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Daimler Testing Whether Household Waste Can Be Used in Car Parts

Daimler Testing Whether Household Waste Can Be Used in Car Parts

(Bloomberg) --

Daimler AG agreed to test recycled waste produced by Israel’s UBQ Materials Ltd. to see if it’s viable for use in car parts for new vehicles.

UBQ has developed a way to convert waste, including food, paper, dirty plastics and packaging, into a thermoplastic substitute that can be used in everyday goods. The material can be incorporated into thousands of items, including shopping carts, pipes and automotive parts, the Tel Aviv-based company said in a statement.

UBQ’s product has been given a 100-day test phase, a spokesman for Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz AG division said in an emailed response to questions. That will determine whether it can be used in the production of vehicles that go to market, he said.

Daimler and other automakers are under pressure to reduce the carbon-emissions impact from the manufacturing of their vehicles, and are in the middle of a costly transition from producing cars with traditional combustion engines to electric models.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alisa Odenheimer in Jerusalem at aodenheimer@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Shaji Mathew at shajimathew@bloomberg.net, ;Anthony Palazzo at apalazzo@bloomberg.net, John Bowker

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