Winnebago's sales volume and employees are half of what they were six years ago. All of the fixed costs however are still in tact so they are hurting financially. They need to get the manufacturing facility into the 21st century. I don't mean an investment in capital equipment but I do mean a drastic change in process. They must capitalize on Quality processes and techniques that drove the auto industry in order to compete in world markets albeit almost a bit too late. Winnebago spends an enormous amount on warranty repairs and in-process rework. Being from a 45 year career in manufacturing, I KNOW that it works. My bottom line increased by 260% in the first year after implementing TQC/TQM/SPC etc. I would estimate, after touring their factory and observing warranty repairs at dealers and the factory, that they could increase their bottom line by several hundred percent. I know if they have a negative bottom line percentages are not relevant so what I am trying to say is that their savings to Cost of Sales is HUGE. They would also become an industry leader due to their being able to build and ship a quality product.
A special message to Randy Potts. Hire a veteran VP of Manufacturing that knows how to implement all of the state-of-the-art manufacturing quality control techniques. He/she need not be from the RV Industry.
