A modern automotive seat is a sophisticated and complex piece of engineering architecture, and the seat cushion especially so. Beneath the fabric and foam cushioning is a metalwork frame – or seat mat. Sometimes manufactured of steel alone, and sometimes over-moulded with plastic depending on the application requirement, the seat mat is a steel wire/plastic assembly that defines the comfort and ruggedness of the finished seat.
The seats for the new generation vehicle required five different seat mat variants: two front seats, a 60/40 split rear bench seat and an additional seat that provides a third-row seating option in the vehicle. All the seats are manufactured by a global leader in automotive seating and associated electrical and electronic systems. This company has extensive in-house capability in the many and varied processes involved in seat manufacture but saw value in subcontracting the assembly of the seat mat.
Read the full article in the March issue of DPA.