Johnson Controls Honored for Innovative Technologies
9 June 1999
Automotive Interior Supplier Honored for Developing Innovative TechnologiesIntegrated child activity center and comfort lab
are recognized in key industry awards program
PLYMOUTH, Mich. -- In recent months, automotive interior supplier Johnson Controls
has gained attention with a unique seat system that helps keep
traveling children happy and safe -- and a state-of-the-art engineering center
that is being used to make the vehicle cabin more comfortable. This week, the company
received top honors for these technological innovations in the 1999 Interior
Design and Technology Awards program, sponsored by Automotive & Transportation
Interiors magazine.
PlaySeat(TM) with LEGO(R) Connections won first-place recognition in the
"comfort and convenience" category. Unveiled earlier this year, the product is
a vehicle seating system with an integrated, versatile child activity center.
Johnson Controls' new Comfort Engineering Laboratory in Plymouth, Michigan
gained an honorable mention in the "general innovations" category. The $3.5
million facility -- and industry first among tier-one suppliers -- features
the most advanced tools for measuring, enhancing and "designing-in" comfort
for vehicle interiors.
"At Johnson Controls, we're committed to developing unique and innovative
products that surprise and delight consumers while differentiating our
automaker customer brands," said Mike Suman, Group Vice President of Advanced
Sales, Marketing and Development -- Worldwide for Johnson Controls. "Customers
directly benefit from our spirit of innovation, as reflected in PlaySeat and
our comfort engineering capabilities."
Officials from Johnson Controls accepted the awards at a ceremony last
night in Detroit. It was held in conjunction with the 5th Annual Automotive &
Transportation Interiors Expo, which is taking place from June 7 to 9 at the
Cobo Exhibition/Conference Center.
Here are more details about the winning technologies from Johnson
Controls:
PlaySeat: The first product of its kind, PlaySeat with LEGO Connections
was developed by designers and engineers at Johnson Controls. It is the
initial interior system to emerge out of a global partnership between the
interior supplier and The LEGO Group, a toy manufacturer. PlaySeat is a rear-
seat child activity center that features a quality writing and drawing
desktop, a LEGO play surface, holders for juice boxes and cups, and a storage
compartment for LEGO bricks, writing materials, books and other toys. Market-
ready for vehicles worldwide, the product initially is planned for integration
into minivan and sport-utility vehicles. Johnson Controls and The LEGO Group
will develop additional products to entertain rear-seat passengers and
encourage them to ride with seat belts fastened.
Comfort Engineering Laboratory: The 3,200-square-foot center includes the
most advanced tools for measuring and enhancing comfort in vehicle interior
systems. Its focal point is a driving simulator that replicates the sights,
sounds, forces and vibrations that drivers and passengers experience under all
possible road, traffic and weather conditions. A driver and passengers --
seated in a prototype vehicle interior -- take a "virtual" ride while
engineers monitor and record their experience. The lab is staffed by 12 full-
time professionals, including eight engineers and four technicians. They
currently are working on approximately 30 interior programs for vehicles under
development.
The 1999 Design and Technology Awards program is sponsored by Automotive &
Transportation Interiors magazine, a global trade publication that reaches
12,500 auto executives. The awards are designed to stimulate creative thinking
and recognize outstanding technological innovations in the interiors industry.
An independent panel of judges -- including designers and engineers,
journalists, and auto industry officials -- selected the award winners.
The Plymouth, Michigan-based automotive business of Johnson Controls --
which employs more than 57,000 people at 275 facilities worldwide -- achieved
US$9.3 billion in sales for the 1998 fiscal year. In model-year 1999, it will
supply interior products for more than 22 million vehicles.
Johnson Controls is a global market leader in automotive systems and
facility management and control. For non-residential facilities, Johnson
Controls provides building control systems and services, energy management and
integrated facility management. Johnson Controls, founded in 1885, has
headquarters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Its sales for 1998 totaled US$12.6
billion.
