Hydro Building Systems Spain maintains a higher profile with Interpon

When you’ve built a global reputation for the quality of your aluminum profile systems, and are committed to sustainability, you seek partners with similar ideals, and a shared ambition of continuous improvement. 

No surprise, therefore, that 20 years ago, when Hydro Building Systems Spain was exploring the best ways of protecting and enhancing its aluminum windows and facades, it chose an Interpon powder coating from AkzoNobel, and that the two firms continue to strive for excellence. “AkzoNobel is the global leader in powder coatings, and Interpon the principal brand, so it was an easy decision,” says Arantxa Oritz Barredo, Hydro Building Systems Spain Purchasing and Powder Management.

Hydro is respected in architectural circles not only for its systems, but also its pioneering work in using recycled materials; its CIRCAL aluminum, for example, is 100% recycled post consumption. 

It started working with AkzoNobel after building a new manufacturing site in Europe at the start of the new millennium.

Starting with basic colors and finishes, over the last two decades Hydro Building Systems Spain has significantly increased the range of finished products it can offer to its customers. As an Interpon Approved Applicator, it now has in excess of 175 different powders to choose from: “Our customers know us for the quality of our product, and they also now know us for being able to deliver those products in any color they choose, even colors beyond those already in stock,” Arantxa adds.

As well as multiple colors, Hydro Building Systems Spain also offers powder coatings with imaginative textures and finishes as well as different levels of durability. This is important to protect surfaces from some of the more challenging climates to which Hydro Building Systems Spain’s products may be exposed, ensuring their color integrity and performance is maintained for many years to come.

It also uses specific powder coatings within the Interpon Anodic range, giving architects and designers more choice and flexibility than ‘traditional’ anodizing, with none of the potentially damaging environmental implications and cost: “We were able to offer anodizing, but it had to be outsourced,” Arantxa continues. 

“With the Interpon Anodic range, however, we can create the appearance of an anodized finish, but in a powder coating, and produce it in-house. The metallic-effect finishes we are capable of creating are superb, and very well-received by our customers. The quality of finish is further guaranteed by industry-leading warranties, and Interpon’s accreditation to Qualicoat Class I and II.”

Proximity to the customer is important. Working with AkzoNobel is made easier because it has both a local and a global presence. This means Hydro Building Systems Spain can benefit from AkzoNobel’s local manufacturing presence, but also be assured that the quality of the Interpon powder coatings it uses is consistent the world over. It knows that if there is an issue, it can be speedily addressed, wherever they are needed most.

Hydro Building Systems Spain’s sales representatives, have all been professionally trained by Interpon on ‘color basics’, effectively a ‘Powder Coatings 101’. Specific, more advanced training can also be provided, for example on the Interpon Anodic or on the Interpon D3020 hyperdurable range, so that HYDRO’s people are fully equipped to work with the product and answer any detailed questions their customers may ask.

Arantxa welcomes AkzoNobel’s spirit of proactivity: “They are continually coming and presenting new colors and finishes to us that are always on trend, and from which we can build our own library of colors,” she says. 

“They also share our passion for innovation; the more Interpon innovates, the greater the innovation we can take to our customers. It’s what helps us keep ahead of the game.”