Working with fans to recycle resources through Gunpla
This year marks the 45th anniversary of Gunpla, plastic model kits from the Mobile Suit Gundam series. The Gunpla Recycling Project, inspired by Gunpla, collects runnersーthe plastic frames that hold the individual model partsーwith the cooperation of fans and transforms them into new resources.
Transforming runners into new resources to tackle the issue of plastic waste
Runners are the plastic frameworks containing individual parts found in plastic model kits. Until now, they have been discarded as household waste after assembly. However, disposing of or incinerating plastic runners as combustible waste produces CO2 emissions. Today, plastic waste has become a worldwide social issue, and as a company that sells products made of plastic, we felt an inherent responsibility to address this issue. Furthermore, people’s concern for the environment has grown in recent years and an increasing number of customers are looking for products and services that are considerate of the environment. We launched the Gunpla Recycling Project for these reasons.
Three methods to utilize collected runners and harness new recycling technologies
The project collects runners at boxes set up at around 200 locations across Japan, including amusement facilities and official all-in-one facilities dedicated to Gundam model kits. The trucks that deliver products to each location load up the collected runners in their empty cargo holds and return them to the factory. This eliminates the need to dispatch new transport vehicles, which also reduces CO2 emissions. The collected runners are brought to the Bandai Hobby Center (Shizuoka Prefecture), a Gunpla production factory. There, runners are recycled using three methods: material recycling, chemical recycling, and thermal recycling.
The most common recycling method is material recycling, in which the runners are crushed, melted, and solidified into granular pellets. The granular pellets are melted with heat to create a new type of Gunpla called “Ecopla”. A unique trait of Ecopla is that the color of the parts varies depending on the color of the runners collected.
Chemical recycling is garnering attention as a new technology that chemically decomposes runners into their original form of petroleum, from which new plastic is made. Compared to material recycling, this method offers greater flexibility, allowing discarded runners to be transformed into a variety of new products. In April 2025, we commercialized the use of chemically recycled plastic in creating model kits.
Of course, runners that cannot be reused according to either of these methods do not go to waste. They are incinerated together with waste from the Bandai Hobby Center and the heat is used to generate electricity. This method is called thermal recycling.
Fan power is increasing collection volume and making resource recycling possible
Thanks to the cooperation of our fans, we collected 37 tons of runners in fiscal 2024. From the project’s launch in April 2021 through March 2025, runners weighing approximately 117 tons have been collected. Runner recycling is a project that is made possible by the cooperation of fans. We are expanding opportunities to raise awareness of the project through social media and events such as Operation Gundam R, a hands-on recycling event. We will also carry on our efforts to realize a recycling-oriented society together with our fans.
ECOPLA model kit assembly event
Creating the future—Operation Gundam R
Operation Gundam R is an event held to raise awareness of the Gunpla Recycling Project. At the venue, Ecopla experience kits are distributed, allowing visitors to experience everything from assembling Ecopla to collecting runners in collection boxes. Through this activity, we hope to raise awareness of recycling.
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