With
the recent merger of Fluidra and Zodiac Pool Systems there was some fall out with
the Aquabot brand of cleaners which was owned by Fluidra. To prevent a monopoly
which would surely have existed with the merger, Aquabot had to divest interest
in the Aquatron part of the company. Basically, there were two companies owned
by Fluidra that made the Aqaubot Robotic Cleaner, Aqua Products, and Aquatron.
Although
Aqua Products made the bulk of the 400 plus cleaners released under the Aquabot
name, Aquatron made about 150 of the Aquabot Cleaners. To prevent a monopoly
Aqua Products was granted the right to sell their models in the Us market only
with Aquatron having the rights to sell Aquabot cleaners worldwide, including in
the US. This will probably lead to a lot of confusion as to which models are
made by whom going forward.
For
example, Aqua Products makes the Aquabot Breeze SE and Breeze XLS while
Aquatron makes the Breeze 4WD and the Breeze IQ. The other models are more even
split with Aqua Products making all of the familiar Turbo T cleaners and
Classic cleaners. Aquatron has the new Rapids line up of Aqaubot cleaners but
the real issue is having two separate companies selling cleaners under the same
overarching model name, that being Aquabot. Since both companies were previously
owned by Fluidra and they were making the Aquabot cleaners together, the quality
you are getting from both companies will remain the same. It is just now, both companies
are competitors with each other.
Below
is the question and answer sheet directly from Fluidra to help you clear up any
confusion.
Why did Fluidra divest its Aquatron business unit? As part of the merger between Zodiac and Fluidra, Fluidra divested
its Aquatron unit in order to secure the European Commission’s approval of the
transaction.
Who is
Aquatron? Aquatron is an Israeli-based manufacturer of robotic pool
cleaners.
What is the connection between Aqua Products, Inc., and
Aquatron? Aquatron has been responsible for manufacturing a portion
of the Aquabot-branded and private label robotic pool cleaners that Aqua
Products, Inc., distributes in North America. Aqua Products, Inc., also
manufactures Aquabot-branded and private-label robotic pool cleaners.
Who currently owns the Aquabot brand? Aqua Products, Inc.,
currently has a license to manufacture and distribute Aquabot- branded products
in the United States. As part of the divestiture, however, Aquatron owns the
Aquabot brand globally.
Which company is currently responsible for selling
Aquabot-branded cleaners in the United States? Currently, both Aqua
Products, Inc. and Aquatron are able to sell Aquabot cleaners in the United
States. Please note: Aqua
Products, Inc., is your primary distributor for all Aquabot-branded whole goods
and parts in the United States.
Will my Aqua Products, Inc., sales or service contacts
change? No changes are planned. You can continue to reach out to
your Aqua Products, Inc., sales and service contacts as you normally would.
What if Aquatron contacts me? Aquatron has started
reaching out to some retailers and service centers in anticipation of the brand
transition from Aqua Products, Inc., to Aquatron. Please note, however, that
Aqua Products, Inc., is your primary distributor for all Aquabot-branded and
private label whole goods and parts in the United States.
When will the transition between Aqua Products, Inc., and
Aquatron begin? Aqua Products, Inc., will continue to sell all
Aquabot-branded and private label whole goods and parts. In the meantime, some
warranty, service and marketing functions will begin to be transitioned to
Aquatron.
Who do I contact if I
have a service or warranty issue? Since some units are manufactured by
Aquatron and others by Aqua Products, Inc., your service contact will depend on
the model in question, effective October 1, 2019.
• For all models
manufactured by Aqua Products, Inc., you can continue to make service or
warranty inquiries as you normally would through the same contacts (Phone:
800-845-4856; Web: aquaproducts.com) and through the same service centers.
• For all models manufactured by Aquatron, please visit aquabot.com or aquatron.co.il.
Where can I find Aquabot product and warranty information
online? As of early September, Aquatron began managing the
aquabot.com website. However, the North American Aquabot website that you are
already familiar with can now be found at aquaproducts.com. Please also note
that product registration, the dealer portal and dealer locator will continue
to reside on aquaproducts.com as well.
• For product and warranty information on all cleaners
manufactured by Aqua Products, Inc., visit aquaproducts.com.
• For all cleaners manufactured by Aquatron, visit aquabot.com.
Will the transition of aquabot.com effect where my
customers can register their product? Cleaners produced by Aqua Products, Inc.,
can continue to be registered at aquaproducts.com. Cleaners manufactured by Aquatron, however, will
need to be registered at the new aquabot.com, effective October 1, 2019.
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