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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1956-07-27, Page 90,6 1 ••••;;A.,'"•4, to such au extent in Canada that production is nearly ten timairear- er than was the case when General came to Canada just three years ago—Additional building is contemplated to provide increased accom- Modation for the wood -working department. THE 'ENLARGED <GENERAL COACH plant -hi Hensall is shown in this graphic drawing. The 30100 -foot addition can be seen to -the right of the picture. Covering an entire block the plant is the largest of its kind in Canada. Demand for General Mobile .Hoines has grown Predicts Bright Future There is a great future for the mobilehome industry .in Canada, according to William C. Smith,general manager of General Coach Works of Can- ada, Limited, at Hensall. Mr. Smith was discussing the factors that made necessary a major expansion program in the company's plant at Mensal/. General Coach Works was, established at Hensall Sept- ember 8, 1953, when General Coach Works Incorporated of Marlette, Mich purchased the plant from Norman St. Cyr. It had been organized there by Mr. St. Cyr three years previously. A pioneer in the field of mobile home manufacturing, the parent firm at Marlette began production in 1937. Reorganized in 1946, the company is among the top 12 in the United States. • Aided by the large back- ground of kticiw how estab- lished by the. Marlette plant, General in Canada has shown an amazing growth record. In late 1953 when General came to Hensall there were 43 employees and production amounted to three units a week for °My' aliortibn bf the year. Today—less than three • years- later --the company ploys a staff totalling 185 frien and produces approximately 30 units a week. It is this continuing demand for General Mobile Homes that made necessary two ad- ditions to the plant as well as the present addition of 30,000 feet. "The demand being exper- ienced by General Coach is a reflection of the increasing .acceptance of mobilehomes by • • 1 ^..•• 1 Canadians," Mr. Smith said. "At the same time, it is a re- cognition of the quality which General builds into • every mobilehome it produces." Also contributing to the demand is the extensive cam- paign which General is con- ducting throughout -Canada. By means of various advertis- ing media including nationally circulated magazines General is bringing to the attention of WILLIAM C SMITR, general manager rks of caafnadGzifir:ilitecoWleit has directed the expansion pro- gramme of the company. He recently was elected president of the Canadian Mobile Home Association. •The largest mobilehome• manufacturing plant in Can- ada is located at Hensall. With the completion, of ad- ditional plant capacity total- ling; 30,000 square feet, Gen- erat Coach Works of Canada, Limited, will now be in a posi- tion, to step up production to •as" high as ten units a day. Actual unit per day product- ion is based on the length of the particular unit being Pro- duced. I -Increased production has been made possible by the in- troduction 'a -modern assem- bly line techniques, Under the present arrangement, a unit starts its trip through the plant at the south east corner of the building; the chassis have been brought in from the pre -assembly plant, two blocks west of the main plant. The unit continues along the south side of the plant to the -west end, and out the north west corner, finished, inspect- ed and ready for delivery. The production line is ar- ranged in such a way that the construction of special units can be proceeded with inde- pendently and the unit fed in- to the line at a later stage of manufacturer. The line handles 16 units at a time. Here terest here, which for years lagged behind that shown in the United States, is rapidly catching up. No longer is the mobile - home a means of providing accomodation for a week end holiday. Today's mobilehome provides year-round accom- odation for Canadian fam- ilies. Lacking nothing in comforts available in ortho- dox homes, the average mobilehome boasts gonven- iences frequently not found in other than most expensive homes. This means that the .ower of a mobilehome can enjoy a higher standard of living •with less capital in- vestment. • Construction at General in Hensall is not limited to mobilehomes, • Mr. Smith pointed out. Recently the firm complet- ed construction of a -mobile switchboard capable of hand- ling up to 500 phones. The board is operated by the Bell Telephone at Elliott Lake, in all Canadians the mobilehome. story. A n d incidentally, bringing attention to the Hen- sall community in. which the plant is located. • There is no doubt as to the confidet manner in which General faces the future. Can- adian demand for mobile - homes is just beginning to be felt, Mr. Smith believes. In- _ Planning Necessary In Mobilehorne Parks Just as - goods and superhigh- ways were needed in the develop- ment of the automotive industry, so more and better parks are need- ed if the mobile home industry is -to continue at the same pace it has grown during the past few years During that time trailers have de- veloped into .modern, comfortable, well •equipped homes on wheels. They are no longer identified as trailers, but mobile homes, with moderdly equipped bathrooms, kit- chens; and in many instances laun- dry facilities and living rooms ten feet wide. They are no longer pur- chased as an expediedt, but as a chosen way of living for millions of families. , Northern Manitoba,' and con- struction has begun on a sec-- ond unit. Other special design units serve on the DEW line being constructe& in the Canadian Arctic by the Canadian and United States governments while still others serve North- West, Airways in Canada's far north. Other special in- dustrial units include bunk houses, kitchens, and offices. One unit in a small isolated community serves as a dbc- tor's office. Others serve hydro and mining Commun- ities along the St. Lawrence Seaway and as far north as Fort Churchill. While Mr. Smith sees a • broad acceptence for Canad- ian built mobilehomes across Canada in the immediate future, some provinces 'have proven to be more adaptable to mobilehomes than others. At the moment Ontario, Al- berta and Saskatchewan lead in the use of mobilehomes. cars, roam for cabanas and the largest mobile homes, privacy and living space with every site a cor- ner lot. The plan also lends itself to ,beautiful landscaping possibili- ties. In addition to a complete re- creation center, the Forever Mod- ern plan provides for water, sew- ers,natural or bottled gas, indivi- dual telephones, television, and 120/240 volt electrical system, with all wiring and mains underground. There are many other plans available for modern parks well planned for today's as well as fu- ture needs. Space rental in parks in the United States runs from $25 to $100. Bing Crosby's Blue Skies Park in Palm Springs, California, Hensall Leaders Congratulate • General "The fact that General Coach is such as the St. Lawrence Seaway, expanding ..its....operations wherehomes are needed to accePl- sail is a great thing for the citizens modate the pioneers of industry. here," Reeve Norman Jones said as he extended congratulations on behalf of the village to the com- pany. "It brings a lot of business here and a lot of people come to Hensall to work in the plant," he said. "More money is being spent and that means that everybody bene- fits." Reeve Jones felt one of the big- gest benefits was as a result of employment being provided young people of the community. • "It used to be that a young fellow bad to .go away to get work. New that is all changed. Not only are Hensall boys working here, but lots of people are coming from other places, too. I am just tickled at the way things are going." Reeve Jones felt that one of the big advantages to Hensel was the publicity which came when Gen- eral Coach advertising was carried across Canada. "A lot of people hear about Hensall now, because they see General Coaches that were built here or read General adver- tising. And' that all helps us in Hensall," he- said. • We of the Chamber of Commerce are ,very proud of the General Cbach as a new industry and of the fine men it has brought to our community. Anything we have been able to do to aid in the estab- lishment of this industry in. Hensall and Huron County gives us great satisfaction. This new Waykof life has open- ecntirdy new concept of one of the very modern parks, d isp an brings $100 per month space ren; mobile home parks. The crowded tal. HoweVer, this is the excep- unkenipt parks of a few years ago tion, and from $40 to $65 is the are a outdated as the trailers 'witheut bathrooms. A modern, well equipped Park with adequate plumbing, water and electric facili- ties requires as much planning as .a new suburban housing develop- ment. They should be just as much. of a residential community, and as well accepted as the new suburban communitieS. Although these well planned parks require a substantial initial mvestment, to quote:a well known park architegt in the United States, "experiente has shown that the owners of real- ly fine model parks have little or no rental problem. And though such parks are able to command considerably higher -than -average rentals, they almost invariably have Waiting lists of eager tenants - to -be. Thekeynote in building a fine trailer court today is to look ahead and ,liaild it to be "Forever Mod- ern.' ', This is the concept of Mr: C. J. llarham, who holds copYrights and patents on the unique Forever Modern Trailer Park design. It is beset on a square unit deaigned to acte reodate two mobile homes parkeddiagonally; across it. The plan ' s said to offer the ultinrate. in md era:, mobile h tie living, atria g the overcrowdingof trail - 1 ties e,,-dfteirtotiiid. atia.,414-, average in good parks. There is also a new development. in the United States where mobile home lots are purchased rather than rented, with a monthly charge for facilities and park maintenance. Hensall C. of C. Greets Expansion (By R. H. Middleton, president, plumbing fixtures, oil heat, clothes Hensall Chamber of Commerce) washer, automatic refrigerator de- ' , As president of the Henan froster. More than three-quarters want eye -level ovens in the c en. About half prefer straight kitchen sinks, 54 -inch bathtubs, clothes dryer, TV set arid 30 -inch cooking range. • The survey. -one of the most penetrating ever made for the mobilehome industry—showed that today's 2,000,000 mobilehome dwel- ers want more space, more luxury, and are willing to pay for it. It is our most sincere wish that this industry will continue to pros- per as it has in the past. We wish them every success. Our organiz- ation is • at their services at all times. May they continue to be the biggest manufacturer of mobile homes in Canada. ,..af•A"AA:•;AaaaA,aa,,a.,a&.N.a.",,•a• Various stages of manufac- ture are carried out in inde- pendent departments. Each department is arranged to permit it to be operated in., dependently of other depart- ments. Principal depart- ments are woodworking, met- al working, painting and equipment installation, and finkhings. • . keeping with increased production which\ the new Hensall plant makes possible, enlarged office accomodatinn became a necessity. This is being provided in an exten- sion being erected about the centre of the-airth side of th plant proper. Its- location makes it equally conVenient to all sections of the plant. A large general office is surrounded on three sides with smaller offices for com- pany executives. Partitions between certain of the offices can be folded away to create a conference room. Records and documents will be safe- guarded in a fire -proof vault. In designing the new plant, General Coach executives drew on their long experience in the mobilehome industry to ensure that the plant de- sign would be such as to make possible maximum production within competative cost lim- its. To this end, the work flow is arranged to avoid every unnecessary movement on the part of the employees. The 50,000 foot work area is il- luminated with • florescent units. Home Owners Express Preferenc e A recent survey of mobilehome buyers' preferences, conducted by Trailer Dealer magazine of Chica- go, indicated that more than half the people.. polled want mobile - homes longer than 41 feet, in two exterior colors and with jalousie windows. About two-thirds want two bedrooms—one in the centre of the coach—birch interior walls, carpeting, air-conditioning, Colored —The mobile home industry is fairly new ' in Canada, but this country is growing, and the mobile home industry is bound to grow with it. Therefore, investment in modern, well equipped home parks in Canada should pay excellent re- turns for years to come. This has proved to be a very profitable bus- iness. Builders of parks today have the advantage of experience which other park builders gained through the trial and error meth- od. Even city planners in some areas did not foresee the tremen- dous development which is 4aking place in suburban sections of large cities. As a result there is_inade- quate sewage and water facilities, as well as electricity and gas in many communities.• All of these errors might have been eliminated with better planning. For this Yea - son the park architect is playing an important role in the develop - Ment modern parks hi the Unit- ed States, and It is believed that these well planned parks Will St Write everr,xaobie ireatettritprozgeas:-iii AM, 1,1 • 1000 ,parking af several aaLlika • Chamber of Commerce, speaking for the business people of the Vill- age of Hensall, we are proud to see the General Coach of Canada make continued advancement in their field. • The mobile home produced in Hensall fills a need in the advance- ment in the many fields of industry in Canada, especiaZy in the opening of new country in mining develop- ment, and in construction work • $ Pregg0:"*MOOMIM: T CMHA Serves Owners Interests REEVE. NOE JONES saw benefit to every citizen of Masan as a result of eXPanded General Coach operations in the . 410 11. M1'DDLETON, president who on behalf Of the association Hensel Chamber of Commerce extended congratulations congratulationa te R. Oral (1.ti —• • An indication of the extent to which the mobilehome has become a factor in the United States community is the numb- er of associations dealing with various aspects of the industry. The three leading U.S. Ass- ociations are the Mobile Home Manufacturers Association and the Mobilebome Dealers Nation- al Association both in Chicago, and the Trailer Coach Associa- tion in Los Angeles. They have led countless successful pro- grammes for better parks and legislation. Then there are State and regional associations which have dine much to improve the public relations of mobilehomes and Wks.' Now a new association has been formed—the National Trailer Park Association. Its an offshoot of the Park Division tit the TCA in Los, Angeles. Its potential member- ship is the 12,000 mobilehome parks .of the nation. .rodiednizta, mobilehome in -Tr terats' are ;consolidated in the Canadian Mobile Home Ass- acition, which holds a federal charter. The CMHA is current- ly anductinti a programme to bring all branches of mobile - home community into active mentliership. The managing Director is Howard Sale, CM- ' ROOM 45, 159 Bay Street, ittoiti* i 'Ontaro, Canada. A SE(:"TiON• making up a General mobile home is prefabricated. Here employees com- plete a roof section which will be fitted to other components to create another General mobile home. Particular care is taken to use only select lumber and this, plus additional strength which is built in means longer life. (Photos by J. Doerr) APKW0:.*,100 • ALL- CABINET WORE used in General mobile homes is manufactured in the Hensall plant. Here the various components are being prefabricated, ready for installation in a General mobile home. Visitors at the plant open house expressed amazement at he amount of storage space which General custom-built installations provided in each -coach. EVERY GENERAL COACH mobile home is thodroughly insulated to provide protection no matter what the weather. Blanket type insulation with vapor seal provides maximm uinsulating value. Insulation plays a big part in making General coaches so popular across Canada General units are serving in communities in the far north as offices, bunk houses • and even as telephone exc.'', a flees. +IA ••••;•:"... • • "•6',AiaaAW.,..,,,:,,;.; • , FINAL STET in the completion of a General Mobile Mane fk,installation of c furnishings. General Mobile ROMeS4aek nothing in Modern furnishings lftelitddit washers, modern bathrooms, furnaces and. if you wish, air totiditioning Unita. ' • ' „...11."' . r ".• "^','•',•,‘ • 0 4.4