b'PMRVsfrom page 18 that one day it might be one thing they are having issues getting and another day it will flip to something else. Island Series, he said. These units make up 70% of our business model. The chal- Were famous for cedar-sided homes and thats been a real big headache on both lenge this year has been to limit the amount of customization per unit and stream- the availability and the price, she explained. Most of our exteriors now are fiber line the process a bit more.cement siding, because we can do that more cost-effectively than we can do a cedar-On the employee side, Kropf noted that the companys family atmosphere hassided home right now. helped attract and retain employees.Stewart noted that the company has worked on several different development They know that they willprojects this year and has been receiving sales inquiries from developers building be taken care of no matternew parks. the current state of the in- Weve done a couple of projects for three different developers that were building dustry, he explained. new parks and putting in PMRVs. That demand has gone up, she said. We are also In2022,thecompanystill in the process of talking to other developers that just havent gotten to the point hopes to unveil a new seriesyet of placing orders. The sales to campgrounds have definitely been up this year of park models. just because they need them. We have always tried towww.pinnacleparkhomes.com229-574-5159 bethetrendsetterinthe park model industry, and ISkyline Champion think this new line will helpSkyline Champion has been working to streamline its offerings as demand for its showcase that, Kropf noted.units is at an all-time high.TherehavebeenmoreThe goal is to make the park mod-parks that have been expanding across the country. Our dealers recognize the de- els easier to build, helping both pro-mand for park models and want to capitalize on that.ductionandourmaterials Looking into the new year, Kropf is hoping to maximize production while stilldepartment, noted Grymonprez. We maintaining a high-quality product. are designing specific floor plans just The RV industry, not just park models, has a strong and positive outlook, Trevorfor the rental business as their needs said. People across the country have shifted the way they vacation, and I think theare a little different then our street re-RV industry will be strong for years to come because of that.tail business. www.kropfind.com574-533-2171He told WCM that the company has been battling price increases, but that Pinnacle Park Homes Inc.it hasnt slowed down orders.TheRentalReadyLineWe have had more price increases continues to sell well for Pin- from our suppliers then at any time I nacle Park Homes as it con- have ever seen in my 40 years in this tinues to see orders increaseindustry, Grymonprez pointed out. It onthecampgroundrentalseems like every day one of our plants has a price increase from someone and short-side, according to Stewart.ages from someone else. The crazy thing is it has not slowed the demand. Its almost Wehavebeenabletolike people are ordering now trying to get them in before pricing goes up again. keepourmanufacturingThe company has also been battling employee shortages.plants going at 100%, sheThis is a problem with all RV and manufactured housing companies, he said. highlighted.We have raised starting pay at all of our plants and are offering many incentives to Onthesupplysideofbring in new talent. All of these issues, combined with materials, has caused the large things,StewarttoldWCMinflation in our country. Looking at new developments and expansions, Grymonprez told WCM that they have seen more parks expanding, along with new builds.Its a great problem to have but trying to take care of our existing customers and bringing on so many new customers is what also has increased backlogs this year, he noted. It seems like new campgrounds, expanding campgrounds and commu-nities are happening every day. Looking to the future, Grymonprez doesnt expect a slowdown in 2022.It looks like 2022 is going to be a lot like 2021, he said. We have to focus on sta-bilizing pricing and building more units to meet the increased demand. www.athensparkmodelrvs.com www.skylinepm.com903-677-0108Woodland Park Inc. While Woodland Park enjoyed one if its busiest years on record, Soard noted that lofted models in the U.S. and two-bedroom models in Canada remained the hot sellers.Soard told WCM that it was still highlighting units with the basement storage or closed-in loft features as most of its dealers haventevenbeenabletosee thosegame-changingfeatures in-person yet.We have swamped dealers and customers with pictures and 3-Dwalkthroughsonline,but somethingshaveyettobe broughtfullytomarketgiven that the Elkhart Open House has been called off the past two years, he explained. Our design team has a few ideas brewing but with the backlog being so far out, introducing changes has its own new set of challenges within the company and the supply chain. Soard said that the company has increased its wages to help retain and attract em-ployees.We currently have the best staff anywhere in the industry building a complicated and customized product line in both U.S. and Canadian standards, so we want the best and most skilled workers in our plant, not just a warm body or a fast runner, he said.Looking toward the future, Woodland Park doesnt expect a slowdown, especially given that its backlog is pretty much sold out for 2022.Our focus for the upcoming year will be concentrating on gaining efficiencies and sustainably increasing production levels to relieve the backlog to a somewhat man-ageable level, all the while maintaining our quality level, noted Soard. As far as 2023 goeswe will just have to wait and see, I guess.www.woodland-park.com800-999-4958 WCM20 February 2022Woodalls Campground Magazine'