Railway · Events 2026

From Berlin to Chicago: Clerprem comfort takes centre stage at InnoTrans and APTA 2026

Two trade shows, two continents, one common thread: passenger comfort. In September and October, Clerprem brought its railway seating systems to InnoTrans 2026 in Berlin and APTA TRANSform 2026 in Chicago, presenting new developments alongside some of its best-selling models.

A booth you experience from the inside

The Clerprem booth is not something you look at from the aisle: you step into it. At both shows we built a mesh enclosure, a light, semi-transparent box that our OEM customers and rail operators walk into. It is a focused space designed for sitting down, touching the materials, testing the seats and talking with our technical team, just as you would on board a train.

Inside, every seat was upholstered in the same finish to give the booth one clear, consistent identity. In Berlin we chose a beige bouclé with matching passementerie, paired with tables in black marble-effect laminate and gold detailing. This look was created exclusively for the exhibition, and it shows how we work fabrics, stitching and details with the care that defines Italian design.

Comfort in the lead role

At the heart of the display was what passengers feel every day: comfort. Our quilted seats showed how padding, stitching and upholstery can turn a seat into part of the journey itself. Next to the new models, we exhibited some of our best sellers, already in service on regional trains, metros and high-speed lines across Europe and the Americas.

Behind the look lies the engineering. Every seating system is developed in-house, from structure and foams to upholstery, and is designed to meet EN 45545-2 fire-safety requirements, lifecycle durability targets and the ease of maintenance that operators expect. Functional details are part of the experience too: the tables integrate wireless charging and USB ports, finished in the same marble-and-gold language as the booth.

Mi20: the "floating" seat, awarded at InnoTrans

The technical highlight in Berlin was the Mi20 seat for metro and suburban applications, built on our inverted cantilever system. The seat mounts directly to the train sidewall, with no floor fixation at all. Its stability comes from a specific coupling between the structure's components, which replicates the load behaviour of a triangular cantilever without its conventional geometry.

The seat passed homologation to NF F 31-119 type 1, including the shock test under § 5.7, the most demanding case for wall-fixed seating with no floor support, confirming its structural rigidity and load distribution. A completely clear floor makes cleaning and maintenance easier and lowers lifecycle CO₂ emissions, while ergonomic validation ensures consistent comfort for passengers.

At InnoTrans 2026 the Mi20 won the Innovation of the Year award in the Interiors category and was featured in InnoTrans's official innovations publication. The recognition rewards the work of our R&D and engineering teams, and confirms the direction we have followed for years: innovation you cannot see, but can feel.

Invisible innovation, real comfort.

APTA TRANSform 2026: the North American market

In Chicago the same concept took on a new look. From the aisle, the illuminated cube with the Clerprem logo offered a glimpse of the seats inside; within, quilted blue seats with white headrests, silver finishes and white marble-effect details. Here, too, we presented solutions designed for the North American market, where Clerprem is today a trusted partner for many of the leading rail programs.

A dedicated wall displayed our product range, including Ares 2.0, Artemis 2.0, Helios ADA and Morpheus, each with a QR code so visitors could explore the product straight from their phone.

Our seating systems equip Brightline trains and will be on board Brightline West. They also feature on the new Siemens Mobility fleets for Amtrak, Airo and Venture, and on regional trains for Caltrans. This is made possible by our plant in Sacramento, California, which manufactures in compliance with Buy America requirements and brings Italian engineering and design directly to the United States.

Thank you for visiting us

Both shows were a great success, with meetings, new projects and conversations that will continue over the coming months. We thank our customers, partners and every visitor who stepped into our booth, as well as the Clerprem team across Carrè, Neustadt and Sacramento who made this international presence possible.

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