Materials from the old KLM World Business Class recycled by students of the Design Academy Eindhoven

Amstelveen, 2015-6-1 — /Travel PR News/ — KLM Royal Dutch Airlines introduced its new World Business Class (WBC) interior in 2013. Various materials from the old KLM WBC have now been recycled by students of the Design Academy Eindhoven, who used them to create new travel items. Seats, carpeting, seatbelts, TV screens – these materials and others were used to design remarkable prototypes. These designs will be on show in the window displays at the Bijenkorf warehouse in Amsterdam from today, 1 June, through Tuesday 15 June 2015.

KLM has selected eight of the most striking recycled prototypes for the exhibition. In addition, various elements of KLM’s new World Business Class cabin interior – including tableware designed by Marcel Wanders and cushions and blankets designed by Hella Jongerius – will be on show in the men’s department on the first floor of the warehouse.

Plane to Product
Fourteen students of the “Man & Identity” faculty at the Design Academy Eindhoven spent the past months designing prototypes for travel items. The materials used for these prototypes were for at least seventy percent recycled. Student Fransje Gimbrere on the “Plane to Product” project: “Designing for KLM was very exciting. Having a look behind the scenes and diving into the identity of such a grand company was very interesting and enjoyable.” The “Plane to Product” projects shows what design can do, taking discarded materials and recycling them to create new Dutch design.

New World Business Class interior
Hella Jongerius designed the new cabin interior for KLM World Business Class. Jongerius is also a former student of the Design Academy Eindhoven. The guiding principle for the new cabin interior was to optimise privacy and comfort, ensuring that passengers feel at home. The new KLM World Business Class now offers a homely atmosphere, featuring a characteristically warm colour palette and making use of sustainable materials. Apart from the new full-flat seat measuring more than two metres in length, the new interior also has carpets that consist partly of discarded KLM ladies uniforms, new wall decorations, curtains, blankets, cushions and seat upholstery.

KLM’s entire Boeing-747 fleet now boasts the new World Business Class cabin, and the 777-200/300 fleet is currently undergoing transformation. In due course, all of KLM’s World Business Class cabins will feature top Dutch design, reflecting KLM’s pride in its Dutch roots with a world-class product.

Sustainability
Sustainability is a key principle of all new developments at KLM. The new interior design therefore also had to be innovative and sustainable. This is fully in line with the corporate social responsibility policy that KLM has pursued for many years. AIR FRANCE KLM has for the past 10 years been ranked as most sustainable airline on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI)*, which is the world’s leading index for gauging the performance of corporations in the field of sustainable development.

World Business Class summer promotional fares
KLM offers low World Business Class booking fares to several attractive destinations to travel to during the Summer. Destinations such as New York and Curaçao can be booked between June 3 and 9, 2015. So keep an eye on our website

CONTACT INFORMATION
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines
KLM Mediarelations

tel: + 31 20 649 45 45
e-mail:

###

Prototypes Created from KLM’s Former World Business Class in Bijenkorf

Prototypes Created from KLM’s Former World Business Class in Bijenkorf