ACR Latin America was present at the last edition of the AHR Expo, where he spoke with important members of the industry about what is coming for the sector in the coming months.
by Ana María Restrepo F
Last January, from the 23rd to the 25th, the Windy City hosted the AHR Expo again and in its honor, that week was declared the air conditioning, refrigeration and heating in Chicago, recognizing the Expo as the best resource for professionals in the HVAC/R industry.
The 82nd version broke a record by becoming the largest in history with more than 58,000 attendees from around the world (including visitors and exhibitors), 428,000 net square meters of exhibition, 1,968 exhibitors from 35 countries and more than 39,000 contractors, engineers, distributors, property managers and manufacturers representing the industry. Thousands of products were presented at the fair and more than 100 educational sessions were held during the week.
2012, change in the landscape
Despite the fact that this 2012 AHR Expo will be held in Mexico, and that many Latinos prefer to go to that nation instead of traveling to Chicago, exhibitors consider that the number of visitors was high, especially by members of the local market. Henry Peterson, business development manager at Delta Controls, says people kept the appointments they had set up with them, but also received a lot of visitors who didn't have an appointment. This same perception had Caio Brandao, director of international sales of Duro Dyne.
Gabriel Covete, regional sales manager for Latin America at Amstrong, says that in 2012 they received many more visitors than last year, when the event was held in Las Vegas.
For his part, Caio Brandao believes that Latin America is a region that is becoming more important every day due to its strong economy. "Our customers are very interested in construction; Colombia, Venezuela and Panama have new projects."
It also highlights that Latin America is walking together in terms of modernization and implementation of technology through infrastructure projects and technological development, since many standard systems as well as green building are being implemented.
Meanwhile, for Ricardo Matus, general sales manager of Urecon, this 2012 edition of the AHR was of good quality and attracted many engineers and designers. "20- 30% of the connections we have in Latin America are achieved in this space."
For his part, Julio Londoño, product manager, PICCV of Belimo, affirms that this fair was more crowded than previous years, "In the last fair in Chicago we did not see so many people and this year there are many people interested in the products, such as engineers, contractors and builders; it should be noted that not many people have come from Latin America, as happened last year."
Julio's comment is complemented by Rafael Briceño, Armacell's sales and marketing manager for northern Latin America, Mexico and Florida, who says that compared to 2011, the fair showed significant growth, and the number of visitors from Latin America has been good for them.
For Gerardo Martínez, sales director of Central America, the Caribbean, Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador of Bitzer, this fair is very important for the industry, and its presence in it is based on the presentation of products and their continuous positioning in the market.
Industry continues to grow
The new construction, projects and restructuring of residential, commercial and industrial buildings that are carried out in Latin America have made the HVAC/R market continue to improve and increase in the region.
New air conditioners, energy-saving valves, controls, refrigeration systems and other equipment and technologies that the industry presents, have been very well received in Latin countries, which seek with greater impetus to improve infrastructures and have very good technology.
In this regard, Henry Peterson comments that the market in Latin America is growing, especially with projects in hospitals, shopping centers and pharmaceuticals; additionally, he mentions that everything that has to do with energy conservation is gaining ground in the region and some governments are supporting this process.
In Latin America there are several countries that have a good economic development such as Brazil, Colombia and Mexico, in the latter there is a reactivation of the market, according to Covete. The number of projects in which the company representing the guest participates has increased in Mexico, Venezuela, Colombia, Panama, Brazil and Peru.
It should be noted that the entry of the different companies to Latin America does not cover all countries in the region, but most of them are looking to penetrate nations where they see high potential.
This is the case of Juan Jaramillo, goodman's international business manager, who explains that his company is present in Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, Panama, Honduras, Guatemala, Ecuador, and that they still do not cover Chile, Peru and Brazil: "The economic sectors that have the most movement for the market of them are distributed between 80% commercial and 20% residential especially in Argentina, Colombia and Ecuador".
The expansion plans of the companies in the sector are many, for example Belimo has within its strategies to expand its presence in the southern cone due to the potential market they observe in this part of the region. Julio Londoño explains that their greatest presence is in Mexico and Brazil but they want to expand. "Construction is growing. In Latin America the market behaves differently than the United States does, because in that region they always use new products and state-of-the-art technology."
Regarding the economic situation in Latin America, Londoño assures that the loss of strength of the dollar benefits Latin countries by helping to buy more products and develop more projects.
"The market in Latin America has been maintained, and growth has been seen. In the American case we notice that the market has grown again and 2012 is forecast as a better year," says Rafael Briceño.
The crisis, although it was not so hard in Latin America, contrary to what analysts and economists thought, has caused effects in some countries and in some industries. This is assured by Ricardo Matus, who says that the Latin American market has been weak due to the economic crisis of 2008 and that investors believe that they will not recover what was invested, however, eight months ago orders increased. "I see the future better, there are many projects that are waiting for investment. The price of the products is very competitive."
For his part, Víctor Mora, managing director of Lennox, assures that it has not yet emerged from the recession and that there are markets where the recession has a significant influence, especially in those areas that live on tourism, such as the Caribbean, and that the low influx of tourists influences all sectors, even the HVAC / R industry.
However, it should be noted that different countries are increasingly concerned about high efficiencies and having certifications in different aspects, something that a few years ago was not seen by analysts as something so important in Latin America.
"Green and high-tech buildings in Latin America represent a dichotomy, because the region is still poor and this equipment has a high cost, but the important thing is that the market is aware of the benefits that different products and technology bring and that they stop seeing price as the decisive factor in a project.
In 2012, AHR Expo pointed out a new path for the American industry. The recovery of the economy, even if at a slow pace, new projects and constructions in Latin America and certifications are showing a stronger and more qualified industry.
In 2013 AHR Expo will take over the Dallas, TX Convention Center from January 28-30.
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