LIXIL introduces revia – a circular material born from waste plastic and wood

Bringing a new value to plastics, the first revia product will be revia pave, a paving material for sidewalks, plazas, parks, and building exteriors, which will be available for sale in Japan starting January 10, 2023.

Leveraging LIXIL’s expertise in pulverising and moulding plastics in combination with waste wood that is typically generated from the demolition of buildings, revia can be made from most household and commercial plastic waste including composite types or even marine plastics.

Utilising plastic and wood waste to create one ton of revia that would have otherwise been incinerated after use can result in an 82 per cent reduction in CO₂ emissions. The material itself can also be collected and recycled again to become new revia products.

Therefore, revia contributes to the environment in two key ways; by cutting the amount of CO₂ generated by conventional waste processing and by enabling the responsible reuse of plastics as a raw material.

Plastic waste has more than doubled globally over the last twenty years (largely comprised of single-use plastics), yet only 9 per cent is recycled. Most plastic waste is incinerated or sent to landfill, polluting the air and leaking into ecosystems. This represents an urgent and growing environmental issue around the world.

LIXIL president and CEO Kinya Seto commented, “Low recycling rates and pollution caused by plastic consumption is an environmental issue across the world. As a maker of pioneering water and housing products, we are committed to the responsible use of resources and driving innovation to solve real-life challenges. With revia, we aim to create an ecosystem that spans procurement to production, sales, installation, and collection, establishing a sustainable business model that can be scaled. By doing so, we want to maximise our positive impact on the environment."

"Starting in Japan, and with the cooperation of partners and stakeholders including local and national governments and industry associations, LIXIL believes that revia can accelerate the shift to a circular economy and make better homes a reality for everyone, everywhere,” added Seto.

In Japan, 24 per cent of plastic waste is recycled. However, on a per capita basis, Japan is the second largest generator of plastic waste – disposing of 22,000 tons per day.

This April, Japan enacted the Act on the Promotion of Resource Circulation for Plastics to strengthen its efforts to circulate plastic resources across the public and private sectors.

Japan has progressed from recycling mainly PET bottles to closing the loop for other plastic resources including plastic containers and packaging used for take-outs and groceries.

Still, some types of plastics are deemed difficult to sort and recycle by those responsible for collecting waste. Composite plastics and packaging films are such examples, which are made from numerous types of plastics with several different properties to enhance functionality but continue to be incinerated or dumped in landfill after use.

Starting with revia pave, the company will expand its product offerings beyond paving materials with a series of different applications in the future.

Designed as paving material, revia pave is suitable for sidewalks, nature trails in national parks, plazas between office buildings and commercial facilities, and smart cities.

The product resembles the appearance of wood that blends with nature and its surrounding scenery and has a textured surface that plays with light and shadow to create a pleasant ambience. Incorporating universal design principles, revia pave is comfortable to walk on, highly durable, weather resistant, and strong. Its weight is also half of that of concrete paving materials, which helps alleviate the burden of installation.

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