RV Industry Manufacturing: Done Close to Home

American-made cars, refrigerators and television sets were just the tipping point for what became the bread-and-butter of the nation’s economy in much of the 20^th century. The fabric of American life shifted with industrialization, as workers left family farms for factories in the city. What began as hubs like Pittsburgh’s steel mills and Detroit’s auto boom has evolved into new industries and more U.S. jobs. The RV industry has taken its place as an economic engine, producing nearly 87% of all its U.S. and Canadian product here at home, in Indiana.

RV PRO asked the industry’s manufacturers to weigh in on what it means to be “American made” and how companies are navigating today’s manufacturing landscape.

How many employees do you have total, and how many of those are manufacturing jobs? How long have you been providing jobs in the United States?

Blue Ox – towing equipment

Blue Ox currently employs 150 people, with 100 of those jobs being in manufacturing. We have been providing manufacturing jobs in the U.S. for 98 years, including in the company that started it all for us – Automatic Equipment – which is an agricultural manufacturing company.

Trinseo – plastics and latex binders

Trinseo is proud to have more than 3,300 employees globally, with more than 2,200 of those being manufacturing jobs. More than half of our U.S. employee base are in manufacturing roles.

Forest River – OEM

Headquartered in Elkhart, Indiana, Forest River has been one of the industry’s largest employers since its inception in 1996. With manufacturing facilities throughout Indiana, as well as in Michigan, Georgia, California, Oregon and Texas, we create thousands of manufacturing jobs and provide additional opportunity through our vendor partners.

Daimler Truck – heavy-duty trucks

We have over 1,000 team members at this location. As a corporation, we have been operating since 1941. This particular location was opened in 1989.

PullRite – fifth wheel hitches

We employ approximately 70 people with about 60% of those in manufacturing, packaging and shipping. We have been building hitches for the RV market for 45 years in solely in the state of Indiana.

Airstream – OEM

Airstream employs nearly 1,500 associates, about two-thirds of which are manufacturing jobs. Founded in 1931 in California, Airstream established an eastern distribution center in Jackson Center, Ohio, in the early 1950s. The California plant was shut down in 1980, and since then every Airstream has been manufactured in Ohio. We draw employment heavily from the surrounding county, and in 2020, opened a new travel trailer manufacturing facility that cemented our commitment to providing quality manufacturing jobs in west-central Ohio.

Why is your company proud to provide U.S. manufacturing jobs?

Forest River

100% of Forest River’s production takes place in the U.S, and the vast majority of that output is sold in the U.S. Forest River has a camping culture – thousands of our employees use our products – and we take tremendous pride in helping to solidify the reputation for quality that “made in the USA” has throughout the world.

PullRite

We have a story to tell of our commitment to American-made products by American workers. Very few hitch manufacturers can truly claim that all their products are conceived and created on American soil.

In the 2008 financial crisis, when banks were closing local RV businesses around us, we were faced with some hard decisions. The easy way out of such a crisis was to let 80% of our employees go and send the manufacturing off to China. A meeting was held during this critical time with our employees, and we talked with them in an honest, one-on-one forum. The commitment to being 100% U.S.-made was agreed upon by all. We weathered the storm and will continue to do so despite current day economics.

We tell our story not to boast or to get an “edge” over the competition, but to show that we have committed to keep our products made in the USA, never compromising on quality and service.

Airstream

Our standards for quality have always been self-imposed since the days of our founder Wally Byam. He didn’t think it made sense to build products in any way but the absolute best way – and we still agree. Our travel trailers and touring coaches are built by hand by true craftspeople with attention to detail. We use only the best materials and the most innovative ways to create and assemble them. And we never cut corners – especially when we can round them. And it’s all done right here in the United States at our Jackson Center, Ohio, headquarters.

Blue Ox

We pride ourselves on manufacturing everything we can in-house and domestically.

Trinseo

We take pride in knowing that providing manufacturing jobs in the U.S. fuels the health of the economy. Additionally, providing manufacturing jobs in the U.S. furthers Trinseo’s vision to be the global leader in driving specialty and sustainable material solutions across all markets we impact. One way we achieve this vision is through our ability to attract, develop and retain outstanding talent in each of our strategic locations.

Daimler Truck

Our vision statement is “Embracing our customers, delivering memories, one ride at a time.” Our team members connect with our customers during factory tours and visits. Those connections are why we get up every morning.

What impact has your company had on the larger community?

Trinseo

Giving back to the communities where we live and work is intrinsic to who we are as an organization. Trinseo employees volunteer to make a positive impact in the areas of environmental stewardship, STEM education and community involvement. In 2022, employees volunteered more than 4,900 hours of service in their local communities.

Daimler Truck

Our company plays a large part in local STEAM activities with elementary schools and works to preserve our local history. Investing back into our community is critical.

Airstream

Airstream is a corporate partner with the National Forest Foundation (NFF), and our “Caravan to Carbon Neutral” (C2CN) initiative provides funding to the NFF that helps them plant trees in our national forests. This effort not only sequesters the carbon footprint generated by the manufacturing, transportation and first year of travel for every Airstream travel trailer and touring coach, but also helps the NFF’s reforestation efforts while beautifying and preserving our public lands. Owners can re-up their commitment to the C2CN every year by purchasing Carbon Reduction Kits through our e-commerce site, Airstream Supply Company.

Forest River

Aside from being one of Elkhart County’s largest employers, Forest River has a legacy of giving back to the community. We support a number of initiatives including Care Camps, Ronald McDonald House, Habitat for Humanity, Toys for Tots and more. We also support Manufacturing Days and Startup Moxie with local high schools.

Blue Ox

Our manufacturing facility is located in Pender, Nebraska – a town with a population of 1,000 or less, depending on who headed into the city that day. We recently completed a massive plant expansion, and part of the diligence process before breaking ground was whether to expand in Pender or look at a larger cosmopolitan area for a larger labor pool. The deliberation process didn’t take long, and we decided to keep all the jobs in our current community. The workforce we have in Pender and the surrounding area is the reason we continue to be the leader in quality, innovation and customer satisfaction.

What opportunities are there for employees to grow with your company?

Daimler Truck

A manager’s role is to continually find paths to elevate and mentor our team members to the next level. This is a big part of our job.

Forest River

Forest River is focused on developing talent and providing opportunities for growth. Whether it’s moving from an hourly manufacturing role to shift manager, or from sales rep to sales manager, the investment we make in training results in an experienced employee base with opportunities for advancement.

Blue Ox

As we continue to look at ways to automate our process, it provides employees the path to learning new skills and higher earning potential. All our operators of robots, CNC machines and our new E-Coat line have been promoted from within and educated on the job both on- and off-site.

Airstream

Airstream has long been known for promoting from within. Associates on the production floor are provided with curated and specific training opportunities for career advancement, including career pathways on job postings, career exploration sessions and tuition reimbursement programs, just to name a few. Associates are recognized for their dedication, ingenuity and hard work through promotion opportunities to highly specialized or leadership roles. A high percentage of our leadership team in operations, as well as those in our office roles, began their careers at Airstream on the production floor. This home-grown experience and expertise help inform our efforts on the digital front, product development, marketing and design.

PullRite

We believe that a successful U.S. company grows from within. Most of our management team started in lesser positions within the company.

Trinseo

At Trinseo, we take a people-first approach to our business and recognize that our future success lies in making investments in our employees. By delivering talent development and training opportunities, we can help them achieve long-term success, growth and recognition. Our stakeholders share this belief, which is why “Attract, Engage, Develop and Retain Talent” remains an important objective. Our development opportunities include mentoring, assignment to special projects, apprenticeships, leadership development conferences and even interactions with our executive leadership team and board of directors.

Where do you recruit employees for manufacturing roles?

Blue Ox

We strive to be the premier employer in our area and the vast majority of our recruits come from word-of-mouth in the community.

Forest River

While we utilize standard recruiting tools and sites, the vast majority of our recruiting comes from word-of-mouth. As new opportunities become available, our workforce communicates that to their personal networks, and we have a track record of success finding quality new talent.

PullRite

We recruit from the Michiana region of northern Indiana and southern Michigan.

What’s the biggest challenge you face on the manufacturing side?

PullRite

Recruiting for manufacturing jobs has been a real challenge for years and was negatively impacted by the COVID pandemic.

Airstream

Like manufacturers around the world, the challenges brought about due to the pandemic have been a struggle to overcome. Supply chain snarls and staffing shortages have presented unprecedented challenges to keeping our production lines moving. Airstream products are labors of love – it’s a complicated manufacturing process that requires extensive training in some departments. We regularly shift associates across departments, giving them opportunities to grow their knowledge and learn from more experienced associates. And we’ve taken many steps recently to shore up our quality assurance, employing digital tools, 21st century technology and in-house software development to better track issues, find solutions and build our iconic products with the highest quality possible.