Adient plc (www.adient.com) and Boeing (www.boeing.com) have formed Adient Aerospace, a joint-venture company that will develop and manufacture a range of aircraft seats for sale to Boeing and other commercial-airplane manufacturers.

The joint venture between Adient (a global leader in automotive seating) and Boeing (the world’s largest aerospace company) addresses the aviation industry’s need for more capacity in seating production, superior quality and reliable on-time performance.

Adient Aerospace will benefit from the world-class engineering teams and innovative cultures at both companies, as well as shared expertise in managing complex, global supply chains.

Adient chairman and CEO Bruce McDonald said: “Adient has a strong set of transferable competencies. To enhance the customer experience for passengers, airlines and commercial-airplane manufacturers, we will apply our unmatched expertise for comfort and craftsmanship, along with our reputation for operational excellence.”

Boeing Commercial Airplanes vice-president Kevin Schemm said: “Seats have been a persistent challenge for our customers, the industry and Boeing, and we are taking action to help address constraints in the market.

Adient Aero-space will leverage Boeing’s industry leadership and deep understanding of customer needs and technical requirements to provide a superior seating product for airlines and passengers around the world.”

Adient Aerospace’s headquarters, technology centre and initial production plant will be in Kaiserslautern, Germany. Adient is the majority shareholder in the new company (50.01%). Industry analysts expect the commercial-aircraft seating market to grow from about $4.5 billion in 2017 to $6 billion by 2026.