When it comes to breaking moulds – Aqua Platinum Projects is a company that knows no boundaries. Paving the way for a completely new generation of swimming pool specialists, APP is redefining the role for residential pool installers at the same time, elevating themselves into the premier division of property development. Once content with providing the water leisure cog in a lucrative construction wheel, the company is now reinventing that wheel; offering the complete turnkey package as project management consultants on entire construction projects.
THIRD GENERATION
“It is so obvious, I do not know why we did not think of it before,” says Ryan Fronda, who boasts 20 years experience in the pool construction sector, as the third generation of the Fronda pool building dynasty.
“With pool contracting, you invariably have to dove tail with a main contractor and a number of sub contractors – the more factors involved, the more complicated the inevitable blame
culture and the ‘hot potato’ mentality,” Ryan says. “Something goes wrong, the client pulls the pin on a hand grenade and everyone wants to chuck it around. “But clients, particularly top end clients, do not want to know about problems or hand grenades and the collateral damage; they want a minimum aggravation experience. So in this way, we take control ourselves, cut out the communication chain and see the entire project through from concept to completion.”
Strategic Partnership
Grasping the proverbial nettle, APP has established strategic partnerships with architects, builders and developers. The move has catapulted the team from £250,000 bit players to multimillion pound top of the bill listing.
“These sorts of projects are slow burners; from concept to handover can be two years but we bring all the elements to the table; the whole job is our responsibility and the clients are willing to pay for that service,” Fronda continues.
“Instead of extracting the pool part of the job, giving us a price for the piecemeal pool work, we now do the whole lot. Given the size of the projects we are now taking on, it can sometimes feel daunting but it is risk versus reward for us.
“From the client’s point of view they have a smooth, one point of contact, from tender to handing over the key.”
Fundamental to that success is APP’s partnership with London based architect, Julian Amos, a practice that has a vast portfolio of luxury end properties up to £40m. An extended team at APP with strong contract managers ensures top quality delivery at all levels. Projects so far have seen a London bias but the team has no geographic barriers.
An overwhelming trend is the demand for basement projects,typically involving not just pools but also delivering on games rooms, cinemas and wellness suites. APP specialises in the technically challenging field of sub terrain construction. The company is capitalising on the increasing demand for basement work, particularly in mews properties, where planning permission, for anything other than underground development, would be extremely costly and invariably declined.
“Clients are grasping the concept that when it comes to sensible development, the answer lies in the ground beneath their feet,” Ryan explains.
“Clients are seeing massive returns on development of sub terrain developments that heap value on the properties as we
increase the square footage.”
An integral part of the basement pool construction is the tiled Polypool panel system that is ideal for its versatility and quick build potential. Ryan concludes: “We were hostages to fortune if we relied on the liner pool market that has suffered so badly in the economic climate. “We could have just sat back and waited for the economy to improve; instead we are moving forward with the Polypool tiled system as the lynchpin to our sustained success.”
Aqua Platinum Projects
Tel. +44 (0)1489 890800
www.aquaplatinumprojects.co.uk
