Molded Polyurethane Foam Industry Panel

About Us

Mission Statement

The Industry Panel Mission is to Create Automotive Seating Foam Specifications that are Practical and Functionally Driven to Achieve Basic Commonality Within the Automotive Industry and Establish Best Practices

Industry Panel Purpose

Our Panel is comprised of OEM, Tier I and Tier II, Tier III companies that either manufacture cars, assemble seats, mold foam, or manufacture the chemicals for making foam. The accrued knowledge gained through years of experience in the automotive industry uniquely places our panel in a position to share our insights into molded foam and its application for seating. As a resource to the industry we feel our purpose is to:

  • Serve as a knowledge source for oems
  • Recommend material specification updates
  • Recommend test methodologies / best practices

Industry Panel Goals

The members of the panel aspire to create the most efficient and comprehensive material specification that will ensure the molded polyurethane foam material utilized for automotive seating is durable, comfortable, and directly related to its end use. To achieve this goal we strive to:

  • Reduce test complexity
  • Improve test methodology by:
    • Eliminating subjectivity
    • Improving repeatability / reliability
    • Maintaining a relationship to function
  • Eliminate non-value added tests
  • Utilize industry standards
  • Promote common global oem test methodologies

Antitrust Guideline

The Industry Panel members, as publicly communicated, meet monthly in order to achieve their purpose as defined in the panel mission statement.

The members adhere to the spirit of the Antitrust Laws:

  • We do not discuss or exchange information on:
    • Pricing
    • Transportation rates
    • Market shares
    • Production
    • Market procedures
    • Proprietary technology of any member company
  • There is an agenda for each monthly meeting, which is circulated in advance of the meeting date.
  • The outcome of the meeting, as well as the resulting action items from the meeting are documented in meeting minutes. The minutes are circulated to the meeting attendees and those who were absent.
  • The panel members are free to circulate the meeting minutes inside their own organizations and consult with their legal personnel on issues.