Christchurch is New Zealand’s second largest city and home of a projected $30 billion post-earthquake rebuilding program. As the rolling rebuild of the airport terminal took place, the operators whittled down their selection of mass seating from twelve hopeful suppliers to just two. UFL and one other.
The two finalists were asked to provide a sample and for just one day, airport employees invited passengers to sit on the two alternatives and place a vote for the seat that provided the best comfort. At the end of the day the votes were tallied, and the clear winner, with 250 votes counted, was 249 votes to UFL and just one vote to the competitor.
Christchurch Airport placed their order with UFL for their AS202 beam seat. Their passengers had voted with their bottoms!