Irving's fifty years

Forest City, IA – Even though we took the tour of the Winnebago factory twice before, we were still interested in doing it again.  So we boarded the tour bus at the Winnebago Visitor Center and headed in to the large campus of factory buildings this morning for another look.

The factory has been one of Forest City’s largest employers for decades, and even when fortunes dipped during leaner years, the management figured out ways to keep it going by diversifying its products. We learned today that the aluminum billets stacked next to the metalwork building are not only formed into parts for Winnebago motorhomes, but a full sixty per cent of their output goes to outside clients.

Winnebago also builds portable libraries, emergency vehicles, mobile medical and dental units and even police paddy wagons alongside its motorhomes and trailers. But its greatest product is the huge and varied line of holiday vehicles that roll out of the factory every day and onto highways across the continent. The dedication to quality is evident at every step along the way.

Another thing that was evident was the upbeat feeling among the workers.  In the Stitchcraft building, where all the fabric and upholstered products are made, employees sit at sewing machines, or at cutting tables, or where the covers go on the cushions, and around them are pictures of their kids, a shelf full of paperback books for swapping, and banter about the stuff of life.

Our tour guide, Wray, told us that some employees have been on staff since the earliest years of the company.  He pointed out Irving, in his plaid shirt, on the far side of the factory where they were assembling coaches on top of the chassis, and told us he was the company’s most senior employee. He’s been with Winnebago for fifty years!

It was just as fascinating today to see the whole process as it was the first time. We saw sparks fly at the welding station, we smelled fresh sawdust where they were installing the thick plywood floors, and glue where they laid down the vinyl flooring. We heard the alarm bells whenever the robotic carrying mechanism took one part along cables to the next step of the assembly line, and the loud hissing sound of the intense water stream that is used to cut carpet, vinyl and other pieces.

Seeing all the steps that go into building a motorhome like the one we’ve been using for the last two and half years was reassuring. We’ve never had a moment’s concern about the solidity of our unit. We left it this afternoon with the dealer, a mile away from the factory, where we bought it, so they can check it over and do a couple of small repairs. Our appointment was for tomorrow morning, but they were able to take it this afternoon and get an early start on it.

It was nice to have some free time to re-lax, read a book, have a nap, and en-joy our beautiful sur-roundings.  The hotel is next to a park area and golf course and even though it’s not as attractive as it will be when the grass greens up and flowers bloom, it’s still nice to look out our window at the trees and hear robins and cardinals chirping away. We’ve also enjoyed our meals out, chatting with the people of Forest City.  It has a nice small town feel.