New Shasta Industries Plant Creates 41 Jobs; Doubles Production Capacity of Towables

Shasta Industries, a division of Coachmen Industries, dedicated a new RV manufacturing facility in Elkhart, IN, last month. The facility already provides 41 new jobs and as many as 200 more are expected to be hired in the future. A work force of 155 will continue to be employed at the Middlebury, IN, plant. The new Elkhart plant allowed Shasta to double the output of its towable line of RVs. Shasta is headquartered in Middlebury where travel trailers, fifth-wheels and Class C mini-motorhomes are manufactured.

According to Shasta President Bob Adasiak, a decision was made to expand Shasta’s line of towable RV products. He said, "The trend is toward floor plans with larger and multiple slide-outs. But because of space limitations at the Middlebury plant, we can’t build the variety of floor plans we want to. The Elkhart plant has nearly doubled the size of our manufacturing facilities. We are now able to build 30 different travel trailer and fifth-wheel floor plans for the 1998 model year instead of only 19 in 1997."

Shasta purchased the Elkhart building and 18.5 acres of land in January. It adds nearly 72,000 square feet of manufacturing space to Middlebury’s existing 73,000 square feet. Extensive renovations including the installation of hoists and scaffolding and the running of air, electrical and water lines were completed in late April. The first Phoenix travel trailer rolled off the production line on May 5.

The new facility provides space to build a new model: the longer and wider Phoenix. Spaciousness is the appeal of the Phoenix line of travel trailers and fifth-wheels. The width is 102 inches instead of the traditional 96 inches and lengths extend from 26 feet to 36 feet. They are available with one or two slide-out rooms. Slide-out rooms in-crease the available living space when the trailer is parked and are increasing in popularity in today’s marketplace. Eighteen floor plans are available in the new Phoenix line.

The Middlebury complex builds Shasta and Travelmaster brands of class C mini-motor-homes as well as travel trailers and fifth-wheels. The towables plant was recently converted to produce the Flite models of lightweight travel trailers and fifth-wheels. These popular lightweight, laminated towables are built to weigh less than traditional units so they can be more easily pulled behind mini-vans, mid-size sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and small pick-up trucks. Outside walls on these RVs are laminated which makes for a smooth exterior, another feature that contributes to their popularity. For 1998 the number of Flite floor plans available has been expanded from two to twelve.

Shasta travel trailers have been produced longer than any other travel trailer in the industry. The company began its operations in 1941 when founder Bob Gray opened a plant in Northridge, CA. First known as ‘house trailers’ these early RVs were sent to remote World War II military installations. Coachmen Industries purchased Shasta in 1975. In 1988 Shasta moved from Goshen, IN, to Middlebury.

RVN