Azenco Outdoor designs and manufactures an award-winning range of aluminum pergolas, innovative cabanas, carports and pool covers that elegantly compliment any architectural style and optimize every residential or commercial outdoor space.
Interview with Leslie Chapus, Vice President of Azenco Outdoor.
Easy Engineering: A brief description of the company and its activities.
Leslie Chapus: Life Is Better Outside with Azenco.
Our full range of pergolas, carports and pool covers offer sophisticated strength, built with artful design, precision engineering and high-grade materials. And our journey is all about our customers’ journey — imagining and delivering a new, better life outdoors for them and their guests.
We use our 27 years of experience and 30 patents to create products that make life better outdoors for our customers and their guests. But we aren’t resting on the achievements in the past — every day, we’re applying new insights and the latest technology to continue driving our work forward.
Combining functional durability, precision manufacturing and innovative features, imparts an elegance to each Azenco Outdoor product. Attention to detail is a hallmark of all Azenco products which feature no visible exterior hardware and concealed internal drainage, while robot-cut extrusions ensure louver roofs are weather-sealed and optional automated sensors augment manual user controls.
Made in America with European Design – Leveraging its proven high-tech manufacturing processes, Azenco Outdoor has expanded its facilities from Europe to the United States. The products are manufactured in Miami, Florida for distribution within the US, Canada, Mexico and the Carribeans. Whether customers choose from our line of innovative designs or require a custom-crafted solution, Azenco’s localized manufacturing enables it to streamline fabrication, delivery and installation timelines.
E.E: What are the main areas of activity of the company?
L.C: Azenco Outdoor main business activities are the R&D and production of innovative patio cover solutions for commercial and residential applications in North America.
E.E: What’s the news about new products?
L.C: The K-BANA’s popularity escalated so rapidly in 2022 that Azenco added a dedicated manufacturing line for the product in its Miami, Florida factory.
The rapid development of Azenco Outdoor’s dealer network supported the expanding popularity of the company’s newest outdoor living product. This innovative modular and manual system allows designers to mix-and-match components to create totally customized cabanas. Fabricated in 8×8, 10×10 and 12×12-foot sizes, designers can combine the modules to fashion one-of-a-kind cabanas of any footprint to fit any outdoor space. The roof and walls can be customized with numerous panel segments from static solid walls to sliding louvered panels, and the floor system is ready to accommodate any flooring from tile to natural grass. Because the K-BANA does not require traditional footings, it can often be installed without the need for local permitting, making it a favorite of contractors and skilled DIY enthusiasts alike.
E.E: What are the ranges of products?
L.C: The range of patio covers includes:
R-BLADE pergola – Bestseller
The motorized Azenco R-BLADE louvered pergolas transform any outdoor space into a relaxing, shaded extended living space. Its elegant design fits in with just about any home architecture whether modern, contemporary or classical. The R-BLADE’s fully-adjustable dual-walled aluminum louvers can angle to defray the sun or close completely to seal out the rain, and Azenco’s precision-manufactured design ensures a tight weather seal of the louvers. Its sleek design hides mounting hardware and incorporates an invisible integrated gutter system and optional automated weather sensing technology to control the louvers. The structure is waterproof and wind resistant, and carries a 15-year warranty. Its modular design allows the R-BLADE to be mounted to a building or assembled as a free-standing outdoor centerpiece.
R-SHADE pergola
The Azenco R-SHADE is a solid-roof fixed pergola designed to be mounted to the side of any building or erected as a free-standing structure to extended outdoor living space. Offering a clean aesthetic that compliments any architectural style, the R-SHADE’s insulated sandwich-panel roof and wind-resistant design makes it ideal for the demands of coastal, country or urban living. With no visible assembly hardware, the R-SHADE maintains sleek exterior lines beneath which are incorporated internal integrated gutters, a support beam to accommodate a fan, and options for embedded LED lighting and solar cells.
K-BANA, louvered cabana
The Azenco K-BANA is a two-time award-winning, modular, free-standing and fully-customizable cabana that can scale from cozy pool-side respite to expansive outdoor dining room to provide a functional yet striking design element for any outdoor space. The frame is fabricated in 8×8, 10×10 and 12×12-foot sizes allowing buyers to mix-and-match lengths to fit their unique design needs. The louvered roof is manual and each wall panel can be outfitted with fix or sliding privacy walls or a combination to meet specific customer demands. The K-BANA floor frame is left open to allow customers to source their own flooring to meet the surrounding design aesthetic with composite or wood decking, tile or even panels of manicured grass. Delivered as a ready-to-install kit, the K-BANA does not require footings or a foundation which often mitigates permitting requirements.
R-CAR flat roof carport
The Azenco R-CAR carport protects vehicles stored outdoors from sun, rain and snow while bringing a clean-lined design element to any driveway. Available as a stand-alone drive-through structure or able to mount to a building, the wind-resistant R-CAR carport can be configured for single or dual vehicle needs, and is available with extended pillars to accommodate larger recreational vehicles. Smart additions to the R-CAR also include integrated rainwater gutters hidden within the support posts, or solar cells incorporated into the sandwich-panel roof.
Pooldeck 3-in-1 pool cover
The Azenco Pooldeck is a clever three-in-one mechanized pool cover, patio and deck solution that makes the most of the pool area square footage. When closed, the Pooldeck not only provides insulation but ensures it is safely contained and inaccessible to children or pets. The sturdy decking can support patio furniture while providing an attractive space upon which to entertain guests. With the push of a button the mechanized deck slides aside create an instant pool-side patio. The Azenco Pooldeck is available in numerous configurations to fit almost any pool, and is an ideal solution when outdoor space is at a premium allowing the pool space to be safely optimized when is not in use.
E.E: At what stage is the market where you are currently active?
L.C: Americans at-home lifestyle is certainly one area undergoing massive evolution because of the trials of pandemic life. As a consequence, the exploding demand from commercial businesses and homeowners for lavish outdoor living spaces which bring the comfort and amenities of their indoor living space to their deck, patio or pool deck has been at the forefront since the pandemic. Consumers demand for all-weather outdoor spaces, functional backyards, and seamless transitions between indoors and outdoors has become the newest American status symbol. In fact, Azenco Outdoor has seen orders for its innovative pergolas and outdoor living structures exponentially increase over last two years, and expects the pergola market will certainly continue to see explosive growth for the outdoor living industry.
E.E: What can you tell us about market trends?
L.C: Recently, the black pergola has become a more popular selection. When it comes to the latest in outdoor home automation, the modern black louvered pergola with a motorized adjustable louvered roof is a true standout. With control over the angle of the pergola louvers, you can control the amount of sun that reaches the patio. In our R-Blade design, the louvers can also close completely to block out the sun, and the rain. With the louvers closed, this black structure will present the same look as a solid roof design, but once you open the louvers the entire look of the outdoor space changes. When the sun shines through the opened louvers, it casts great architectural shadows that add a new design element to the living space.
While the all-black pergola is a tried-and-true classic look, another color style that is trending and has similar timeless appeal is the tuxedo look. This design combines black and white exterior coatings for a simultaneously classic and modern appeal. A tuxedo pergola can be designed with white support columns and frame with a black louvered pergola, or in reverse, with a black pergola frame combined with white roof sections.
Beyond the black on white tuxedo look, customers also like to combine a black frame with wood grain finish louvers. Leveraging an advanced sublimation process, we can add several wood grain styles to the exterior powder coating that protects our pergola structures. While an all-wood grain pergola would be quite rustic look, combining black with the wood grain has a contemporary appeal while bringing a new level of warmth to living space.
E.E: What are the most innovative products marketed?
L.C: Our investment in cutting-edge robot extrusion and cutting machines has enabled us to offer innovative features for our R-BLADE and R-SHADE pergolas as well as our R-CAR carports. Our single-extrusion internal gutter systems provide unbeatable performance and are guaranteed not to leak. Plus, our exterior boasts a sleek and modern design with no visible hardware, making it the perfect choice for architects and designers seeking elegant solutions to complement any architectural style. The integrated whisper-quiet motors in our automated louvered roof systems provide a seamless and easy-to-use outdoor structure that impresses both owners and guests. Our popular intuitive accessories include embedded LED lighting in various styles to keep the party going even after dusk, high-tech rain sensors that automatically close the louvers at the first sign of rain, wind sensors that prevent damage by opening the louvers in high winds, temperature sensors that prevent damage from snow or ice accumulation by opening the louvers in extreme cold, and many other innovative design options.
Furthermore, Azenco continues to be the only manufacturer in the US market to offer dual-walled gapless louvered roofs that are capable of truly sealing out the rain. Our exclusive all-weather louvered roof pergolas provide a competitive edge that sets us apart.
E.E: What estimations do you have for 2023?
L.C: We forecast to triple our revenues by the end of 2023.
Inc. Magazine, one of the world’s most trusted business-media brands, recently announced its 2023 Inc. 5000 lists. The regional list highlights the most successful private companies within the Southeastern economy based on revenue growth and job creation, and Azenco Outdoor is ecstatic to be ranked the 30th fastest-growing company in the Southeast region, after massively outpaced the regional median growth of those included on the 2022 Inc. 5000 list with an astounding 846% revenue expansion.
The continued popularity of outdoor living products amongst homeowners and commercial businesses was also a driving factor in Azenco being propelled to the Inc. 5000. Made in America, the Azenco line of innovative outdoor designs and custom-built outdoor covers remain the most advanced and luxurious in the market. The nationwide network of Azenco dealers relies on our state-of-the-art precision manufacturing and choice of the industry’s highest-quality raw materials to optimize customer satisfaction throughout the US, Canada, Mexico, and The Caribbeans.
Thanks to the addition of a dedicated K-Bana production line that enables Azenco to keep up with the growing demand for this innovative cabana, but streamlines production ensuring K-Bana projects can be completed for customers as quickly as possible. During its first year in production, K-Bana orders were being crafted on the same machines that were handling our growing pergola and carport orders. Transitioning the precision robot extrusion and cutting machines to fabricate the varying product lines took extra time and team resources. With this new dedicated production line, unnecessary downtime needed to make the transition, and recalibrate the highly technical machines will be eliminated.
Ultimately, this means turnaround times for all our orders will be reduced exponentially, customers will be able to enjoy their newly installed cabana much sooner.