Factory Tours

I stumbled on an article in either Trailer Life Magazine or the Good Sam Club’s Highways magazine that said I might be able to get a tour of an RV factory. What great magazines! I have toured the Hughes bread bakery, Kellogg’s cereal factory, and even the Hershey’s chocolate factory before, but the idea of being able to tour an RV factory had never occured to me. I ran to the phone book and tentatively called a nearby factory fully expecting to be laughed at. On the contrary, they hold regular tours one day a week and were happy to put me down for one.

On tour day, I arrived well ahead of time which gave me time to read all their brochures. It turned out I was the only one there that day but they were still more than happy to take me on my own private tour. Ear plugs, eye protection, and a hard hat were required which they provided. The tour was excellent and I must say it really does help to have some clue as to what is inside the walls, under the floors, and above the ceiling in an RV. Plumbing is a bit different in an RV than in a house, lots of access panels are certainly important, the air and heating hoses are much smaller than a house, etc. I got to see how the cabinets and full room boxes are mounted. I saw a water heater installed which is something I could likely do myself. I got to see models I had not seen elsewhere with different layouts or woods or colors. You also get to see the quality of their work and how they store components which may go into your future RV. I highly recommend a factory tour even if you purchase an RV from another manufacturer.