2024
LOOP CHAIR
Loop Chair is a conceptual, lightweight seat for the next generation of short-haul flights with a ground-breaking new circular design philosophy.
Seats have an “end of life” (EOL) problem – they’re complicated, composite products, chemically bonded together. They’re very difficult to separate and recycle and the majority of parts are either incinerated or dumped in landfill.
In aviation, entire cabins are generally ripped out every 5-10 years, with the airlines replacing every seat. This is a time consuming and costly process, and often results in an airline flying half the fleet with the latest, cutting edge seating, and the other half with some battered yesterday models.
Loop Chair addresses both of these problems with an ingenious, patent-pending design.
Modularity
At the heart of Loop Chair is a patent-pending modularity system – every passenger-facing element, from the seat cushions to the IFE, is attached to a simple structural frame by mechanical fastenings. The frame is designed to stay in the aircraft indefinitely and every other part can be upgraded in seconds, on-wing, as and when needed.
The seat can therefore be upgraded to follow the latest sustainable technology, customer trends or technological advances without being ripped out and replaced. This dramatically reduces aircraft downtime, allows airlines to stay ahead of trends and help reduce EOL waste.
Circularity
The design concept opens up true circularity - every individual part can be removed, separated, and then be repaired, recycled or even reused, no more big bonded assemblies or unknown materials.
With this comes a radical idea - only the structural frame of the seat is owned by the airline, and the rest of the seat is leased from the manufacturer. This means that materials are returned to the original creator and can remain in their high-value state, even being refurbished and re-leased.
New business models such as this will be vital to the industry’s net-zero commitments and challenge the conventional, unsustainable, rip-out and replace business model.
Sustainable Materials
The beauty of Loop Chair is that it’s a system not a product, and so it’s not tied to any one material or technology. As technology evolves, so can the seat. So if a new lightweight cushion is developed, or a higher definition screen, or a special lightweight table - they can be easily swapped in.
The initial version of product, as we’ve visualised, has a small table, a simple 3D knitted literature pocket and 100% recycled wool dress covers, with a frame made from recycled aluminium. All deigned to keep the environmental footprint to a minimum.
Every material is visible and tactile, emotionally connecting the passenger to the seat through this honesty.
Designing out the weight
The third advantage of Loop Chair’s modular concept is the weight-saving – due to the elimination of anything unnecessary and the simplicity of the design, the product is naturally lightweight. There is no extra cladding or surplus parts, everything you see has a function.
Challenging the accepted aesthetic
Loop Chair’s striking aesthetic nods to iconic furniture designs of the past, with simple, separate parts and mono-materials.
The minimalist design means every element is either structural or functional, with no unnecessary clutter, creating a slimline and refined design. The number of moving parts is kept to an absolute minimum, meaning less weight and fewer maintenance issues.
Summary
Loop Chair showcases Studio ID's approach by rethinking the business models that underpin current cabins and designing with circularity at the forefront of every decision, creating a new, beautifully simple design for passenger seating.