Phenomenon: The “Seat Protection Shield” that became popular during the summer
Sales surge: E-commerce platform data shows that in July 2025, the search volume for “disposable seat covers for high-speed trains” surged by 320% year-on-year, with some stores selling over 100000 pieces per month. Convenience stores at high-speed railway stations sold eight times more than usual in a single day.
Product iteration: Upgraded from basic non-woven fabric cover to a three piece set of “seat+armrest+small table board”, with added functions such as antibacterial coating and biodegradable materials. The unit price covers the range of 1.2 yuan to 19.9 yuan, and children’s cartoon and women’s printed styles have become popular.
Scene penetration: In addition to high-speed rail, the product has been extended to scenes such as airplanes, buses, and cinemas, forming a consumer trend of “full scene protection”.
Motivation: Rigid needs generated by triple anxiety
Physiological safety concerns
In summer, the temperature rises by 2.3 ℃, and over 60% of passengers wear shorts for travel, resulting in an increase in the contact area between their skin and seats. Although dermatologists point out that the infection rate of skin diseases in public seats is less than 0.3%, social media platforms such as “unknown stains” and “foot picking passengers” still cause panic, and the number of related medical consultations surged by 187% in July.
Service trust gap
12306 responded that the replacement and washing cycle of seat covers is not fixed and only disinfected at the starting and ending stations, while netizens’ exposure of issues such as “180 days of uncleaned” has exacerbated anxiety. Some passengers have experienced itching and allergies after touching the seats due to sensitive skin.
Post epidemic prevention inertia
According to a survey by Guangming Net, 88.9% of respondents retain their protective habits during the epidemic period, 67.2% actively use public isolation supplies, and seat covers have become a new standard in addition to “disinfectant wipes+hand sanitizer”.
Breaking through: The Road to Technological Upgrade and Service Optimization
Railway end: from passive response to active innovation
Pilot “Seat Hygiene Code”: Passengers can scan the code to check their cleaning and disinfection records. After the implementation by Guangzhou Railway Group, the number of complaints decreased by 41%;
Breakthrough in material technology: The Chengdu Chongqing high-speed railway has tested photocatalytic nano coated seats, with a bacterial survival rate of less than 0.01% and an extended cleaning cycle of 360 days;
Dynamic cleaning mechanism: The hot summer train trips will shorten the washing cycle to 90 days and be equipped with self-service cleaning kits to redeem points.
Industry side: Balance between environmental protection and functionality
Dongguang enterprises have launched biodegradable seat covers made of polylactic acid (PLA), which can be completely degraded in 180 days with a cost increase of only 15%. They have been widely used on the Hangzhou Huangshan high-speed railway.
User side: Rational Protection Guide
Short distance (<3 hours): Prioritize using disinfectant wipes to wipe handrails and small table boards;
Long distance: Choose biodegradable products to avoid plastic material pollution.
Dongguan Liansheng Non woven Technology Co., Ltd. was established in May 2020. It is a large-scale non-woven fabric production enterprise integrating research and development, production, and sales. It can produce various colors of PP spunbond non-woven fabrics with a width of less than 3.2 meters from 9 grams to 300 grams.
Post time: Sep-30-2025