BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich. — April 4, 2018 — ACME Mills has joined forces with Quantum Materials LLC to launch the newest level of fabric innovation designed for aircraft seating applications — Comfort Zone powered by QUANTUM™ ZXT technology. This revolutionary B-surface fabric technology is designed to provide long-term enhanced comfort to passengers, and reduce or eliminate the need for foam commonly used in airline seating.
Comfort Zone has been engineered with Quantum ZXT technology providing the airline industry with a progressive alternative compared to traditional seating. Utilizing this proprietary technology, the fabric can provide customized levels of ergonomically correct support throughout the seat, ultimately enhancing comfort to passengers. As a supporting B-Surface application, Comfort Zone reduces the amount of foam needed and can eliminate the need for springs, wires, clips and insulators that have historically been used.
Initial testing has shown that this new fabric can reduce weight by as much as 8 pounds per seat or a total of 1,512 pounds1. In addition to weight reduction, and depending upon the size of the plane, there is the potential to add more than 10 seats without redesigning the interior cabin due to space savings. The fabric can be engineered or treated with the various performance requirements needed to pass standard FAA regulations.
“There has been a tremendous focus on weight reduction in the transportation industry as a whole and while this is important to help maximize fuel efficiency, passenger comfort has sometimes been overlooked or sacrificed,” said Neil Gross, COO, ACME Mills. “In a survey by Skytrax, uncomfortable seats ranked third among a long list of customer complaints. With our Comfort Zone product, we see an opportunity to change this.”
“Airlines are constantly looking at ways to maximize the interior space in the aircraft cabin, helping to increase revenue stream. With the benefits of comfort, weight and space savings, we see this as innovative solution to help support growth in the airline industry,” said Jeff Bruner, founder and chief technology officer for Quantum Materials. “Quantum has had a long history in advancing industries with new technologies and believes that this could be a step towards revolutionizing the way we fly.”
ACME Mills will be debuting Comfort Zone powered by Quantum ZXT at the Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg, Germany. Attendees can visit stand 7E70 to learn more.
Posted April 4, 2018
Source: Quantum Materials LLC
1 Total estimated weight savings based on a 190-seat configuration on a commercial airplane.
