The rehabilitation and improvement of the energy efficiency of residential swimming pools is monopolizing the bulk of the investments in maintenance of this type of facility this year, due to the greater use because many of its owners have ruled out going on vacation due to the coronavirus.
The extension of the bathing season that was usually limited to a couple of months is now a priority and individuals want to use it for longer and are looking for ways to ensure its maintenance and cost savings, which in many cases involves installing a cover , as the director of Abrisud Ibérica, Fabrice Villa, admits.
The head of the subsidiary of the French group adds that a cover is a protection element that naturally heats the water and increases its temperature between six and eight degrees, thus reducing the bill for water, energy and electricity by 50%. maintenance. “A pool cover allows you to keep the water in a pool for 4 or 5 seasons, depending on its origin and it will last less if the water comes from a well and longer if it is mountain water or previously treated”, explains Villa. The director of Abrisud Ibérica adds that 85% of pool owners “preserve the water from one season to the next, but to preserve it in optimal conditions year after year it is important to maintain it properly”.
The increase in demand has materialized, in the case of Abrisud, in a 30% increase in orders to install roofs in private residences, since last May. The increase in sales has been concentrated mainly in the brand’s range of low covers, specifically the top seller model, which is an ultra-low telescopic cover that allows the bathing season to be extended from 4 to 6 months and reinforces child safety. .
An Ipsos survey, carried out for the Abrisud group, shows that the demand is focused on customized technological equipment, with innovative and efficient materials. It also shows that 94% of customers value being able to extend the use of the pool as much as possible, 92% consider the garden an extension of the house and 85% perceive it as a place to decorate, like a living room. additional.
Innovation and customization have been key to placing the company in its current position -it has reached 85,000 covers installed-, with a 3% annual investment in research and development that has allowed it to create more than 40 patents and 120 exclusive inventions of the brand, both for residential and large roofs, according to Fabrice Villa.
sustainable hotels
In parallel, the hospitality sector is also betting on the rehabilitation of its spaces, although to a lesser extent since not all establishments have been able to reopen their facilities due to the drop in demand due to the pandemic. “Hotels, in addition to deseasonalizing their services, look for sustainable, efficient designs with water consumption and air conditioning” adds Fabrice Villa.
In Spain, where the swimming pool sector registers a turnover of 1,270 million euros, with 2,500 companies and some 70,000 jobs, Abrisud invoices 6.6 million euros, 11% of the global turnover of the French group, which rose to 57 million in 2019.
The number of swimming pools installed in Spain is the third worldwide, according to data released by Abrisud, after the United States and France, and has more than 1,300,000 units (between residential use and public and collective use). Of the total facilities, 13% are located in Catalonia.
Regarding the companies that operate in this sector, 64% of the business is dedicated to the installation or maintenance of residential swimming pools, located in private homes. While the volume of business coming from swimming pools for public and collective use (neighborhood communities, tourist establishments, water parks and sports centers) represents 36% of the market.
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