Sitting comfortably
Competition within the aerospace sector is rife as airlines fight to offer travellers the greatest level of comfort. When the worldÔÇÖs biggest companiesÔÇösuch as Emirates or Air FranceÔÇölook for new innovations, they turn to Wales, and to Contour Premium Aircraft Seating.
Contour Premium Aircraft Seating works closely with the worldÔÇÖs leading airlines to design and develop bespoke premium seating that will create competitive advantage and strongly differentiate an airline from its competitor.
The companyÔÇÖs history is steeped with world firsts in assisting airlines to create these products within a viable commercial context. Patented innovation combined with engineering prowess has repeatedly delivered radical new products in unprecedented timeframes, setting new standards of quality, refinement and luxury along the way.
The company has its roots back in the 1930s, when Louis Arthur Rumbold founded LA Rumbold & Co in Acton, West London, to provide interiors for the de Havilland Aircraft Company in nearby Hatfield. By 1965, it had become part of BSG International and Rumbold expanded operations by opening up a new site in Seattle, in 1989.
In 1996, LA Rumbold & Co was integrated with Contour to form a new company, Britax International. Around the same time, it developed the first truly flat bed for British Airways and ever since, it has assisted many of the most prestigious airlines in bringing new innovations to market, including the first sideways-facing seat for Virgin. From angled lie-flat to fully flat; from swivel seats to private cabins; the company has become the worldÔÇÖs prominent and most experienced supplier to the worldÔÇÖs leading airlines.
The company soon decided to operate a new facility located away from its Camberley base and opened a 20,000 square-metre site in Llantarnam, Cwmbran. Part of the reason for the relocation was the opportunity to massively reduce overheads and to work on a greenfield site, affording the scope to run operations in a different way.
Once the relocation was complete, the company invested heavily in a new machining facility, with the Welsh Development Agency playing a big part in helping to get things up and running through financial assistance and extensive training. A couple of years later, the company relocated its metal fabrication plant to Cwmbran, creating a further 198 jobs.
In 2004, the name Contour was revived and it became one of the four specialist companies operating under the newly-consolidated Premium Aircraft Interiors Group. Today the Premium Aircraft Interiors Group is truly global, with manufacturing operations in the USA and Germany with additional sales and support centres in the UAE, France, China, New Zealand, Australia and India.
Unlike the automotive sector, all carriers pay to develop their products, meaning that Contour effectively has two income streams: engineering and seat sales. As one would expect, quality is of paramount importance both for customers and Contour itself and as such, the company has attained quality approvals to ISO 9001:2000 and AS9100 standards.
Every airline flies different aircraft with different configurations, requiring more than one solution and offering further opportunities for Contour. This means that seats have to be re-designed and re-configured and the competitive nature of aircraft design means that every customer wants their product kept under wrapsÔÇöa discipline Contour has perfected.
Part of the reason for such a cloak and dagger approach is the rise in expectations of the business-class traveller. Today, that class of clientele is much more demanding, expecting greater space in which to work as well as the ability to eat, sleep and relax comfortably while flying. As the airlines have responded, each has raised the bar, with a little help from Contour and its technology. Delivering on all these fronts, within strict parameters of cost, weight and reliability, the company has established a reputation for helping airlines to maximise their yield while exceeding the expectations of the most demanding passenger.
As part of that process and in order to cut time-to-market, minimise cost and reduce risk, Contour has developed Eclipse, a common engineering platform that can be customised to suit the specifications of any airline.
Despite the economic downturn, business has remained brisk for Contour and in May 2008 it was announced that the Cwmbran operations were to be expanded as it sought to bring some component manufacturing in-house, creating fifty new jobs into the bargain. The investment was again supported by the Welsh Assembly Government with grant aid and at the time, took the total number employed at the site to nearly 900.
This news came hot on the heels of its selection by Delta Air Lines to supply its Solar Suite: a fully lie-flat sleeper suite for the airlineÔÇÖs BusinessElite cabin.
There is no doubt that Contour has been of significant benefit to the Welsh community and economy; earlier this year the Cwmbran site was paid a visit by Prime Minister Gordon Brown due to its ongoing successes. At the time of ContourÔÇÖs expansion, Ieuan Wyn Jones, Welsh Assembly Government Minister for Economy and Transport, said: ÔÇ£Aerospace is a key sector in Wales with 180 companies which together employ more than 25,000 people. Contour has gone from strength to strength since opening its base in Cwmbran in 1999 where it has continued to develop a range of highly innovative aircraft seating for the worldÔÇÖs leading aircraft.
ÔÇ£It was the first big company that signed up to come to Wales after devolution. It also was determined right from the start that it would be moving its design and engineering facility here, as well as the actual manufacturing plant.ÔÇØ
