Prime Highlights-
- AI-powered Brick-O-Matic helps save 25 million Lego bricks from landfill.
- Machine sorts up to 100,000 pieces daily across more than 60,000 types.
Key Facts-
- Brick-O-Matic processes two pieces a second, 100 times faster than by hand.
- WeBuyBricks offers sets for 40% to 60% less than retail price.
Background-
WeBuyBricks, based at Hall Carr Mill in Rawtenstall, Lancashire, buys unwanted Lego before cleaning and sorting the pieces so they can be sold again. Its Brick-O-Matic uses cameras, AI and jets of air to identify pieces, with capacity to sort up to 100,000 a day, the firm said.
Head of projects Brad Hacking said automating the process brought major efficiency gains over sorting mixed Lego by hand. Boxes of mixed Lego pass beneath camera systems using AI and machine-learning software to identify them, before jets of air direct the pieces into chutes to build sets again. Hacking said the system could recognise more than 60,000 different pieces.
He said the machine could process two pieces a second, over 100 times more efficient than manual sorting, with over 10 tonnes of Lego currently moving through the site. The firm believes the Brick-O-Matic is the first machine of its type in the UK. The system can also gauge how complete a set is, letting staff source missing pieces.
Star Wars, Harry Potter, Marvel and DC are among the business’s most popular themes. Hacking said one aim was making Lego more affordable, with sets offered for 40% to 60% less than retail price, encouraging buyers to embrace pre-owned Lego as they have pre-owned clothing.
Housed in Hall Carr Mill, dating from 1872, the firm chose to stay local to retain long-serving staff. WeBuyBricks grew from used-book business WeBuyBooks, its parent company, with Hacking saying installing AI in the mill felt fitting, as the looms once there had led their era’s technology.