UNHCR Family Relief Tent at its baseline 16 m² floor footprint — 4 m × 4 m, double-layer fire-retardant cotton canvas, steel ridge-pole frame, PVC ground cloth, designed to shelter a 5-person family unit in protracted displacement. Manufactured at BNC Karachi to UNHCR's published canvas-tent specification.
Continuous UNHCR-system supply since 1994 · ISO 9001 · Up to 12,000 units / month capacity
The numbers on the procurement sheet.
UNHCR's Family Relief Tent specification is the most-quoted shelter SKU in humanitarian procurement. BNC's 16 m² FRT matches the spec at every dimension a quality team will measure on receipt — canvas weight, tensile, frame, ground cloth, fire retardancy. Third-party assay reports are issued per batch and shared on supplier-qualification request.
- Floor area
- 16 m² (4 m × 4 m)
- Capacity
- 5-person family unit
- Standing height
- 1.85 m at ridge, 1.2 m at eaves
- Fly canvas
- 280 gsm cotton, fire-retardant treated
- Body canvas
- 410 gsm cotton, double-layer with insulating air gap
- Ground cloth
- 510 gsm PVC, fully welded seams, waterproof
- Frame
- Galvanised steel ridge-pole + corner uprights, rope-tensioned
- Ventilation
- Two mesh windows, mesh-screened door
- Packing
- Bale with frame separately packed, ~70 kg total
- Lead time
- 14–28 days FOB Karachi from stocked components
Why the 16 m² FRT is still the workhorse.
The 16 m² footprint sits at the intersection of UNHCR's Sphere-aligned minimum living area for a 5-person household and the largest unit that fits efficiently in a 20-foot container. A camp planner can lay out 16 m² FRTs on 6 m × 6 m plots with 2 m service alleys and recover ~280 households per hectare — the math that drives the standard's persistence across crises.
Double-layer canvas matters more in practice than first-time buyers expect. A single-layer tent in equatorial sun runs 8–12 °C above ambient by noon. The double-layer FRT, with insulating air gap between fly and body, holds 3–5 °C above ambient — the difference between a child sleeping through the day and not. In monsoon climates, the same air gap lets the fly absorb the wet without saturating the body canvas.
Fire retardancy is mandatory in camp settings where families cook with kerosene or wood inside the tent. UNHCR's FR requirement is a self-extinguish test, not a no-burn test — the canvas chars and stops propagating rather than igniting through. BNC's canvas is treated and certified per batch; the certificate ships with the tent.
Where BNC's 16 m² FRT has gone into the field.
Afghanistan refugee response · multi-year
Long-running supply into UNHCR and partner-INGO Afghanistan operations from the 1990s onward — both inside Afghanistan and into Pakistan-side Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa hosting communities. Cross-border road consignments through Torkham crossing.
Pakistan flood responses · 2010 and 2022
Bulk FRT supply during both major Pakistan flood emergencies, consolidated through UNHCR Pakistan, IFRC Pakistan Red Crescent, and INGO partners running displacement camps in Sindh and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
Türkiye-Syria earthquake · 2023
Airlifted via Saudia Cargo and Turkish Cargo into Adana within 72 hours of order during the February 2023 earthquake response. Onward distribution by Kızılay (Turkish Red Crescent) and IFRC.
Sudan + cross-border Chad · current
Karachi → Port Sudan sea-freight route in 18-day transit on standard sailings; airlift via Saudia or Ethiopian Cargo at 48–72 hours. Active corridor as of the 2025–26 Sudan displacement response.
Quote on 16 m² FRT — same Karachi business day.
Tell us volume, destination, Incoterm, and any agency-specific deviations from the published spec. We come back with price, lead time, and the relevant certifications attached.