What We Do
Our capabilities span the entire plastics recycling value chain – from recycling and granulating scrap, to compounding it into high-quality pellets, and finally extruding those pellets into useful products.
This end-to-end process helps keep plastic out of landfills and in the production loop, supporting a circular economy. Below, we explain each stage of what we do in a conversational way, along with how it benefits our customers and the environment.
Stage One: Post-Industrial Plastic Recycling & Granulation
At Resource Plastics, our plastic recycling and compounding services begin with the collection and processing of post-industrial plastic scrap from manufacturers across Illinois and the Midwest. These streams include trimmings, off-spec parts, and other byproducts that would otherwise end up as landfill waste.
We recycle and sort more than a dozen common polymers, including:
ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene): Automotive and electronics housings
PS (Polystyrene): Consumer goods and protective packaging
PET & PETG (Polyesters): Bottles, clamshells, and films
PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride): Pipes, vinyl sheets, and building materials
PP (Polypropylene): Molded parts, totes, bins, and automotive components
Each load of scrap is carefully sorted by polymer type (and sometimes by grade or color) to maintain material purity. Once separated, the material is fed into industrial granulators, where it undergoes plastic granulation. These large machines grind the plastics into small, uniform flakes (about 3/8-inch in size), often referred to as regrind.
This clean and consistent flake becomes a reliable recycled raw material—either used in our own compounding process or supplied directly to manufacturers as feedstock. By transforming bulky waste into high-quality flake, Resource Plastics reduces landfill impact and provides sustainable resin inputs for tomorrow’s plastic products.
Stage Two: Plastic Compounding & Pelletizing
After granulation, the next step in our plastic recycling and compounding process is to transform clean flakes into recycled plastic pellets. This is the form most manufacturers—such as injection molders and extruders—rely on as their primary raw material.
The process begins with batch blending. Regrind is carefully mixed to achieve a consistent blend before entering our extrusion lines. Inside the extruder, the plastic is melted and forced through a die, then cut into uniform pellets as it cools. By converting scrap into pellets, we make recycled plastic far more versatile and reusable.
Our compounding capabilities include:
Blending compatible plastic streams to engineer desired properties
Drying hygroscopic plastics like ABS and PET to maintain quality
Melt filtration that removes fine contaminants (paper, wood, unmelted impurities)
In-house lab testing, quality control, material analysis.
- Toll grinding and Toll compounding services for customers that need the material processed and returned.
The result is a clean, high-quality reprocessed pellet with consistent composition and performance. Using strand-cut or water-ring cut technology, we produce pellets that rival prime (virgin) resin—at a more cost-effective price point.
From our facility in Alsip, Illinois, Resource Plastics delivers recycled pellets that support manufacturers across the Midwest and the U.S., helping reduce waste while ensuring a reliable, sustainable resin supply.
Stage Three: Profile Extrusion & Finished Recycled Plastic Products
What makes Resource Plastics unique is that we don’t stop at producing recycled resin. We also use our in-house profile extrusion lines to turn recycled plastic pellets into finished products. Profile extrusion is the process of forcing melted plastic through a shaped die to create continuous lengths with uniform cross-sections—similar to pressing play-dough through a mold, but at industrial scale.
Our 100% recycled plastic products include:
Landscape edging and strips for lawns, gardens, driveways, and walkways
Profiles for rooftop gardens and greenhouses that provide durability in outdoor environments
Protective packaging components such as edge guards and corner protectors
These sustainable products are marketed through trusted partners, including a long-time Midwest landscaping distributor, and are used by landscapers, contractors, greenhouses, and packaging professionals who want durable, eco-friendly materials.
After extrusion, we provide secondary fabrication to meet specific customer needs. This includes cutting extruded strips to custom lengths, drilling holes or slots for landscape edging installation, and other finishing touches.
By combining plastic recycling and compounding with profile extrusion, Resource Plastics delivers high-quality finished products made in Alsip, Illinois—helping manufacturers, landscapers, and end-users reduce waste and rely on sustainable materials.