Thinking smart

As aerospace manufacturers and suppliers continually look for new ways to improve passenger safety and comfort, an increasing emphasis is being placed on the role of advanced, ‘smart’ interiors.

Take a look at some of the forward-thinking aircraft interiors in today's commercial and business jets, and you begin to understand just how far the industry has advanced in a relatively short time. Gone are the days when a headphone jack integrated in an armrest, or a bulkhead video monitor, were considered high-tech. Those types of fundamental technologies merely opened the door for more comprehensive in-flight entertainment systems and a wealth of other innovations. Today, features such as advanced LED lighting, in-flight Wi-Fi access, modular seating and stowage systems, and sustainable materials (e.g. wool, leather, natural fibers) represent only a handful of the “smart” interiors applications that aerospace manufacturers and suppliers are using to differentiate themselves from competitors.

With increasing frequency, companies from Airbus, Boeing, and Bombardier to Hawker Beechcraft, Gulfstream Aerospace, and Embraer are facing similar sets of challenges: how to elevate the quality and content of their aircraft interiors while doing so with diminishing budgets. Not only are aerospace companies leveraging new interiors technologies to help increase fuel efficiency, safety, and improve noise reduction, among other targets, they are striving to enhance passengers' overall flight experience. These benchmarks are being achieved, as always, through strategic partnerships with a vast assortment of firms such as Emteq, PPG Aerospace, SABIC Innovative Plastics, and BMW DesignworksUSA, to name a few.