Theatre Solution Prima Auditorium Seating - Manual (Page 8)

Prima Auditorium Seating Planning, Installation & Specification Manual 7
Prima Product Advantages
Gravity Tip-Up Seat The Prima seat tip-up action is attained by the use of a gravity counterweight mechanism.
The advantages of a gravity mechanism over a spring or cylinder mechanism are as follows:
Consistent and automatic return to the upright position. Spring mechanisms can have inconsistent tip-
up action due to the variation of the strength or fatigue of the steel springs. This affects the aesthetics of the
room and may affect compliance with egress codes since the seats may not return to a consistent upright
position.
Silent action. Spring mechanisms are likely to develop squeaks and normally produce several loud hits
before coming to a stop.
Seat tip-up will never fail. Because the Prima mechanism relies on gravity, it will never fail to return the
seat to its upright position. In contrast, as a spring mechanism fatigues, the seat tip-up action will get
slower. Eventually, the spring mechanism may fail to return the seat to the upright position, producing a
possible violation of egress codes.
Seat Construction The Prima seat construction is patterned after office chairs for long-term comfort and durability.
Flexible polyurethane foam is glued directly to the structure of the seat. The advantages of this type of construction
are as follows:
Silence, durability, comfort. Seats constructed with serpentine springs often fatigue, sag and fail. This
creates an uncomfortable noisy seat, which may require replacement. TSI’s flexible polyurethane foam
construction offers significant user comfort over long seating periods. Additionally, the absence of steel
springs insures completely silent compression during use.
Upholstered options. Unlike metal seat pans with serpentine springs, Prima’s all-wood construction allows
for custom upholstery detailing. The fully-upholstered seat has a zippered slip-on fabric cover for easier on-
site replacement.
TSI Chair Frames Prima legs are laminated assemblies of furniture grade particle board with steel hinge
assemblies. The advantages of this type of construction are listed below:
Flexibility. The Prima’s laminated wood assembly allows for simple and cost efficient design modifications
for conformance to unique building conditions.
Cost of Ownership Due to the obvious product advantages of Prima seating as mentioned above, and the superior
service and warranty levels offered by TSI, purchasing Prima seating is a better long-term value. The initial savings
associated with the purchase of a less expensive chair is likely to be lost through ongoing maintenance and
replacement during the lifetime of the product.