Defining the elements of
an evolved Premium Cabin seat
Image: courtesy STARLUX
When Taiwan-based STARLUX Airlines’ new long-haul cabin offering began flying in early 2023, we saw the debut of Elements, our latest premium cabin seat offering.
In developing Elements, our design and engineering team took lessons from our successes in premium class seating and applied them to create a platform that further raises the bar on comfort, convenience and aesthetics.
Shaping comfort with optimized geometry
Similar to predecessor seating platforms, Elements enjoys the advantages of the reverse herringbone layout in balancing passenger space with seat density. Increases in passenger space lie within the suite itself, where the development team adjusted geometries to optimize areas that affect passenger movement, which in turn dictates comfort.
“It was critical to us to look at how we could maximize ease of mobility, both inside the suite as well as entering and exiting it,” said Mark Dowty, Senior Fellow - Mechanical Design.
The resulting architecture offers more space where it is needed and less where it is not.
Bringing greater consistency to the passenger experience also guided the design of the suite geometry. The team focused on standardizing the layout so passengers enjoy the same setting, no matter where in the cabin they are seated. Gone is the need for passengers to research which seats in the cabin are best to reserve (sorry, SeatGuru).
This consistency is especially advantageous for passengers with reduced mobility, who typically have to choose from a highly limited selection of seats that are best suited for their needs. Through the consistency Elements provides, the entire cabin is now open to these passengers.
(Greater)
Privacy, please
One of the most obvious features of the Elements suite is its doored entry, a reflection of the ongoing trend of offering enhanced privacy to passengers.
The development team pushed the notion of privacy further with an enhancement to the suite walls. A ‘halo’ feature at the top of each suite wall angles inward and offers two advantages. It enhances privacy without increasing wall height, which contributes to a more spacious feeling throughout the greater cabin space. The halo also gives passengers an increased feeling of seclusion.
“We realized the psychological benefit of this halo wall top when conducting comfort testing,” said Dowty. “We received consistent feedback from our test passengers that the halo feature felt like a gentle embrace.”
Thinking
beyond business
Designing the front row of the platform offered both a challenge and an opportunity. Noting the downward trend of First Class cabins and upward trend in Business Class VIP seats, the team challenged themselves to create a smarter approach to the premium capabilities a front row seat can offer.
The result is a hybrid front row suite that achieves either a Business-plus or First Class experience, based on airline preference. The real breakthrough, though, was developing this front row offering without sacrificing seat density.
STARLUX made its front row is a full First Class setting, complete with enhanced architecture and amenities. It offers greater privacy via higher suite walls, more passenger space and additional storage, including an amenity drawer, luggage stowage and a coat closet.
Bolstering bespoke opportunities
Variety is a good thing. That is apparent with our Super Diamond business class seating platform, whose robust flexibility gives airlines an opportunity to incorporate bespoke elements and make the seat distinctively theirs.
The team was highly mindful of this when developing Elements. The suite’s versatility expands the level of customization opportunities, where airlines can apply trim and finish elements to reflect their brand.
It’s apparent with STARLUX, who customized its Elements seat with a rich palette and refined textures that are balanced with dazzling rose-gold trim. The airline’s front row First Class seat takes it a step further and wows with elegant stitching patterns and other finishing details to make it a more distinctive product.
Details matter, and that’s obvious with a platform like Elements. The seat shines from a series of thoughtful details, both obvious and hidden, and all of which add up to create a breakthrough solution that deftly balances the needs of passengers and airlines alike.
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