Aircraft Cabin Innovation Summit
Joining the busy calendar of summer aerospace events was RedCabin’s Aircraft Innovation Summit hosted by American Airlines. Our Product Manager, Rhian Bache, jetted to Dallas shortly after this year’s AIX in Hamburg, to attend and immerse herself in the latest industry updates on the other side of the Atlantic. This year, engineers, designers and aviation leaders from around the globe gathered at the event to discuss the future of aircraft interiors. Here, Rhian shares her thoughts from an exciting and engaging event.
What were the key themes?
As predicted, the conversations at this year’s Summit were centred around sustainability and specifically how to ensure we can do better as an industry and how we can push advancements forwards. The other main theme was accessibility. "Nothing for us, without us" was a key focus around including panels of different passengers and experts who can represent the different needs of the community.
The final key theme was collaboration – for the whole industry to achieve long-term solutions and make the level of impact needed, to keep net zero 2050 in sight, we all need to work together. We discussed the ways in which OEMs, suppliers and airlines can work more closely together to develop the options available on the market in years to come. For suppliers, it’s about learning what is missing and working on innovations to plug these gaps in a sustainable way, which is exactly what we did with our latest eco floor path marking system, saf-Tglo eco E1™.
What challenges are airlines facing?
One of the main challenges airlines are currently facing is a lack of engineering resources, which was raised in a round table discussion I took part in. I shared our perspective by explaining that suppliers are willing to offer their help and advice to share the burden, but that can only be done if airlines are willing to trust them in the process. If airlines trust, consult and listen to their chosen suppliers, who are experts in their fields, they can benefit from valuable advice that could alleviate some of the gaps in engineering resources. I explained that suppliers like STG understand the demand for good service and customer experience, and that the strong relationships we have with our customers helps to streamline processes.
What were the main takeaways?
As mentioned above, a key takeaway from this year’s Aircraft Cabin Innovation Summit was that the industry needs to prioritise collaboration to ensure long-term success. More suppliers and manufacturers need to prioritise proactive support for their customers and offer an enhanced service from start to finish, as this will make collaboration much smoother. At STG, we are committed to looking after all customers throughout the life cycle of our products, from the initial colour and branding workshops through to certification, installation, and maintenance phases. By prioritising strong relationships and keeping industry/passenger needs at the heart of new innovations, collaboration will become easier across the industry.