Goshen Fleetwood RV Rally and Fleetwood tour

Expensive computer technology and router with one of the employees
who uses the equipment and visually inspects it   He told us it was a massive
improvement from the old days where 8 would be needed to do what the
equipment enables one person to do.

Touring the Fleetwood RV plant yesterday in Decatur, IN was interesting with a great deal of walking and some of the people at the Rally are marginally mobile. All three tour bus options, Tuesday-Thursday were sold out with a waiting list.  I did consider scalping our seats for a good price, because we are often in Decatur and could do this on our own.  Well the facotry tour is something we have talked about doing for years, when we stop in Decautr but it is always relegated to the next time which next never comes. Having the opportunity for the tour here at the Fleetwood Rally was the remedy, so I did not scalp our seats.  Some people declined to get on the bus after it was explained they'd be walking for a couple hours after a two hour bus ride. DUh! What did they expect? Did they not read any of the registration material?  Perhaps they thought there would be scooters to escort and drive them through the factory?   It seems people pay no attention until reality smacks them in the face or falls at their feet in this case.   

Jerry near some wiring harnesses inthe plant wearing
safety goggles we all donned

Upon arrival we were greeted in the massive breakroom, gathering place and given safety goggles which we would wear at all times in the plant. Fleetwood  separated us into 6 groups about 10-12 of us  each and introduced us to our guide, who was a line manager or shop supervisor and who'd escort us through the entire mfg process.  All the guides wore red shirts, seen in some photos below, kind of an alert to the floor--"Tourists coming through!" Each group started their tour in different wings of the plant so we would not be a full busload of gawkers descending upon the workers at once which could be a distraction in a plant that is prideful of its safety record.  

Steering mechanism installed on the coach

Another shop supervisor explains processes for
installing side walls and cabinet

We were also cautioned to be aware of moving equipment and forklifts and the like.Our tour guides herded us carefully and shifted us aside to allow the forklifts to race by.   Three people from our group dropped out halfway through; they went back to the lunch room where they waited on the rest of us. They said they couldn't walk any farther. That was a good thing because they were the same who would not pay attention to the speakers then would ask dumb questions on the shop floor about something that had been covered. Questions to understand or to learn are OK, but to talk  to hear oneself is tiresome to others.  It takes all kinds! I wanted to thump these people on the head. This is why it is often best for me to participate in group activities; I have no patience for idiots. 

One lady may have some dementia or Alzheimer's. She wandered in the break room at first and  her husband had to fetch her. He doesn't seem all that well himself and may be in denial about whatever is best for her. Seems a factory tour would not be something for her.  She sat at our table when we arrived across from us but with a man who was not her husband. Thought perhaps she knew him but when the man's wife arrived with the woman's husband following along it became evident they were unacquainted. The other woman asked her to exchange seats to be with their own husbands. The demented one just stayed seated staring. Her husband switched seats with the other man but the woman just continued staring. It was obvious to a couple of us that she had something wrong which became more evident. I have sympathy for her husband but what is he thinking taking her into unfamiliar surrounding?  As I said he does not look all that all right himself, and remember these folks are driving RV’s!  The other couple began to say rude things about her so I walked over to them out of earshot of the demented one & suggested they might consider that she is unaware what is happening and suggested she had issues. This seemed to embarrass them both as  they gasped & said they'd not figured that out.  With this muttering they promptly went to another table. Maybe they thought this dementia contagious?  Maybe they wondered about me?

I chuckled later about this unfortunate situation. Think about the humor here.  Is that what's ahead with our age group? Like mainstreaming the Developmentally Disabled? Mainstreaming the demented here come the boomers!

Multiple Daily Information
MDI

I was most interested in all the shop floor data, measurements, analysis in constant quality improvement and their full adaptation of Kaizen, Japanese data driven processes. I studied all that in CA ; even attended seminars with the guru, W Edwards Deming. Governor Pete Wilson charged several of us from multiple agencies   to improve state government using these methods. There were some  substantial improvements in services such as at the Dept of Motor Vehicles but really it became an absolute exercise in frustration with most of the bureaucracies. Bureaucrats were so data resistant--when we'd show improvements by educating the workforce they were amazed.  I could write a book about many of those efforts, not all were successful but there was more than ample frustration for all. . As many of us feared it became fad du jour and today not one lasting effect remains. 

Four years ago in WY at the initial Fleetwood Rally Executives of AIM, the corporation which bought out Fleetwood addressed our group and promised improvements and absolute attention to customers. Ahh music to my ears.  I recognized the techniques they said would instill to revamp & revitalize their industry & ensure top quality. So today we see it in full practice in the consolidated Fleetwood operations in Decatur. And watching full blue collar staff enthusiastically explain data measurements shows that data based decision making modeled after what Deming taught the Japanese to reconstruct after WWII, was a testament to the process. The photo of the MDI wall to the left is only one of many all through the plant.  Each morning as their shifts start, all the employees gather at the board, go over the data, talk about the goals for the day and after they all stretch and move through some warm up exercises they go to work. 

Jerry inspecting the wiring harnesses behind him

Jerry was very interested in much of the construction materials and processes for the coaches. I did not at all like the Laminating wing--very noisy & dusty there so I told our guide I'd scoot thru and wait outside. Well Decatur has a population of 10' & Fleetwood employs 1100 so it's important to the community. Many families work there & our tour guide was 2nd generation & his son now also works for Fleetwood. Reminds me of the old PA mills--Alcoa, PPG, steel and I think of all my family who worked there.  The Fleetwood plant is very different though with staff wearing shorts and tennis shoes.  On the bus ride back to Goshen I thanked the Lord that I never had to work in a plant or factory. Not for me. 

Two of our plant tour guides with some of our group
outside the door of the laminating wing.  Very dusty and
noisy in there 

There is more railroad activity in Goshen than I knew existed. The railroad runs next to the fairgrounds. So all night we hear trains. The worst were dueling train whistles at night, a language I am sure the conductors understand.  We have become used to it and slept through it last night or was that the effect of little sleep the night before and a very busy day. When we attend events like this Rally we realize how easy our routine daily schedule is at home.  Here the day can start at 7:00AM gathering for breakfast and continue through 10:00PM.  We select activities to allow for some free time to visit vendors and still try to cram in as many seminars as we can.

This is a sign I saw immediately when we entered the plant.  I had
to photo this while laughing.  Don"t you know someone who
could be sharpened?  Send them to Fleetwood in Decatur.
  The plant guide was curious what was funny to me.  He sees
this sign all the time and didn"t find it odd.  He explained that there is a company
who comes in to sharpen equipment and this was to be sharpened.  I laughed.



One of the coaches with the tape and layer design painting
At first I thought this was Steeler country--go black and gold
But it is just the design team at work, notice factory casual dress



Last night’s Rally dinner for over 500 of us was good but to bring some semblance of order to getting food from the buffet, tables were assigned numbers which were randomly drawn and called for to get food.  The man who had this task asked a 10 year old girl, who was likely a bored grand daughter  to draw and call numbers.  Some people bring their grand children to these events, most do not.  Most of us are quite content to be empty nesters.   The caterer had set up 3 tables of food but the child responsible for the Table bingo.was not aware that more than one table seating 8-10 people,  could be called at a time.  Someone finally explained 3 or 4 at a time would work and that speeded it along.   

Then we had a great time entertained by Kenny Evans who entertains at Pigeon Forge, TN and who sings all the good 50”s 60”s oldies from the Diamonds to Roy Orbison to Elvis.  A fun time with some of us dancing in the aisles and wearing off our dinners.  I saw another strange (to me) sight—a man from Ohio who wanted to dance with his wife who adamantly did not.  He was up to his feet swaying along and begging her to take a spin, she finally agreed. Most men are reluctant dancers if at all, Jerry is in that group.  This man was different.  

Today was a barking dog day--over 100 degrees with a hot wind.  Our coach Air conditioning is cooling the coach and here we sit to recover from several trips to seminars.  It was  just too daoggone hot to leave and flag down a golf cart transport down to the seminar building, so we skipped one on Alaska, which we really wanted to catch.  Really, manybe not--the 5 minute walk to the buildings in 100+degrees even with potential to see glaciers on the big screen will be another day and or we can talk to the vendor at their booth.  . By 4:00PM the bright sun is a downer! Even the Amish bakery declined to show up today to sell their baked goods.  Tomorrow will be better and it does cool way down to 50 or 60 degrees at night.  

Travels

Two short days on the road has us in Goshen, Indiana at the Elkhart Fairgrounds with perhaps 600-700 other owners of Fleetwood motor homes from all over the country and Canada for our 4th annual Fleetwood Motor Home Owner's Association Rally. Our next door neighbors are from Ontario, Canada.   Finally the Association has begun to collect annual dues which has not appeared to decrease attendance.  Fleetwood has been very generous sponsoring the rallies so there is no downside  and most easily afford the $20 annual pittance.  I found this great blog which tells lots about Goshen and has some dandy photos which I do not yet have to post  http://www.lincolnhighwaygoshen.blogspot.com/
This was an easy trip, a fun time 463 miles from home only 9 hours and 20 minutes driving time over two days.  We see the decrease in gas and diesel prices and a corresponding increase in traffic as families take to the highways.  In May we filled up at Flying J in South Beloit WI at $3.85 per gallon with our RV discount card and yesterday it was $3.40 per gallon, cheaper than regular gas at home in La Crescent. Do you think with the decrease in cost of fuel  that other prices will come down just as they escalated with the rising cost of fuel?  Don"t hold your breath as Mom used to say. That'll be the day!

 We found a delightful RV spot off I 80 in Utica, IL where we stopped last night, Hickory Hollow RV.  We seldom travel I 80 coming east but this trip it was the easiest route.

We thought we would be early because the Rally events begin tomorrow evening, so arriving today was  a day and half ahead, but others were already here.  Maybe 2/3 of expected attendees are already in place.  Tomorrow AM we board a charter bus to the Fleetwood Plant in Decatur to  tour the factory where our 2nd homes are manufactured and put together. We stop in Decatur almost every trip going east and we have said many times that we  should take the factory tour.  Do we?  No, so it was offered tomorrow and Thursday from the Rally and we will take advantage of that which means an early AM rising as the bus departs at 8:15AM.  That early curtain call is a challenge for the likes of me who has become accustomed to sleeping  in almost to 8:00AM and it's a challenge for Jerry who is accustomed to imbibing his entire pot of coffee and reading  a newspaper before he ventures into the shower and then begins his day.  We notice many RV'ers are early to bed and early to rise, but we have overcome that.
I continue to be amazed at the number of these people who cannot or choose not to walk short distances to the rally events in the buildings, , and or who all ride scooters or golf carts rather than get a little bit of exercise walking.  So there they are almost immobile and then they climb behind the wheels of these big rigs!  Something in not right about that, there should be a licensing and testing of RV drivers just as there are with truckers.
It has been very dry here in Goshen where rain is badly needed (but not while we are here)  All the lawns are brown, dried up and the farmers are irrigating their crops. This reminds us of northern California where everything is brown after spring unless irrigated.   Meantime Florida is getting the Debby Deluge.  Mama Nature is just not fair.  We are now adjourning for the party  forming outside as the sun goes down, it is warm here. Bad new is 101 degrees  predicted for Thursday!  That's just too hot for me, but without rainfall it should not have the accompanying Indiana humidity, still hot is hot and I don"t like it.   I"ll be inside at the activities in the heat of the day.