Nathan Gray stands with a product made from chips.
Matthew J. Mowy/Business NH Magazine
Nathan Gray has an endless supply of raw materials for his products. He wants to see that change. Gray is the CEO of Plastic Recycled, a Barrington-based company that, as the company’s tagline says, “creates new life from single-use plastics.”
To put the supply chain into perspective, according to EarthDay.org, Americans purchase approximately 50 billion water bottles annually, with each U.S. citizen purchasing an average of approximately 13 bottles per month. There will be. And it’s just a water bottle.
Through Plastic Recycled, Gray partners with local governments, businesses, and community organizations to set up 36 collection points throughout Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine to collect recycled materials, especially plastic lids and bottle caps. , collected plastics that are difficult to recycle, such as prescription bottles. They are then crushed into colorful plastic confetti that are used to make products such as bowls, planters, turtle sculptures, outdoor benches, recycling bins, and even home siding.
Gray founded the company four years ago and currently has four employees. He said the company has reached breakeven and is on the verge of becoming profitable and expects to do so with the next expansion.
“There’s so much plastic in the world that it’s not about collecting it. It’s about developing the product to make it a viable business,” he says. “We need to find people who can support us and who are interested in the story behind the product.”
Gray also founded the House Factory Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating people about sustainability, recycled building materials, and environmentally friendly practices. This includes how to make ecobricks, a construction material used for small-scale projects such as furniture made from plastic bottles filled with soft, clean, dry plastic such as plastic bags.
Mr. Gray also receives recycled large plastics from companies and institutions such as NH Ball Bearings and Harvard University. “We can have materials shipped all over the country,” Gray said.
Plastic Recycled uses approximately 1 ton of recycled material each month. “We recycle 100% of the product that comes in,” Gray says.
Gray is a serial entrepreneur who started a masonry business in high school and grew it to 15 employees and 30 subcontractors. “We realized all the waste we were creating and wanted to improve that waste stream,” Gray says. He was also inspired when his brother-in-law showed him ecobricks made from recycled plastic. That’s why Mr. Gray launched his Plastic Recycled four years ago.
Gray says anything that can be made from wood can be made from recycled plastic. He also makes large sheets of recycled plastic that can be used for countertops and other large projects.
Mr. Gray is currently looking for an investment partner. “We have proof of concept and are consistent with the final product,” he says. “I want to establish bases in the United States.”
Mr. Gray plans to open another facility in New Hampshire next year and is negotiating a strategic partnership with another company that could provide him with more warehouse space. “We continue to grow,” he says. “A lot of people are passionate about recycling.” For more information, visit Plasticrecycled.com.
