Figueras Seating becomes one of the official suppliers for the prestigious French company Chantiers de l’Atlantique. The first project to be developed will be for the second largest cruise ship in the world, Utopia of the Seas by Royal Caribbean, which has trusted the Barcelona-based brand to equip two rooms: the main theater and Studio B.
“The cruise segment is a key sector for us and at the same time one of the most complex as it requires many special certifications and knowing the details of each context,” says Josep Manel Santiago, CEO of Figueras Seating Europe. “We are deeply grateful for the trust that Chantiers de l’Atlantique has placed in Figueras for the Utopia of the Seas project and hope it is the first of many. Our commitment is to respond to the complexity that a project of this magnitude demands.”
From 2024 onwards, passengers of the A35 Ship will be able to enjoy the comfort of Figueras seats in the Main Theater and Studio B.
Royal Caribbean’s management asked Figueras to maintain the essence of the Main Theater, preserving as much as possible the same type of seat that was in that room. In this regard, Figueras’ engineering team has worked to adapt one of its industrial seats and make an almost exact replica of theirs, using the shipping company’s corporate upholstery.
“The biggest challenge,” explains Josep Mª Moret, director of engineering at Figueras, “was the layout. The Main Theater is sloped and curved. Likewise, there is an added complexity in that there are existing air outlets in the room that condition the distribution of the seats and the fixing points. This problem has meant that, at some critical points, a sliding foot system had to be designed to overcome the interferences.” In addition, at the request of the shipping company, the armrests have been adapted to fit the three types of glasses from the corporate tableware: wine glasses, cocktail glasses, and tumblers.
The project will be led by Benjamin Paci, responsible for the markets in France, Benelux, and Italy.
