Our Zhangjagang site in China uses high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic drums to package and store electromagnetic process chemicals with pH ranging from 1 (highly acidic) to 10+ (alkaline).

The site sourcing leader and lead production technician collaborated with the product drum supplier on an improvement project that reduced plastic drum weight by 10% without impacting drum integrity. The team ensured full quality and technical evaluation over several months, which included pressure testing, drop testing, stacking integrity and transportation safety validation. The lighter supplies proved equally as effective as the previous supply, and reduced the weight of the storage drums led to a reduction in fuel required to transport them, leading to reduced carbon footprint.

Besides the carbon footprint reduction, the project also avoids 78,000 kg of HDPE per year, which helps reduce overall raw material and resource consumption.