Thursday, January 30, 2020

Aquabot is Now Two Seperate Companies -Aqua Products and Aquatron


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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