# What these boxes are called, and where the names mislead

**The three families in this dataset have no agreed names. The same box is a
Eurobox, a euro crate, a stacking tote, an industrial tote or a "KLT box"
depending on who is selling it, and two of those terms also mean something else.
`common_names` in `containers.csv` carries the search terms; this file says which
ones are safe.**

Verified 27 July 2026 against the four catalogues in `listings.csv`.

## The names in `common_names`

Terms marked **captured** appear verbatim in a listing in `listings.csv`. The
rest are ordinary trade usage in that market, offered as search terms — treat
them as leads, not as evidence.

### Euro stacking containers

| Term | Where | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Eurobox, Euro container, Eurocontainer | Europe, general | captured |
| Euro crate, stacking crate | UK, NL | captured |
| Stacking tote, straight-wall tote | US | trade usage |
| Industrial tote | US, generic | trade usage |
| KLT box | vendor usage | captured — **see the trap below** |
| KLC | occasional | trade usage |
| Eurobehälter, Eurokiste, Stapelbehälter | Germany | trade usage |
| Bac gerbable, bac Euronorme | France | trade usage |
| Caja apilable | Spain | trade usage |
| Stapelbak | Netherlands | trade usage |

### Attached-lid containers

| Term | Where | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Attached lid container, ALC | UK, EU | captured |
| Attached top container, ATC | US | trade usage |
| Attached-lid tote, distribution tote | US | trade usage |
| Hinged-lid crate | general | trade usage |
| Crocodile-lid box | UK | UK retail copy, for a recycled-material range; not in these captures |
| **Hudson box** | US | colloquial, after the vendor Hudson Exchange |
| Industrial tote | US, generic | trade usage |
| Klappdeckelbehälter, Deckelbehälter | Germany | trade usage |
| Bac à couvercle solidaire | France | trade usage |

"Hudson box" is a genericised vendor name, like Hoover for a vacuum cleaner. It
is in `common_names` because people search it, not because it denotes a
standard — Hudson Exchange sells US-footprint totes (55.6 × 38.6 cm and
similar), not 600 × 400 Euro modules, so a "Hudson box" is quite likely **not**
palletisable on a EUR-1 the way an ALC from this dataset's 600 × 400 rows is.

### VDA KLTs

| Term | Where | Status |
|---|---|---|
| KLT, R-KLT, RL-KLT | automotive, worldwide | captured |
| Kleinladungsträger | Germany — the term KLT abbreviates | trade usage |
| Small load carrier, SLC | EN 13199 language | standard |
| VDA container, VDA 4500 carrier | automotive | standard |
| Automotive tote, returnable tote | US | trade usage |
| ESD KLT | conductive variant, electronics | trade usage (the one captured ESD listing is a euro crate, not a KLT) |

## Two traps

**"KLT" is used loosely for boxes that are not KLTs.** Salesbridges titles
ordinary open-top euroboxes "Euro Container KLT Box" — 14 listings in these
captures do it, at eight heights (18.5 to 43.5 cm) and on three footprints
including 80 × 60, none of which is on the VDA 4500 grid of 147.5 / 213 / 280 mm
or within the EN 13199 600 × 400 cap. A real KLT is a thicker-walled returnable
carrier on that height grid; `build_listings.py` therefore classifies on the
`R-KLT` / `RL-KLT` product line and SKU prefix, never on the word "KLT" alone. If
you filter this dataset by name rather than by `type`, you will pick up
euroboxes and call them automotive carriers.

**"Tote" means opposite things in different markets.** In US usage a tote is any
industrial container, tapered or straight, lidded or open. In UK usage it leans
towards the attached-lid product. "Industrial tote" therefore sits in
`common_names` for **both** the Euro and ALC families, which is correct and also
useless as a discriminator. Discriminate on `type`, `lidded` and
`nestable_when_empty`, never on the name.

## The reliable way to tell them apart

| | Euro stacking container | Attached-lid container | VDA KLT |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walls | straight | sloping | straight |
| Lid | separate purchase | integral, hinged | separate |
| Nests empty | no | ~75 % | no |
| Height grid | manufacturer's choice | manufacturer's choice | 147.5 / 213 / 280 mm |
| `type` | `euro_stacking_container` | `attached_lid_container` | `vda_klt_container` |

Names are for finding rows. `type`, `lidded` and `nestable_when_empty` are for
using them.