Poly Outdoors is proud to be the Australian supplier of genuine POLYWOOD® furniture. POLYWOOD® in the US embraces a zero-waste philosophy and is dedicated to annually recycling millions of plastic containers bound for landfills and oceans. From the very beginning, they have been committed to making a meaningful impact on future generations.
Central to everything they do at POLYWOOD® is their mission of stewardship. They have broadened their recycling initiatives to encompass post-consumer plastic sourced from local, regional, and global channels at their dedicated recycling facility to prevent plastics from polluting landfills and oceans. Going beyond recycling post-consumer plastics, their genuine POLYWOOD® lumber is endlessly reusable, with all scraps from their manufacturing process returning to their recycling centre for reprocessing, extrusion, and transformation back into lumber. Their zero-waste approach extends to recycling post-industrial scraps and materials like glass, packaging, paper, aluminium, shrink wrap, fasteners, fabric, resin, and pallets, minimising their environmental footprint.
Loads of recycled plastic are converted into authentic POLYWOOD lumber, which is used to create their diverse range of all-weather outdoor garden furniture.
Explore their authentic recycling process below and witness how they turn everyday waste into stunning outdoor furniture.
A Brief History
Since the 1950s, the production of disposable plastic has surged dramatically. Regrettably, plastic takes an extremely long time to decompose, and scientists are still uncertain how long plastic will endure after being disposed of in a landfill.
Polywood's Recycling Process
At POLYWOOD®, they recycle high-density polyethylene, an incredibly durable type of plastic commonly found throughout your home in items like milk jugs, detergent containers, shampoo bottles, lotion bottles, cleaner spray bottles, and more. High-density polyethylene (HDPE) stands out due to its ability to be endlessly recycled.
The Recycling Process
Upon arrival at their recycling facility, landfill-bound and ocean-bound plastics are delivered in large bales alongside any scrap lumber accumulated from their manufacturing process, all set for repurposing.
The compacted plastic material is conveyed to a massive shredder for initial shredding.
The shredded flakes are first pre-washed to remove any heavy materials like glass or rocks that may have been mixed in
Creating Authentic POLYWOOD® Lumber
The recycled pellets are conveyed to the Extrusion Department through a well-designed network of tubes connecting the two buildings. All pellets are housed in silos outside the building and then drawn in through additional tubes that directly feed their extrusion lines.
Tubing extends from the Recycling Building to the silos situated outside the Extrusion Department.
Their silos store recycled plastic pellets, awaiting transformation into POLYWOOD® lumber.
They take their recycled pellets, introduce colourant and other additives (to ensure vibrant, long-lasting colour), and then extrude the blend to the necessary size and shape of the lumber required (similar to how your squeeze Play-Doh as a child).
On the final leg of its journey, the recycled lumber arrives at their production cells, where craftsmen fabricate POLYWOOD® furniture.
Zero-Waste Approach
After their furniture has been constructed, 99% of all scraps from manufacturing are returned to their recycling plant for regrinding, extrusion, and conversion back into lumber. Additionally, they have implemented custom cardboard box machines that produce all their shipping boxes in the required sizes to minimise cardboard waste.