Manufactured housing plant in Saskatchewan
goes full speed with skilled union labour

There hasn't been very many IWA
operations that have been completely
recession proof. Most of our member-
ship have felt the brunt of hard eco-
nomic times either by closures, or a
reduced work year.

Fortunately for 119 IWA-CANADA
Local 1-184 members employed at
Shelter Industries manufactured hous-
ing plant in Estevan Saskatchewan, lo-
cated in the southeast corner of
Saskatchewan near the North Dakota
border, work has been very steady de-
spite a sliding economy.

During hard times the market for
manufactured housing has increased
in Canada, where Shelter sells its
products through over 30 retailers.

According to plant superintendent
Gerry Kerr: "The recession hasn't hurt
us at all. As a matter of act, we've
been booming."

The manufactured housing built by
Shelter homes is built to the same
building standards as the National
Building Code. Little by little, manu-
factured housing has taken some of
the market from traditional stick built
housing.

Mr. Kerr says the three major mar-
kets for manufactured housing are
first time home buyers, retirees, and
typical mobile home buyers.

Shelter’s Estevan plant sells most of
its production to Alberta and B.C. and
also has manufacturing facilities in
Lethbridge, Alberta and Winfield, B.C.

The company offers consumers 50
floor plans (2 - 4 bedrooms) in the 800
- 1200 square foot range. Basic models
are 14' x 56' and 16! x 80'. At any one
time the Estevan plant is working on
the assembly of 12 homes and finishes
3-5 units a day depending on their
size and complexity.

The complete finished home, which
looks like an elongated version of the
stereotypical trailer home, includes all
electrical and plumbing work built to
national standards. After purchasing
the home there only needs to be an
electrical hookup, water and sewer
hookups. Units come furnished with
fridge and stove and optional appli-
ances (i.e. washer/dryer, dishwasher).

The plant, in one form or another
has operated on the site since 1966

when it was known as Homco Indus-
tries. In 1978 Shelter Industries, took
over the operation and increased the
plant's efficiency.

Although the plant is about 12 miles
from the U.S. border, it does not sell
into the States. Its site gives it a cen-
tral location to Canadian markets.

Some American products come
across the line but Mr. Kerr says the
"Americans are having a tough time
building to our codes."

"We see a fair amount of American
products and they do a lot of things
which just aren't acceptable in the
Canadian market," says Kerr. Overall
U.S. built manufactured housing has
lower quality materials and workman-
ship.

The plant is laid out like an assem-
bly line with workers specializing in
each phase of construction. Many of
the same skills used in stick built
housing are used at Shelter (plumb-
ing, electrical, framing, drywalling,
cabinet making, finishing etc.).

Mr. Kerr says that Shelter's compet-
itive advantage is its skilled and flexi-
ble workforce. Although the plant is a
little cramped by industry standards,
it is highly productive.

"It is the uniqueness of our employ-
ees," says Kerr. "If it wasn't for them I
don't think we could produce effi-
ciently enough to stay in business."

Plumber Richard Dixon, who is the
sub-local chairman for the union, says
it's a high-ball operation that prides it-
self on quality. It is also one of the few
manufactured housing operations that
is certified to the IWA.

"If it wasn't for the IWA," says Broth-
er Dixon, "there's no way they'd be
paying what they're paying."

In the mill room, cut-off and table
saw operators pre-cut all the compo-
nents to fit the various blueprint
plans. Lumber used is usually kiln-
dried spruce and fir source from Al-
berta and B.C.

The foundation consists of a steel
frame with a 2" x 8" underlay and 5/8"
sheathing flooring that has a sealant
layer on top. As the framing goes up
both the walls and roof are filled with
insulative pouring wool or fiberglass
batts.

Interior walls are pre-finished and

¢ Glenn Mantei installs pouring wool insulation with a blower.

¢ Drywall tapers Kiet Tran (1.) and Vuong Nguyen take a break for photo.

the roofs are done to a stucco finish.
As the homes travel through the as-
sembly the plumbing fixtures are in-
stalled, the plumbing set is connected,
and electrical wiring is put in place.

The exteriors of the homes can con-
sist of an oriented strandboard and
kraft paper overlay which gives a
smooth finish that can hold paint and
is resistant to weather check. It is
guaranteed by the manufacturer for
15 years.

Shelter also offers to factory install
vinyl siding which has a longer term
warranty.

Each home is finished with win-
dow, doors, custom built cabinets,
carpeting, lighting fixtures, and many
other features. The homes are cov-
ered in asphalt shingles.

All work is given a general 12
month warranty which is supplement-
ed by guarantees from the various ma-
terial and appliance suppliers.

The company ships out the home
by truck trailer and provides, through
its dealers, details on blocking and/or
foundation work. Retail price varies
widely in the $32,000 - $60,000 range.

The plant can hardly keep up with
orders it receives. Last year it began a
popular line of manufactured homes
called the LC model, which is the low-
est cost manufactured housing plan
on the market. There are 6 models in
the 850 - 1100 square foot range.

In 1991 Shelter produced over 200
of these types of homes and by this
year end it will have turned out over
300 units.

¢ In the interior finishing area are Local 1-184 members Jeff Johner (1.) and
plant chairman Richard Dixon.

22/LUMBERWORKER/DECEMBER, 1992