LEGO has taken the next step in creating sustainable bricks for its playsets by making prototype pieces out of recycled PET (polyethylene terephthalate) plastic bottles, the first of its kind.
In development for over three years by a team of 150 specialists, they can get roughly 10 2×4 building bricks out of a one-liter plastic bottle. The toy company unveiled a that outlines some of the testing processes that the over 250 variations of new materials are being put through to ensure they are safe and durable.
Tim Brooks, Vice President of Environmental Responsibility for LEGO, has provided some insight into the company’s motivation behind the process. “We know kids care about the environment and want us to make our products more sustainable. Even though it will be a while before they will be able to play with bricks made from recycled plastic, we want to let kids know we’re working on it and bring them along on the journey with us. Experimentation and failing is an important part of learning and innovation. Just as kids build, unbuild and rebuild with LEGO bricks at home, we’re doing the same in our lab.”
Some of the other pieces in LEGO sets are already made from a different form of sustainably produced material called bio-polyethylene (bio-PE), which is sourced from sugarcane. This material is softer than traditional plastic, so isn’t ideal for the iconic bricks at the core of a LEGO set. Instead, it’s been used since 2018 to make smaller pieces such as trees or accessories for minifigures.
The new pieces use a “bespoke compound technology” to make them stronger that is patent-pending. They are expected to undergo another round of testing that will take approximately a year, so it will be some time until they are seen in boxed LEGO playsets. More updates will be made available as the company moves through the process.
Source: The Brothers Brick
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