GreenDisk, a 22-year-old recycler of electronic media for the software, music and movie industries headquartered in Issaquah, WA, celebrated Earth Day this year with the creation of a new company called reShootz. Taking advantage of the burgeoning demand for sustainable raw materials, reShootz will develop and market 3D printer filaments using a dedicated stream of recycled plastics derived from discarded CDs and DVDs.

Quality is a priority for reShootz, both in the development and manufacturing processes. The recycled plastic and associated additives are formulated to ensure the desired material traits and print properties. In the filament manufacturing process, reShootz focuses on consistent flow, temperature, and drying speed to ensure shape and diameter, also critical to an effective print result.

Mickey Friedman, one of the reShootz principals explained: "You have to understand the history of the material and its unique characteristics to produce a quality product. Over the years, we've learned how to best take advantage of this particular set of recycled plastics, and thanks to the need for a tight audit trail, we know how they were made and where they came from." 

reShootz will offer a comprehensive product line using these plastics and plastic blends to produce the most highly desirable 3D printing traits: durability, opacity, strength, and flexibility. The primary recycled plastics mined from the entertainment industry including polycarbonate (PC), polystyrene (PS), polypropylene (PP), and ABS, will be converted into a collection of filament products, filling needs from specialty materials for service bureaus and corporations to fun general usage for hobbyists and the consumer marketplace.

For David Beschen, founder of GreenDisk and one of reShootz's principals, the decision to start producing filament was a logical next step. The 3D printing market is growing rapidly and there is room for a high-performance, sustainably produced filament.

"Producing high-quality, premium-grade filament from this special set of recycled plastics is a natural," said Beschen. "If someone wants to produce a product, they will want the option of producing one that will qualify as environmentally preferred."

reShootz is aiming to develop three different product lines, Performance, Production and Play, for its recycled filaments. The reShootz Performance line will be designed to take advantage of the unique properties built into these plastics. For example, the first filament offered in this line will be Vüz, an optical grade polycarbonate filament made from the CD/DVD plastic specially produced to meet the requirements necessary to support being read by lasers.

The reShootz Production line will offer recycled versions of all of the most popular filaments starting with rePC along with reABS, rePP and others.

The reShootz Play line is comprised of novelty filaments that focus on fun. The first one to launch will be reShootz Sparkle, a PC-based filament made from whole discs including the metal, which gives the material its sparkle.

"All of these materials were born out of electronic media but that does not mean they had to die there," said Beschen. "These plastics come packed with special values that reShootz can put back to work. But the Makers will be the ones to tell us exactly how."

reShootz plans to initiate a Kickstarter program this summer in support of the release of reShootz Vüz optical grade filament, the company's first premium recycled filament. Samples will be available prior to release.