Seawork seating encounter runs full circle
Scot Seats KPM Marine shock mitigation seats have been chosen by adventurer Bear Grylls for his latest expedition RIB.
It will be quite a first anniversary for Scot Seats KPM-Marine at Seawork 2010. The two companies met by being given stands across the aisle from each other at Seawork 2009.
Ensuing discussions have led to a joint venture which is catapulting them towards a market leading position for safety critical shock mitigation seating.
ScotSeats Direct’s background was as the UK’s largest supplier of tested vehicle seats and the company came to Seawork 2009 looking to extend that remit into the commercial marine market. Being positioned at the exhibition across the aisle from KPM-Marine Ltd could not have been more fortuitous.
In the year that KPM scooped Seawork’s prestigious Spirit of Innovation Award for its versatile Run Dry Pumping System, KPM’s design and technical director Julian Morgan began talking to Scot Seats about shock mitigation seat designs. As a water speed record holder and power boat racer as well as being a prolific designer, Julian Morgan was uniquely well qualified to take up the challenge. He knew from personal experience that vertical shock cushioning was not the only factor in preventing impact injury and his design work would focus on providing a seat which also protects from abrupt lateral movements of the lower back.
It was only a matter a months before a new seat was not only designed but also in production and fitted to RIBs at the Southampton Boat Show in September. It was soon selected against more expensive competition on the basis of quality alone by the Norwegian offshore rescue service and is also being evaluated by the US Coast Guard. The high profile adventurer Bear Grylls has chosen the Scot Seats KPM-Marine product for his latest RIB.
The triple stage shock mitigation system offers a small amount of side to side movement to help reduce the chance of jerk injuries and is also the first shock mitigation seat to offer height adjustability. KPM undertakes the engineering design and produces the machined components while Scot Seats does the rest, including sales, marketing and distribution.
Scot Seats KPM-Marine are now expanding their range of seating and are going to be showing a new budget jockey style suspension seat at Seawork 2010. It is only fitting that the two companies are across the aisle from each other again at Seawork , with Scot Seats on Stand 141 and KPM-Marine on Stand 105.
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