ByFusion: This startup is turning nonrecyclable plastic into building blocks fit for construction

ByFusion was a member of the inaugural NZA cohort in 2019.

After years of R&D, startup ByFusion is processing 450 tons of plastic a year—with the goal of reaching 100 million tons by 2030.

In a world of disposable everything, single-use plastics continue to reign supreme.

Every year, Americans generate about 42 million tons of it. And yet only 9% of that gets recycled, in part because the recycling infrastructure in the U.S. can’t keep up with the country’s plastic production, but also because some plastics simply can’t be recycled.

Los Angeles-based startup ByFusion is on a mission to change that.ByFusion uses a combination of steam and compression to shape all kinds of plastics, even nonrecyclables, into standard building blocks called ByBlocks. These can be used to build anything from fences and retaining walls to public terraces and bus stops, but the real stars are the patented machines used to make them. Called Blockers, these hefty machines are fed mounds of plastic that are squeezed into blocks—no sorting or cleaning needed. After years of R&D, the company has installed a full production unit in L.A., where it can process 450 tons of plastic per year, with 12 more Blockers in the pipeline across the country….

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