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Exclusive Interview with Alfonso Urquidi, Sales Director for Latin America

Kryton International, an expert waterproofing company

Alfonso Urquidi, Chemical Engineer who graduated from the Autonomous University of Nuevo Leon, is the Sales Director for Latin America in Kryton International, Inc., specialized company in the waterproofing industry through crystallization process. Alfonso Urquidi has 30 years of experience in the polymer universe, in the water treatment industry, the concrete industry, as well as the construction industry.

“My arrival to Kryton started from an adventure in Vancouver, Canada, when I was looking for a change of scenery from Monterrey, Nuevo Leon. I got certified as an engineer in the APEGBC in Canada — which is the British Columbia association for engineers – and I realized how difficult it is to work for an engineering company in Canada oriented to the domestic market, I really started to search for companies looking to do business with Latin American companies as part of an add ed value of mastering the language, building relations and knowing the environment; that is how the project with Kryton International started, and it has been 9 years of building an excellent relationship since then,” mentioned Alfonso Urquidi.

Kryton International specializes in the waterproofing industry through crystallization process for the construction industry with a line of products and systems for repairing, protecting and rehabilitating new or existing concrete structures. Kryton’s Krystol technology protects structures against the potential damage caused by the water movement in concrete structures that generate steel corrosion, which implies a structural deterioration, resulting in maintenance costs and there are even cases in which, due to the above mentioned reasons, the construction has to be demolished and built again. With Kryton, concrete structures are waterproofed and transformed within one membrane.

“Our leading product, which represents 80% of our sales, is the KIMHS, which means: KIM (Krystol Internal Membrane) HS (High-Resistance); it is our leading product and also represents us,” highlighted Alfonso Urquidi.

Kryton’s Krystol iss the one and true 100% PRAH (Permeability Reducing Admixture – Hydrostatic Conditions) technology, according to the new Chapter 15 published by the ACI-212 (American Concrete Institute). In Kryton, “we give the highest initial permeability reduction value, which is 70%; we withstand the highest hydrostatic pressure level; and we offer the highest repairing and sealing capacity; 50% more than our competitors, Krystol technology easily repairs and seals cracks and narrow openings measuring up to 0.6 millimeters. We are the only company with one-hundred-per-cent hydrophilic technology, and the best part is that people only have to use our product once,” stressed Kryton International’s Sales Director for Latin America.

One of the main benefits of using Kryton technology is that waterproofing is needed only once. It is only applied once for repairs or in new constructions, and there is no need to waterproof again since the products become a comprehensive part of the concrete structure or core, and they stay there forever. They do not have an expiration date because they become reactive when there’s moisture, and they seal the capillary pores of concrete. An example of the efficiency of Kryton products is that there are projects more than 40 years old that remain watertight. They have been in Mexico for nine and a half years, and nowadays they are still 100% hermetic. Amongst other projects, Kryton’s most symbolic building sites in Mexico include: Santa Lucia Canal and the Capital, in Monterrey; CAR SO Group Headquarters; Punta San Antonio and Parque jardin in Mexico DF; the Hutchinson warehouses in Ensenada, Baja California; Repairs with SIAPIA and Celtis Headquarters, in Guadalajara, and several water treatment plants in th southeastern part of Mexico. Being suppliers of the construction industry, Kryton’s mission is that Krystol technology becomes the number one in the specification level, in as much as its vision is to mitigate risk.

Likewise, Kryton is a company that offers a lot of backup thanks to the experience it has acquired throughout the years and to its quality guarantee: “I have the honor and the pleasure of personally knowing the founders of Kryton, and since 40 years ago they have been pioneers in the manufacturing of the most important crystalline technology worldwide. Having the backup of a company of such importance, having the most certifications, and having worldwide certified technology, is something that gives me the greatest confidence in the world. With the above mentioned arguments, I can assure you that it is an excellent product and it represents the possibility of making a contribution to Mexico and improving how it is built. In all the projects we have Kryton’s endorsement, and by endorsement I mean that Kryton issues a product performance guarantee to the owners, constructors, developers and investors of building sites. The guarantee is not issued by the constructor or developer; it is issued directly by the manufacturer to the final user, and it is a guarantee that states that there are not going to be hidden costs or maintenance costs in the medium and long term,” indicated Alfonso Urquidi. For these reasons, Kryton has imposed itself a worldwide commitment. “If we could bring this vision to the Latin American market, the first thing would be to demonstrate that through the use of Kryton products, it is possible to eliminate risks. It is extremely important to know who is going to assume liability if the waterproofing fails, An architect is interested in having flexibility in construction design; the engineer is interested in having certified and guaranteed products; the investor, in having the value of his investment back. When waterproofing fails, one looks for culprits, but that is not what it is about; we are convinced that waterproofing only has to be done once, and in new construction we only have one opportunity. That is our philosophy for mitigating risk and having technology that will show the value of the investment in the medium and long term,” he specified.

The quality offered by Kryton products in Latin America have implied big achievements for the company, such as the implementation of a strategy in the Latin American market, beginning in the Mexican market, and afterward in Central America, the Caribbean, South America, and specifically, in countries like: Chile, Colombia, Brazil, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, Costa Rica, Barbados, Puerto Rico and Dominican republic. The company is directly present in Barbados, jamaica, San martin, Bermudas, and there are three distribution centers in Mexico, in the three principal cities of the country: Monterrey, Guadalajara and Mexico City, in order to satisfy the demand.

“Our commitment with the construction industry is highly important and it is carried out through the tasks of specification, pre-sale, supervision and post-sale. The successful cases we have certify the use of this technology, Kryton Mexico’s challenge is to expand toward the markets located in the coast, and have the same presence in places such as Veracruz, Baja California, the Southeast and the Pacific,” mentioned Alfonso Urquidi.

Worldwide, Kryton International has coverage through four distribution centers strategically positioned, two manufacturing plants, 100% property of Kryton, one in India and the other in Vancouver, Canada, and more than 50 suppliers all over the world.

Kryton seeks change in the culture to show the real cost-price benefits

“Kryton’s main objective is to be the number one in the concrete waterproofing industry, what is called comprehensive crystallization in the Latin American industry,” highlighted Alfonso Urquidi when pointing out that it is not an easy road since a lot of work has to be done at a specification level. “The hardest thing in the world of construction is to have credibility; and this creates trust, Earning people’s trust is another one of our main challenges. When people prove the technology’s benefits, let’s say they get married to the idea. This is one of our challenges: be the number one company: be the number one in all specifications,”

Furthermore, he added that the challenge in the Latin American market when representing a company such as Kryton is “to gradually understand that the manner in which business is carried out in Latin America is very different to the way it is done in the mid-western part of Europe, Canada or the United States. Our culture is very different. Latin American culture is 100% cost-price oriented. That is precisely our challenge, to carry out a cultural education process – if we can call it that – in which we have proven the added value in order to revert the main objection in the world of construction, which is the relation cost-price. When you can show the people where the added benefits are and you have references, testimonial building sites, and success cases with which to backup and endorse what you are saying, price sto ps being a factor. In the medium and long term, our products are much more profitable than the existing technologies or the technologies that still exist as competitors in the Latin American market.”

Lastly, Kryton International’s Sales Director for Latin America sends a message t0 constructors and investors: “the magic words you are most interested in are: how to save time and how to have more profitability with this technology, maximize construction space and reduce the construction calendar; from the moment concrete is poured, there is no further need of membrane installation and of waiting 28 days for concrete to reach resistance, because it is born waterproof; it is a self-sealing technology with high resistance to hydrostatic pressure, and you can sleep sound and safe. Constructors’ business is to build, not repair. I invite the readers to visit our website www.kryton.mx, where you will find all the array of products and services we offer. We are here to serve you and give you orientation on the project to be carried out, as well as to advise you and recommend you a solution according to your needs.”

He added that they are convinced that there exists only one opportunity to do a good work in a new construction, for which he invites the experts in the construction branch to seek new and efficient technologies, such as Kryton International. “It has been nine and a half years since more knowledge has been generated regarding this technology, Even though the Latin American market is still very sensitive about price, we have achieved to prove the added value in Krystol technology, and give an excellent ROI to those involved in construction projects. “What comes out cheap always turns out to be more expensive in the end.” Problems begin by not using appropriate products. Krystol technology suggests that when the right studies are carried out, analyzing the cost-benefit relation, when guarantees are issued and experience accrued throughout 40 years of delivering watertight projects, the results overcome the customers’ expectations. Our best arguments are satisfied customers, and we extend an invitation to prove our product‘s success and thus corroborate the benefits we are offering. We are the brand with most certifications worldwide, and we are here to serve you and offer you advice on your projects.”

 Source: World Construction