Manufacturing RV's...

[Eric Swenson]

any politics aside, I am wondering if the manufacturing processes used by Thor are representative of how class B RV's are made. I hope not,...


Where factory jobs are plentiful, Trump's supporters want better

[Davydd]

Politics aside, it is a political piece. Airstreams are made in Jackson, OH and not Elkhart, IN. I have been in two Class B facilities, Great West Vans (original ownership) and Advanced RV in Willoughby, OH and saw first hand the workers and interacted with them. That hit piece doesn't represent either one.

[mojoman]

You obviously have never toured any California RV MFG's. The workers are predominantly hispanic in this industry and has been for many years and reflects the demographics of the areas they work. Many RV MFG's slow down or stop production depending on demand in the winter or demand is low due to the economy. Allot go home to visit their families during these times.

[Eric Swenson]

I suppose I was asking if ALL manufacturing plants are the fast paced assembly line type. I have heard that Leisure Travel Vans are put together by a team and that the quality is much higher than most others. Anyone know about that and if other class B makers do the same?

[booster]

A "fast paced" assembly line to one observer may be an appropriately paced one to another, assuming the line work balancing is done well, and the parts are properly designed and made. As production line are run faster, it often means that the company has to improve a lot of things from part quality and design to employee training. If done correctly, a speed up can actually improve overall quality due to such peripheral improvements. Worker attention and consistency can go up in those situations also, as a worker who has to fight every piece into place, and still have it fit poorly, has very little incentive to be careful, but a worker who sees that the parts fit well, and when put in with attention show quality, is much more likely to do a good job. Good parts, good design, good training, job rotation to prevent injury and burnout, good tools and fixtures, all contribute to good quality.

Of course, if you run the factory like a 1950's sweatshop, with all the blame placed on the workers, you are going to get poor results. It is likely that many of the RV builders are not doing a very good job with their products and assembly lines, based on the quality level we see in many of them.

[dw8928]

That is a hit piece. The media have died and are now full-blown propagandists in lockstep with only one side.

Barack Obama said this within the last year, you tell me who he is targeting as 'conservatives':

“The spread of vibrant social diversity is constricting the GOP’s ability to champion conservative causes, such as smaller government and independent families” President Barack Obama in 2016.

Originally Posted by Davydd

Politics aside, it is a political piece. Airstreams are made in Jackson, OH and not Elkhart, IN. I have been in two Class B facilities, Great West Vans (original ownership) and Advanced RV in Willoughby, OH and saw first hand the workers and interacted with them. That hit piece doesn't represent either one.

[GeorgeRa]

Originally Posted by Eric Swenson

any politics aside, I am wondering if the manufacturing processes used by Thor are representative of how class B RV's are made. I hope not,...


Where factory jobs are plentiful, Trump's supporters want better

Hi Eric,
You posted the same topic under slightly different name threads 3 times on the Sprinter forum and now here, what is your point, why 4 times?

[Ron J. Moore]

No! I do have to say I have been in a couple of Thors, and I without comment! Ron

[Boxster1971]

Originally Posted by Eric Swenson

any politics aside, I am wondering if the manufacturing processes used by Thor are representative of how class B RV's are made. I hope not,...





Where factory jobs are plentiful, Trump's supporters want better

As George mentioned - you posted this three time on Sprinter-Source forum and now here. It a political article - not about RV quality. What's your message?


- - Mike
2012 Sprinter 3500 Extended converted B-Van by Airstream

[booster]

Probably trolling for a competitor of Thor's. Getting all too common these days. Anonymously trash the competition wherever you can, whether true or not.

[GeorgeRa]

Originally Posted by booster

Probably trolling for a competitor of Thor's. Getting all too common these days. Anomalously trash the competition wherever you can, whether true or not.

Seems like it......

http://www.classbforum.com/forums/f5...html#post56997

Originally Posted by Eric Swenson

sorry Tyampa, I got off track a bit. I have lived under the assumption for years that anything Airstream was superior to all other brands. I really can't say about Airstream Sprinter Van conversions, but do know personally of more than a few owners of new Airstream Bambi Travel Trailers have had some bad experiences with the quality of the build on those trailers. I also believe that Thor Industries bought out Airstream a number of years ago and the quality is not what it once was. Just rumors, I can not substantiate it. I would gladly like to hear that I am wrong on my assumptions.

[Eric Swenson]

Originally Posted by booster
"Probably trolling for a competitor of Thor's. Getting all too common these days. Anomalously trash the competition wherever you can, whether true or not."

No, I don't work in the industry. I was self employed for 32 years, my own company unrelated to anything RV.

Quality...that's what I am talking about. When rushed, for any reason, quality suffers.That's my take..that they are rushed and doing so to meet quota. what about quality control? Can you way the quality on any RV is how it should be? Some are better for sure..why? If you pay over a 100K for something, how far would you go on being particular? Crooked screws sticking out? Grommets not put on correctly? Pait work with blemishes..Bad seals? IS that OK with you? I have had a few trailers, and now a Class B Sprinter Van conversion, which I bought 2 months ago. I could go on about the quality of these RVs , but will only say many things were sub-par..imho.
My question is why..why does it have to be this way..that is all..

[mojoman]

I worked for a small RV MFG/dealer for a time and I'm afraid the average RV customer is unknowledgeable with regard to asembly quality, engineering, and component quality. They are the majority of the buyers. They tend to be make their choice by initial appearance, layout, bells and whistles, and cost. Allot of buyers seldom use them after purchase so the quality isn't an issue for quite awhile. Its the folks that use them frequently that have experience who look for quality in engineering and componets. Maybe 20% of the customers.

[Boxster1971]

Mojoman - I think you are correct. Those of us who really use our RVs uncover all the quality issues. In reality quality that we all seek is only available at a price the most buyers don't want to pay. Low volume production with high quality is expensive.


- - Mike
2012 Sprinter 3500 Extended converted B-Van by Airstream

[Eric Swenson]

Well mojoman, thanks for your insight. So caveat emptor is still the phrase today and I thought America was trying to be great. The manufacturers love that term...pump out mediocre RVs and to hell with that 20%. I say it all starts with the companies who produce these products...and how their system is set up. Push the worker to produce regardless of quality, and make the profits and be damned quality.
I wonder if there is a list of RV makers who do not follow this backward unfair and unjust manufacturing system...

[Eric Swenson]

yeah...how silly of me to expect quality..I only spent 100k.....

[mojoman]

There are many MFG's who start up, push out units for a couple of years and go out of business when sales slow, then start up under another name. They do not have to honor their guarantees once they go out of business. Same with the hot tub business. It doesn't take too much equipment to build an average RV, mostly staple guns, screw guns and some saws. These units fall apart very quickly if used regularly.

[GeorgeRa]

Mojoman, I agree, it starts with customer buying decision driving RV business.

Years ago, it was the customer purchasing feedback telling US manufacturers - we like Japanese TVs better. Numerically, the qualities of both were the same but their quality Bell curves were different, flattened by within specs inspection in US and steep from Japan. US manufacturers were selling more border line TVs and customer noticed. The manufacturing technologies were different, quality by inspection in US and built into the manufacturing process in Japan.

A very similar situation today comparing many EU RV manufacturers with their sophisticated manufacturing plants and in NA smaller or bigger Mom & Pop shops. To have a well tooled computerized manufacturing line the upfront investment will be necessary and this will only happen if customer purchasing decision will drive their investment.

It would be great if Adria or Westfalia could sell in NA, but it is not likely, these RVs could open some eyes to see high quality without Advanced RV prices.

I am still optimistic that Roadtrek/Hymer will shake the NA RV market by investing in some state of the art manufacturing plants in Canada. Hymer knows how. Perhaps they would play the historical Sony's role for NA RVs especially in the B-class market segment.

[Davydd]

Grass is greener syndrome and all its given you so far is the Hymer Sunlight and cassette toilets.

[GeorgeRa]

Originally Posted by Davydd

Grass is greener syndrome and all its given you so far is the Hymer Sunlight and cassette toilets.

Not necessary a syndrome for me, I am on both sides of the pond very often. Regarding Sunlight V1, agree, a disaster which will haunt them for long and will not be easy to repair if repairable.

Cassette, an ubiquitous black hole attraction discussion often going into a runaway mode.