There's a new truck seat manufacturer arriving on the scene in North America. The company is GRA-MAG Truck Interior Systems LLC. GRA-MAG has begun seat production at its Grove City, Ohio, facility, coinciding with the launch of a new vehicle seating system for a major truck OEM.
GRA-MAG may be a new name to North American truckers, but it has a heritage from the global trucking market. GRA-MAG is a joint venture company created by one of the world's largest truck seat manufacturers, Grammer AG of Germany, and one of the world's largest vehicle component manufacturers based here in North America, Magna International.
While the company may be new, the seating technology it supplies has been on the roads of Europe, South America, and Asia for the past ten years now. They have taken a proven robust seating design and have modified it to meet the needs of the North American driver.
Several features of the GRA-MAG seat support its position as the elite truck seat in North America. GRA-MAG utilizes many technologies that its competitors don't. The GRA-MAG seat has dual-side reclining systems, locking mechanisms for the seat track, and locking mechanisms for the fore-aft isolator.
Other features include a bellows cover to ensure that hands and fingers can't be accidentally pinched in the seat's air-ride suspension system, and an automatic seat-height adjustment system.
Another feature of the seat is its unique system of ergonomic controls. GRA-MAG has developed a seat with unique handles that are ergonomically designed. Each adjustment handle has its own function, shape, size, and feel, so when the driver reaches down to make the adjustments, there are no surprises.
GRA-MAG is focused on safety and comfort and believes they go hand in hand. In surveys of drivers, a frequent complaint is of discomfort and fatigue in their current seats.
If drivers are not comfortable because of their seats, they will fatigue more quickly. If they are fatigued, that can create a potential safety hazard on the road for both themselves and the drivers around them.
GRA-MAG believes it has developed the most comfortable seat in the industry. GRA-MAG has access to a world-class comfort lab staffed with accredited professionals and an anthropomorphic database of over 6,000 digital body scans.
GRA-MAG used its advanced technology to develop its seating contours and controls to make sure they were a good fit for North American drivers. Some seats feel good when you first sit in them, but the driver begins to become uncomfortable after a few hours. The industry calls this "showroom comfort." GRA-MAG has developed a seat that provides drivers with both showroom comfort and long-term comfort.
The GRA-MAG seat has added upper body support in its backrest, added lateral support in both the seat back and seat cushion, and a special adjustable neck support to provide added comfort for the driver.
GRA-MAG also utilizes patented technology that eliminates a driver's biggest comfort complaint - "sweaty backs." The patented GRA-MAG climate control system virtually eliminates this problem.
