ZEON Logistical Materials Co., Ltd. (1-6-2 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Hitoshi Ozawa), a wholly owned subsidiary of ZEON Corporation (President & CEO: Naozumi Furukawa) has developed a new assembly mechanism of container (patent pending) that is easier to use and launched nationwide sales of a folding, returnable, corrugated plastic container, STEC^® NL ECO Type, that incorporates the new mechanism, making the container lighter in weight.

Since July 2004, the company has been marketing a folding, returnable, corrugated plastic container, STEC^® NL S Type, that is strong and lightweight. The container has been well received by users. However, market demand is growing recently for containers that are lighter, for easier assembly and folding by women and elderly, and improve working efficiency. In response to this need, ZEON Logistical Materials has developed and launched the new product, which is easier to handle and lighter than the earlier model by incorporating the new assembly mechanism into the design.

The newly released STEC^® NL ECO Type corrugated plastic container has the following features:

(1)	Assembly and folding are made quicker and easier compared to conventional containers by changing the panel assembly mechanism from the insertion method to the fit-in method (patent pending). Furthermore, the new mechanism reduces the number of components, resulting in lighter weight and lower price.
(2)	For example, a new, one-cubic-meter STEC® container reinforced with a steel-frame weighs approximately 30 kg, excluding the weight of the pallet, slightly more than 10% lighter than the company's conventional corrugated plastic containers with steel frames. The company has also begun selling super-lightweight aluminum frame containers, weighing approximately 23 kg, excluding the weight of the pallet.
(3)	Use of the lighter weight unit for exporting can save air shipping costs.
(4)	Three types of metal reinforcing frames are available, depending on required load resistance and container weight: aluminum, steel, and stainless steel.

Supplementary explanation
STEC^®, the company's main product, features the following characteristics:

(1)	Easily folded and assembled; folded height is approximately 1/4 of the assembled height for storage.
(2)	Efficient storage when folded to significantly reduce collection costs and space required for storage.
(3)	Collection and reuse of the container helps reduce costs and waste, while also facilitating the recycling of resources.
(4)	Can be repaired and replaced by component, thereby maintaining optimum condition.

Photos of newly developed and marketed STEC^® NL ECO Type returnable container made of corrugated plastic:
1. Entire container


2. Assembly and folding method

Insertion method (conventional product) Fastener: F bar Slide and insert panel A inside the slot of panel B, then secure with F bar.

Fit-in method (new product) Fastener: Pin bar Insert panel D into panel C from the side, then secure with pin bar. The metal fastener is positioned at the same level as the upper surface of the side board to reduce shaking and eliminate any gap between the lid and side boards.