RVBusiness, July/August 2020

manner of production office and support buildings shoehorned into a couple of square blocks The newest of those facilities is the Operations Building which everyone calls the OB that is about to celebrate its oneyear anniversary in August And to hear a few of the 50 some people who work in the OB talk about it its been a huge improvement for communication efficiency and even morale The two story 18000 square foot building features two industrial size kitchens and two 12 person conference rooms outfitted with the latest video conferencing technology About 50 people work there ranging from the engineering building materials marketing purchasing and continuous improvement Vanleigh RV Division Carving Out Its Niche Fifth wheel maker Vanleigh RV Inc might only be five years old but its legacy goes back generations It started back in 2015 when Leigh Tiffin and his father Van Tiffin founded Vanleigh as a startup manufacturer in Burnsville Miss Its first product the Vilano fifth wheel debuted at the National RV Trade Show in Louisville Ky that year Since then the five model Vilano 95000 base MSRP has been joined by two other brands the top of the line Beacon four models starting at 120000 MSRP and the introductory level Pinecrest three models starting at 70000 in lengths ranging from 32 feet 6 inches to 42 feet 4 inches Also along the way Vanleigh RV became a division of Tiffin Motorhomes Inc where Van Tiffin serves as vice president of operations for the Class A division Leigh Tiffin who is now the Vanleighs vice president of operations said the best part of the divisions five year history simply has been the progress made by a determined group of individuals who are up to the challenge of taking a startup RV division and developing it into a vibrant manufacturer earning market share and customer accolades Developing that organizational knowledge and awareness and just getting better and better at things as we go has been very gratifying It really makes me appreciate where we are today compared to where we were five years ago he said Vanleigh is similar to Tiffins motorhome operations in that all processes are performed in house including lamination and millwork in the companys 150000 square feet of manufacturing space Engineering customer service warehousing and other dedicated services also are performed by Vanleigh Tiffin said adding he expects they will soon be back to the 275 employee level Vanleigh had prior to the pandemic shutdowns Likewise Tiffin noted there are three qualities unique to a Vanleigh fifth wheel exceptional woodworking personable customer service and the fact that its a family owned business and not just any family mind you Tiffin is very much aware that his last name carries a considerable legacy with it The way I look at it is my grandfather Bob Tiffin has created a tremendous company He has a phenomenal brand Its taken him a lifetime to build it And we get to enjoy the benefits of being affiliated with that brand Tiffin told RVBusiness So we have to accept that opportunity to uphold that standard and realize that customers buy our product knowing that theyre going to get more when it comes to service Yes there is a lot of pressure to have a great quality product and theres a lot of pressure to provide customers with exceptional service And we welcome that 36 RVBusiness J U L Y A U G U S T 2 0 2 0 departments Theres even an RV bay inside We can get a 45 foot motorhome in there plus some extra space to take the slideouts out said Brad Witt director of operations for the Class A division Its got nice lighting Its heated and air conditioned Weve got shore power hookup and water connections so we can set up a motorhome when were working on it Actually theyve been using it a good bit as a photography bay for marketing too One of the biggest benefits provided by the OB is it has consolidated under one roof departments previously spread out all over campus For example engineering teams had been spread among six different buildings but now all but one team work in the OB The biggest benefit to that is it improves our communication and our efficiency said Brad Warner director of engineering for the Class A division So all in this one building we have all our purchasing people all our bill of materials people all our design engineers electrical engineers process engineers woodworking engineers everybodys under one roof So if you have a question the person who has the answer should be pretty close by Furthermore the space that was vacated by the workers who moved into the OB also has been repurposed for training storage and additional production space among other uses One space is the new home for the IT department As a side note the main office next to the OB which houses the corporate offices as well as sales and accounting is now getting a facelift In addition the OB is positioned perfectly in the dead center of the campus so its convenient for everyone without disrupting the flow of product pointed out Warner So try and imagine walking 300 yards to be able to go communicate with some other people or to look at some R D models that may be on the floor of the main plant said Jeff LaRue process engineering manager Were now half or a third of the way closer to the different things we would typically run or walk to multiple times a day The main plants right across the road The main office is right next door to us The cabinet shop is connected via a breezeway So for our continuous improvement group I continued on page 81 From left Director of Engineering for the Class A Division Brad Warner Process Engineering Manager Jeff LaRue and Director of Class A Operations Brad Witt A technician makes final adjustments Leigh Tiffin