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The trend toward more casual worship styles is increasingly being reflected in the continuing popularity of multi-purpose sanctuaries (see story on page 16) and the need for removable seating. But according to building experts, the desire for a "traditional" church experience remains strong, and many congregations still select pews as their seating of choice. In fact, companies that refurnish and manufacture pews report that their sales are doing fine.

"Pews are often seen as unique and integral components of church interiors," says Steve Carpey, president of Flexible Seating Systems, a maker of modular pew systems. Carpey adds, "With its characteristic permanence, stability and simple elegance, the pew helps to define what constitutes a house of worship."

Bob Borcherdt, national sales manager of religious sales at Sauder Manufacturing, points out that for many churches, pews portray a desired image. "The type of seating a congregation chooses usually depends on their vision and mission as a community, their style of worship and the image that they want to portray to visitors," says Borcherdt.

Whether you are purchasing pews for a new sanctuary, updating your old pews, or adding more pews, we've got the information you need.

Builders who plan seating capacity for churches generally follow building codes that require 18 inches per person. By comparison, coach seats on airlines are only 19 inches wide. But Americans like their space. When they sit down in church, they tend to spread out—to the average of 20 to 26 inches including purses, Bibles, and other items.

In a chaired sanctuary, people get the space they desire by keeping an empty seat between themselves and others they don't know well. Pews can alleviate this concern by letting each person take up more space, but less space than two chairs.

If you still want to subtly limit space, consider Definity seating by Sauder Manufacturing. Definity combines a bench-type seating with removable, individual seats. This gives congregants specific boundaries—between 19 and 22 inches, as you choose—without the formality of armrests or individual seats. This seating also lets ushers readily see how many seats are available, and seats can be numbered for special events. Seats can be separated with optional wood dividers, if you choose.

Pews built from solid wood are strong, durable, and attractive but require extra care. If your sanctuary experiences extremes in temperature or humidity, consider pews made with engineered wood products, which are more dimensionally stable than solid wood. Some manufacturers like Sauder Manufacturing and L.L. Sams build not only with solid wood, but also use wood veneers, plywood, particleboard, and medium density fiberboard.

Different materials are used in different places for strength and durability. Strength is important, considering a pew can hold more than a ton of weight. And even though a pew back supports only four percent of a person's weight while sitting, people pull themselves up by the pew backs in front of them, putting tremendous pressure on a different part of the pew.

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