Interviews / 8/9/2024

When quality is an aid to experience

Meeting luxury standards: the role of expertise and quality materials in high-end installations of stone coverings

Interviewee

Enrico Crivelli

Owner of Crivelli

In the installation sector, the most common requests involve adhering to specifications despite challenges with materials and schedules. At the Abi d’Oru Hotel, Mapei products were crucial for meeting five-star standards, ensuring high-quality and durable installation of stone materials. Installation onto pool surfaces requires experience and suitable materials to achieve highly aesthetic and durable results. We talked about it with Enrico Crivelli, owner of Crivelli installation company.

You have been working in the installation sector for many years. What are the most frequent requests you receive from designers and clients?

The most frequent request is to install floor and wall coverings to specification despite the problems created by opting for the chosen formats, mixing different materials and having tighter and tighter schedules.

Marble slabs were installed on the floors in the guest rooms of Abi d'Oru Hotel with KERAFLEX EXTRA S1 ZERO* cementitious adhesive.

In the Abi D’Oru Hotel you installed marble tiles and slabs. To carry out work to the standards expected for a five-star hotel, how important did using Mapei products prove to be?

Apart from the quality of the materials, the competence offered by Mapei is certainly just as important, because it puts you in the best position to undertake different types of work. In situations such as that of the Abi D’Oru Hotel there are usually various types of problems, first and foremost due to the tight schedule and having to overlap different types of work. I believe, therefore, that the quality and the specifically targeted use of the installation materials are fundamental.

What are the guidelines to help correctly choose which materials to use for installations in swimming pools?

Firstly, I believe a certain level of experience is required. You need to be reactive when you come across problems or unforeseen events. You also need a complete understanding of what has been done before and then after our intervention. You need the support of suppliers who have the knowhow and the most suitable materials in order to achieve the objective.

Ceramic tiles were bonded in the hotel pool with KERAQUICK MAXI S1, while mosaic tiles were bonded with ADESILEX P10, mixed with ISOLASTIC elasticising latex.

For the swimming pool in the hotel, you chose to install the tiles in parallel but offset from each other. Why did you opt for this layout?

This layout was chosen for aesthetic purposes. A material with a natural stone effect finish reflects the aesthetic characteristics we usually come across in stone paving. Also, with this type of layout, distribution joints and edges go unnoticed whereby, with a more regular layout, in certain cases you may find you need to cut all the tiles really small.

The products used to install tiles and grout joints have evolved over the years. What differences are there compared with 10 or 15 years ago?

I believe the main difference is the bonding strength of the adhesives. As far as grouts for joints are concerned, I would say their resistance over time to chemical agents.