Construction Blocks Made from Plastic Waste Used for Expansion of Pittsburgh Building

Construction blocks containing the Center for Regenerative Design & Collaboration’s (CRDC) RESIN8 post-consumer plastic waste technology is being used in the expansion of a facility in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Braskem, a producer of polyolefins and biopolymers, is using the technology to expand its Innovation and Technology Center.

The CRDC, based in Costa Rica with operations in the US and South Africa, produced the blocks at Fizzano Brothers Concrete Products in Philadelphia, integrating a concrete aggregate replacement made from post-consumer plastic waste. The use of CRDC’s RESIN8 blocks uses formerly landfill-bound mixed plastics and diverts plastic waste from otherwise escaping waste collection and going back into the environment. According to CRDC, the blocks have additional strength and the same certifications as traditional concrete blocks, and they also weigh less, which helps reduce their carbon impact and lowers the cost of shipping in the transportation process.

The renovation of Braskem’s I&T Center includes eight new laboratories. CRDC says RESIN8 is helping transition the plastic waste stream into an appreciating value stream for the concrete, construction, and housing industries.

Source: www.environmentalleader.com