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The old adage about “Dad’s favorite chair” has its roots in fact. All chairs do not feel the same. Some chairs provide more comfort and support than others. The same is true in Church seating. When it comes to comfort, given a choice between a hard pew and a properly designed and constructed chair, most people will favor the well-built, ergonomically shaped chair. This may be one of the factors contributing to a national trend toward use of flexible seating in new churches and those refurbishing their worship seating areas.
Flexible seating is defined as seating capable of multiple uses and configurations. A multi-purpose seating approach allows churches to make more efficient use of their facilities. It’s not unusual today to find the main worship area being used for musical performances, evangelistic theater, special interest meetings and other innovative applications of a space traditionally reserved for worship use only a few times during the week. This article examines some of the factors that may influence your decision-making process when evaluating flexible seating. The goal is to help you become better prepared to compare seating options and to help you become able to evaluate more than just visual appeal; to become skilled at comparing comfort and potential for long term performance. Chair selection involves a number of factors: - Inner construction Inner Construction Flexible seating is available in either metal or wood frame construction. For spaces that require frequent seating configuration changes, stackable steel frame designs may offer the best solution. Metal frames with thick powder coated finish resist chipping better than those having sprayed enamel paint finish. The chairs are lighter in weight than wood, can be stacked higher on carts and are more mobility-friendly. Many people believe that nothing compares to the warmth of natural wood. For those people, there are solid wood frame designs. While stackable, wood frame chairs do not stack as efficiently as metal chairs nor does the wood finish wear as well as powder coating on a steel frame. However, natural wood frame chair designs are ideal for seating that will most often remain in place, when infrequent rearrangement is anticipated. Metal frames are constructed using steel tubes. Looking at a cross-section of the tubes, they are generally square or rectangular to provide the largest possible connection area for strong welds. Frame parts are formed from raw coils of steel on a tube mill that converts a thick ribbon of high carbon steel into an appropriate load-bearing tube design for maximum strength and stability. Tubes are bent to form the shape of the chair. Then the back frame is attached to the chair base using multiple electric arc welds. Assembled frames receive a coating of spray enamel or preferably a permanent powder coat finish applied using electrolysis. Then the upholstered seat and back assemblies are screwed or bolted to the steel frame, completing the chair. Wood frames, typically kiln-dried hardwood (oak, ash or hickory) or an engineered plywood design, cannot be bent like steel. Wood frame shape generally is created using woodworking machinery to contour and cut frame parts. Wood frame components can be joined with dowels, screws and glue. Corner blocks may be added in hidden areas under the chair seat to increase stability. Wood chair strength and durability depends on how well the joints fit and on proper gluing methods. When inspecting wood chairs, be sure to examine the joints to be certain they fit well and check to confirm that minimal gaps exist in the seams where the joints are formed. After assembly, but before seat and back cushions are attached, wood frames often are stained to a specified color and then finished with multiple applications of a durable, clear, scuff-resistant top coat. Whether selecting a metal or wood frame design, you should test chairs on a solid, perfectly level floor. If the floor is level, the chair legs should be too and in full contact with the floor at all times. There should be no telltale wobble. The chair deck, which is the platform used to suspend the cushion between the front, side and back rails, is also a consideration. As a rule, in flexible seating, a solid wood deck is not a good idea. Solid wood is subject to checking (splitting along the grain) and if improperly dried can warp and may loosen fasteners used to secure the seat to the frame. Plywood, composed of multiple hardwood layers bonded in biased grain directions, provides improved performance. Better yet are new polyresin composite materials. They are lighter in weight, and maintain their strength and shape without compromise. Polyresin composites also hold fasteners tighter and can be ergonomically shaped to provide added comfort. Some high-end church chairs feature a web-suspension deck that provides some ride for the seat cushion. Webbing should be woven from high-strength polyester monofilament and should meet or exceed the ANSI/BIFMA Safety and Performance Standards. Comfort Evaluating comfort is a critical part of selecting flexible seating. There are several chair manufacturers that do a great job of procuring fabrics, assembling frames and upholstering cushions. But only a handful knows how to manufactured long lasting, comfortable seating. Comfort is key to long-term satisfaction. Comfort begins with the frame design. We found that to appeal to a range of human heights, the combined seat height and foam cushion thickness should total about 18 vertical inches. Less seat height causes uncomfortable pressure no matter the seating design or construction. Some manufacturers are also able to custom fabricate chairs with dimensions to meet special needs. Cushion material selection is important. The flexible polyurethane foam cushion used in the seat cushion must provide the proper combination of comfort and support. Most people make the mistake of thinking that all foam cushioning is the same. In fact, there are thousands of different grades and specifications that all look pretty much alike. However, only a slight difference in cushion density or firmness can affect all of the other chair performance characteristics. Cushioning used for church seating should be different than you’d find in household furniture. The thickness of a church seat cushion is less than a sofa cushion, so performance is more critical. There are no springs beneath a church seat to provide ride. All the cushion comfort must come from the foam itself. To provide comfortable seating over a period of hours requires much firmer and more supportive foam than would be found in upholstered living room furniture. In fact, it should be about three times firmer than residential furniture cushioning. According to the Polyurethane Foam Association, when foam cushions are used over a solid deck (as found in most church chairs) a loss of firmness of between 10 to 15% should be expected. Therefore, as a general rule when evaluating chairs, it is a good idea to test the chair by sitting in it for at least an hour. Then select the one with the firmest cushioning. The softest cushion, that may feel best during a short test, may not be able to provide adequate support after a few hours of use. It is also a good idea to sit on the edge of the chair to see if you can feel the frame through the fabric. If you can feel the hard edge, the chair is inadequately padded and subject to more rapid fabric wear. Ask about the seat cushion density. Industry tests show that flexible polyurethane foam used in church chair construction should have a density of at least 1.7 pounds per cubic foot. Foam used in back construction can have slightly lower density, as it is not a load bearing application. Style Flexible church chairs don’t have to look boring. Several manufacturers offer long product lines with numerous styling options. In fact, there are flexible chair designs offered for use in the most conservative sanctuaries, the most contemporary worship facilities, and in everything in between. If you need selecting a style, some manufacturers can provide design assistance. Ask if you can supply photographs or a floor plan showing your facility to receive custom styling recommendations. Fabric A vast number of fabric choices are available. Most fabrics offered for flexible church seating are woven using blends of synthetic fibers such as acrylic, nylon, and polyester. These types of fibers have been proven to resist abrasion and wear. They hold colors well and can be treated to resist soiling and some stains. In tight cushion upholstery, as found in all flexible seating for churches, it is important that the fabric be designed to resist stretch to prevent premature wear. Fabrics used in church seating are commercial fabrics specially woven for such use. For this reason, it is usually not a good idea to supply your own fabric. Supplying your own fabric may also void the manufacturer’s warranty. Color Many people consider color to be the most important consideration. From a durability and performance standpoint, color has little bearing on the value of the chair selection. Just as there are thousands of fabrics to choose from, there are many, many color choices. In fact there are so many shades of red, blue and green that it’s a good idea to have carpet swatches and paint chips available to be certain the color you choose works in your environment. Before specifying a fabric, it’s a good idea to confirm that it is colorfast for possible cleaning and that it will not transfer color to lighter colored materials. Other Considerations Beyond physical construction, performance, styling and color, there are other factors to consider when selecting flexible seating. Does the manufacturer offer a demonstration chair for your use during the evaluation process? Will there be a warranty on the chairs? Does the manufacturer produce all the components used in their chairs or do they have a “never out” policy to guarantee availability of the products in their line? Unfortunately, one of the problems facing today’s manufacturers are periodic shortages of certain materials as a result of raw material suppliers trying to minimize their inventories. So, the more processes a manufacturer can perform “in house,” the better possibility of receiving on-time chair delivery. Do you need 1,000 chairs in a week? Ask if the manufacturer has an established quick-ship program. Need reassurance? It is perfectly acceptable to request customer references. Would you like to manage your cash flow? Then ask about financing options. It may be possible to extend payment over a period of years. At today’s reasonable interest rate, that might make good sense. Like any major purchase decision, there are a number of factors to be considered. The reward comes when you make the right choice and your church thanks you for providing a pleasing, comfortable environment to enrich their worship experience. Attribution: Dean Sammons is the President of Church Chair Industries, Inc., Rome, Georgia. The company can be contacted at 800-331-5411 or through their web site www.churchchair.com Church Chair Industries, a leading supplier of flexible seating for religious organizations, recently introduced an innovative financing service for its customers. The program will provide financing options for almost all of Church Chair’s ® customers who are seeking chair purchase financing for their religious organizations.
Design Stacker I ™
Pew Chair I ™
Tube Bender
Dean Sammons, president of Church Chair ® said, “We were aware that several other church seating manufacturers were involved in financing activities. We observed and waited several years to become involved. Our management team thought it was important to be able to provide an economical financing service that almost all of our customers could take advantage of, not just the larger congregations.” Sammons explained, “We had in-depth discussions with a number of different financial firms and eventually found a financial service provider with extensive church-related experience and a track record indicating they could support churches of all sizes; not just larger, more established groups.” The new Church Chair ® program provides two to five year financing assistance to help religious organizations spread out the cost of seating. The Church Chair ® financing program is managed and provided on an exclusive basis by Global Financial, a well-established specialty lender with more than 20 years experience in church financing. Phil Dushey, president of Global Financial, added, “We’re delighted to be able to offer this important service to Church Chair ® customers. The flexibility we can provide was developed over many years of experience in church lending. Global Financial is truly able to serve churches of all sizes; from the newly organized, to those with hundreds of years of history.” Church Chair ® is a leading manufacturer of stackable metal frame and wood frame chair seating. The company serves customers in all 50 states and 21 foreign countries.
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