Interview to Alberto Maestre Hoffmann, manager of TDF Spain

Cream in Barcelona does more than 30 years, the company Technical of Fluent (TDF) has consolidated like one of the big international referents in the market of industrial pumps for the trasiego of difficult products. We interview to his manager, Alberto Maestre Hoffmann, to know the keys of the growth that follows experiencing the company so much to national level like world-wide.

In 2013, Technician of Fluids is crossing a good moment, so much in Spain as in his nueve filial abroad. From 2010 the volume of business of TDF has grown year after year, of solid form, and think that it goes to continue by the same way in the future. We will follow adapting us to the needs of our customers and offering them increasingly services and solutions with high value added for them, in addition to the already known products of notorious quality. We can say that TDF has strengthened like leader in the industrial pumps in Spain in these last years.

In the Spanish market, the year 2009 was the most difficult for us, with an important descent of sales. However, the financial solidity of the Group TDF, has allowed us continue investing in Spain. While other groups of the sector of the pumps have reduced his structure in the Spanish market, we have increased it of form ostensible. Besides, we keep the politics that has carried us to be leaders in the Spanish market of the industrial pumps: give service to the customer, listen his needs and be very near of him. For this reason we launch successfully three new lines of products during the last years: Systems, Leak and Instrumentation, to answer to the increasing demand to contribute complete solutions.

TDF Began already in the years 90 his process of internationalisation. In that period very few Spanish SMEs went out to the foreigner, and in still lower degree did it the companies of distribution, as it is our case. The starts abroad were difficult, but step by step have gone opening filial and nowadays have nueve (five in Europe and four in Latin America) already very consolidated and with strong positions in the markets of pumps of his respective countries. TDF Has now already more employed and turnover abroad that in Spain, in spite of having grown a lot here. And, what is more important, have an increasing number of customers that trusts a lot in us and in the philosophy of TDF.

The agreement with Flowserve, consists in that we do us charge, in a part of the Spanish market, of his range of pumps and of mechanical enclosures.

From does already time TDF has a solid position in the Spanish market of volumetric pumps. A lot of customers, loved with our service, asked us that we supplied them also other types of pumps, between others, the pumps centrifugas. During years have been looking for a ‘partner' adapted in this range of pumps, but cost us a lot find it since it had to be a product of high quality. This is absolutely irrenunciable in the range of TDF. Finally it appeared the opportunity with Flowserve and the truth is that it is a product that, regarding range, covers our needs and also offers all the guarantees in quality. We are very happy with the incorporation of Flowserve to the range of TDF in Spain and Portugal.

See several tendencies, one of them is that every time they sue products of greater quality, and also gives more importance to the availability and vicinity of the product and the spare parts. For this TDF has some enormous stocks, delivered in eight warehouses in Europe, three of them in Spain. When being a familiar company, that does not govern by financial aims, but to give service to the customer, can have a high stock.

Also observe a strong tendency to the demand of complete solutions of pumping, that is to say the pumps and all his accessories. To this answered does already three years with the creation of our division ‘TDF Systems' that, nowadays, is growing a lot in spite of the crisis.

The new European legislation also is promoting the development of pumps increasingly safe and efficient. In this subject have the luck to work with the world-wide leaders that always are to the avant-garde in what to technological advances refers . For example, our provider Wilden Pumps, world-wide leader of the pneumatics pumps of double membrane, finishes to launch the Proflo Shift, a revolutionary system that allows a saving of until 40% of the consumption of air, or was of the energetic consumption, with the same provision regarding pressesure and discharge.

Have led and supported big technical evolutions in the sector. The changes and ideas never stop to arrive, and the true is that the electronics equipment dealers equipment dealers is used to to play a key paper. It has worked , especially, in two fundamental points. The first is the energetic efficiency: it entered the concept of LCC in all the range, and collaborate with the manufacturers to follow improving this appearance. The second point is the hygiene, that, in our case, a lot has to see with the absence of escape. We can solve a lot of problems in chemical plants, from solutions without closing as they are the pneumatics pumps Almatec with barrier of hygiene for fluids highly dangerous, or the pumps of drag magnetic centrifuges and volumetric, until mechanical enclosures of innovative cartridge for pumps of process. Besides, to answer to the requirements of our customers, have designed a double commercial structure: vertical, with skilled technicians by an only market (chemical, chemist, treatment of waters, etc.), and horizontal, with managers of products.

The three new ships of Ciempozuelos, Community of Madrid, with more than 1200 m² devoted to warehouse, workshop and offices. It treats of a clearly focused investment to the service to the customer, in this case of the zone Centre/South.

In addition to the already usual factors of quality, hygiene and price, there is a factor that is increasingly important: the service and a fast answer. The customer needs that the bomb and his spare parts can be delivered with big rapidity and that there is constantly technical, with experience, had to advise and solve any doubt or problem related with the bomb. In TDF have a path of almost 40 years in the market and our technicians have a long experience.

One of the greater strengths of TDF in the market is that, thanks to our wide range of pumps, have a solution for any problem of pumping, by very difficult that this was, besides, logically, of the most usual applications.

The amplitude of our range (have types of pumps that are only, that do not have competition), does that we are the greater specialist of industrial pumps of Spain. This does that for each application select the ideal bomb to technical level. This is a big difference with the companies that are “monoproducto”, as they are used to to be the commercial subsidiaries of some manufacturers. They only can advise a type of bomb for any type of application. Really we are presents in the most diverse applications, from chemical industry, petrochemical, alimentary, pharmaceutical, energetic, etc.

TDF Has a lot of plans for Spain. When being a familiar company, can schedule on a long-term basis. We finish to inaugurate new installations in Barcelona, that have served us to expand the workshop and the offices.

In Madrid have invested in a new industrial ship that goes to triplicar the size that had up to now. Our new venue in Ciempozuelos has more than 1.200 m² of warehouse and a very expanded workshop and with new machinery.

In 2014 will inaugurate also ours new installations in Bilbao. Up to now our presence in this zone was especially commercial, by which this new structure will allow us improve the service with a new workshop for our customers of this zone, in addition to expanding the commercial team.

Ours priority continues being improve the service to the customer. The process of internationalisation will continue being also another priority for TDF. In this sense, the most important for us, is to continue strengthening our position in the countries in which we already are present.