Five years in the making: The story behind New Zealand’s first locally produced pool plaster

For more than 45 years, SSL Distributors has supplied products to the New Zealand pool industry, sourcing materials from around the world and building a reputation as a trusted supplier to pool builders, architects and landscape professionals alike.

But while the company has long imported pool plasters from markets such as the United States and Australia, the team could see an opportunity to create something more customised to home.

That ambition ultimately led to the development of Ultra Quartz, which is what SSL describes as New Zealand’s first locally produced pool plaster, designed specifically for the country’s unique climate and construction environment.

"We've been importing pool plaster for more than 30 years," says Hadley Pegden, whose father Clive Pegden founded the family business. "Then during COVID, sourcing products became much more challenging, and it really highlighted the benefits of having something produced here in New Zealand."

SSL chose to develop its own pool plaster from the ground up, carefully selecting every ingredient within the mix. The result is the culmination of more than five years of research, development and testing.

"All pool plasters produced overseas are designed around their own countries, climates and building requirements," Pegden explains. "We wanted to put the effort into producing something specifically for New Zealand and the conditions here."

That local focus has informed everything from the concrete compounds used within the plaster to the curing characteristics of the product itself.

Because Ultra Quartz is manufactured locally, SSL has complete control over the ingredients and production process.

"It also means much faster turnaround times compared to importing products."

Developing the plaster was far from straightforward. Much of the five-year process was dedicated to sourcing the right materials and refining the formulation.

"There are a lot of ingredients involved, including pigments, quartz aggregates and concrete compounds, and we're very particular about the materials we use,”  says Pegden. “We've imported these products for decades, so we understand the local market and some of the issues that can arise. We wanted to create a system that solved those issues."

That attention to detail extends to the product's aesthetic possibilities. Ultra Quartz is available in 14 standard colours, but can also be custom blended to achieve project-specific finishes.

The product comes with a full warranty and is suitable for both residential and commercial swimming pools, but one of its most distinctive features is its versatility during installation.

While traditional pool plasters are typically left with a rendered finish, Ultra Quartz has been developed to accommodate the option of a polishing process that creates a smoother, more refined surface .

For specifiers, that flexibility creates additional design opportunities while retaining the durability expected of a quartz-based finish.

Early feedback has been encouraging. Although Ultra Quartz has only recently been soft-launched to the market, Pegden says the response has been overwhelmingly positive.

"There's been a huge amount of research and development behind it," he says. "It's been very well received by the builders and plasterers who have worked with the product so far."