Companies have used shipping containers for decades and for most of this time steel containers were responsible for moving millions of products around the world. Recently, Stephan Lechner of the European Commission’s Joint Research Center in Italy, gave a detailed description of how carbon fiber composites could change the way we use shipping containers for global trading. A composite container is 42 percent lighter than aluminum and although composites can be a little more expensive than their aluminum or steel counterparts, there are other costs to be considered – like fuel costs when traveling long distances