Matrix reimagines seating

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The U.K.-based Matrix Seating has had an outpost here for about four years, but it wasn't until recently that it had an appropriate product for sale and a support system to back it up.

Matrix Seating USA has completed beta testing for a next-generation seating system called the Easy Fit that President Greg Sims says has all the benefits of a custom-molded seating system without all of the headaches.

“It's what we've always dreamed of from an ATP standpoint,” said Sims, also an assistive technology professional (ATP). “It's a custom mold, but we're able to fit it.” 

Instead of fitting a seating system and sending it away to be molded, this system allows ATPs to do their work on the spot. It can be shaped, split and rejoined in various ways to produce curves and remove surplus material—it's completely flexible until several screws are fully tightened. What this means: ATPs can send their clients home with their seating systems the same day.

With the Easy Fit, Matrix has upped the ante by, among other things, making the system's locking mechanisms “absolute”—engineer-speak for they won't deflect over time.

Matrix now has a team of 12 employees, including four with ATP certifications, in place to sell and support the seating system, Sims says.

“Before DME companies were selling our products to other DME companies, and they were providing no technical support, no customer service, and pricing was all over the place,” he said. “Now we have boots on the ground.”

Matrix reintroduced its seating system to the U.S. market at the Numotion National Education Conference on March 1 in Phoenix.

“The company has been around for 20 years, but it's grown into this new product and into the American market,” said Katherine Sims, director of marketing and communications. “We're hoping that the ATPs there will be familiar with previous generations of the product but see how much it's changed.”