ÖkoGlobe 2012 for ComfortThin seat

The groundbreaking new ComfortThin car seat, developed by Johnson Controls in co-operation with UK luxury mattress specialist Harrison Spinks, was awarded the 2012 ÖkoGlobe in the category ‘Resources, Materials and Process Optimization’.

The jury chose this year’s winners of the international environmental award for the mobility industry from more than 110 applications – a greater number than ever before.

“ComfortThin convinced the jury, since Johnson Controls successfully transferred lightweight and recyclable materials from other industries to an automotive product,” said Professor Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, automotive expert and spokesperson for the ÖkoGlobe jury. “This seat creates additional weight saving potential through shorter bodywork, thus reducing fuel consumption.”

The thin profile offers passengers a high level of comfort with conventional urethane foam pads replaced by pocketed coil springs from the bedding industry which are buffered and secured by nonwovens. This alternative is up to 100% recyclable and results in a weight reduction of between 5-20%.

Its thin profile creates more space for passengers, particularly in smaller vehicles – up to 35 millimetres of additional leg and knee room in back seats.

As an alternative option, a vehicle equipped with ComfortThin seats can be made up to 35 millimetres shorter and leave the interior space unchanged. This results in weight savings of 4.5 kilograms in the body of a lower-medium segment vehicle. The comfort remains the same, but the vehicles are lighter and more compact and can be driven by more efficient engines with smaller capacity.

The new technology will be available for 2015 models. Testing of the seat in modified production cars has been positive and has piqued the interest of automakers.

Pictured is Beda Bolzenius, president of Johnson Controls Automotive Seating (left), receiving the award from Professor Ferdinand Dudenhöffer.

See also: Car seats set to slim down