A Miami-based company that is disrupting the construction industry by introducing a new way to build with real-life LEGO bricks has been honored with the international award for “best construction product design” of 2023.

RENCO USA’s revolutionary new building system stood out at the BLT Built Design Awards hosted in Lucerne, Switzerland. Short for renewable composites, RENCO’s structural building system is a new way to build. Molded blocks that interlock like LEGO bricks create entire structures.

“We are honored and humbled to be recognized on a global scale for our mission to launch a simpler way to build to address the impacts of climate change and the affordable housing crisis,” said RENCO Co-Founder Thomas P. Murphy, Jr. “The construction industry has never seen anything like RENCO before. For the past 100 years, we’ve always built with concrete, wood and steel. RENCO is a breakthrough in construction technology because it is stronger, easier to build with and uses recycled materials.”

The BLT Built Design Awards honor the expertise of all professionals involved in the realization of outstanding projects, on a global basis—from architecture firms and interior design experts to construction products and landscape architecture.

The news of RENCO’s award comes just days after the company cut the ribbon on its first multi-building housing complex in Palm Beach County.

RENCO weaves together recycled glass fibers, recycled plastic, resin and stone into a powerful new material that’s rated to withstand a Category 5 hurricane and is resistant to fire, water, mold and pests.

It’s also an innovative solution to the affordable housing crisis. RENCO makes building more affordable because it uses recycled materials and follows color-coded plans like a LEGO set, so there is no construction waste and projects are completed in less time. Labor costs are reduced, since builders don’t need specialized workers like carpenters and masons to assemble it.

The state-of-the-art building system is composed of interlocking composite pieces that are all adhesively joined into a monolithic structure. It includes the entire structure of a building, from the walls (structural building blocks), to the floor joists (pultruded), to the floor (composite decking) to the composite roof trusses and sheathing.

RENCO is currently completing seismic testing for earthquake zones and is fully confident that it will obtain approval to build in all seismic design categories.