October 3, 2007 – SPECIALISING IN in-seat power supplies (ISPS), Astronics is seen by some as a hewer of wood and a drawer of water compared with the glamorous IFE hardware manufacturers. But at last month’s WAEA exhibition in Toronto the Washington State-based company showed that it has its finger firmly on the pulse of the IFE industry.

Taking pride of place on the Astronics booth was a new ISPS designed to supply 200W AC to each seat outlet unit. “With more than 60 per cent of laptops requiring more than 75W, this is the only one on the market that can power and charge laptops and the array of other devices carried aboard by passengers and crew,” executive VP Mark Peabody told Inflight Online. “We see a continuing demand for higher levels of laptop power in long-haul widebody aircraft. The current FAA-certificated top rating of 200W covers most laptops, but you never know when that might change.”

The widebodies are also the arena for two more significant trends, Peabody said. “We expect to see continued integration of laptop and IFE power in a single box which will get smaller and smaller with time. And laptop power will become standard nose-to-tail in these aircraft, reaching economy class within the next ten years.”

He expects the same thing to happen in the narrowbodies, though it will take longer. “In-seat power will be established in these types over the next 20 years, driven in part by increasing ranges and flight durations,” he said. “It’s starting now in business class and I expect to see it moving to economy 10 years from now.”

Astronics’ other showpiece in Toronto was a unit designed to supply 110V AC/60Hz for passenger carry-on devices and 10V DC/15V DC (switchable) for airline-issued handheld IFE players. “The proliferation of handheld IFE is accompanied by a desire by the airlines not to have to take batteries off the aircraft for recharging,” explained Peabody. “So now we’re seeing demand for a unit delivering AC in-seat power for laptops and DC for handheld players.”