Causeway Aero Group acquires Pitch Aircraft Seating Systems
Causeway Aero Group has acquired Pitch Aircraft Seating Systems for an undisclosed sum. This follows the award, in March 2019, of a contract for Causeway to certify, manufacture and assemble the Pitch PF3000 lightweight, fixed back economy class seat at its facility in Lisburn, Northern Ireland.
Michael Rice, CEO of Causeway Aero Group, commented: “We are delighted to add the Pitch seats to Causeway’s extensive Aero Interiors portfolio as we have been huge fans of them from the outset. The seats provide a comfortable living space for the passenger, even at 28in pitch, with sculptured cushions that suit all shapes and sizes. My personal favourite feature is the fact that finally I can properly open the screen and use my laptop.”
The Causeway team has shown tremendous professionalism and agility as with the engineering, certification, and manufacture of the PF3000 and demonstrated that the company is a true Aero Integrator. There were multiple cases of a test failure on Thursday; seats shipped back overnight; engineering review on Saturday; new designs on Sunday; drawings issued to the supply chain on Monday; new parts received and new test seats produced on Tuesday; shipped on Wednesday; and retested, successfully the next day. That level of agility will be at the centre of the Pitch brand’s success going forward.
Michael added, “Pitch had done an amazing job designing the seat with feng shui style focus for a high-density cabin and delivered a Great British design with wonderful aesthetics, functionality and, most importantly, high levels of durability. Causeway’s focus is to further enhance the cost, durability, and serviceability of the seats to make them the economy seat of choice for operators looking to fix total cost of ownership over the life of the product. Causeway’s strategy is to sell you great quality durable seats, not spare parts for them, we will back this up with a range of new sales packages which will be introduced in the coming months, offering seats and other interiors products.”
The Pitch brand completes Causeway’s ‘nose to tail’ aero interiors capability and represents a unique opportunity for Causeway to have an important role in the recovery of the commercial aviation industry in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, especially as low-cost carriers will be a key element in regenerating travel. While Causeway will continue to provide integration, engineering, and production support to major interiors manufacturers by providing high quality bespoke components, the well-established Pitch brand will continue and be marketed separately as it has become synonymous with aesthetic appeal, high quality, and high durability in the high-density cabin environment.