Suppliers Benefit from Boom with New Product Development
Like the rest of the RV industry, those supplier companies producing products both seen and unseen on the RV exterior have benefited greatly from the boom of the last three years.
And, again like the rest of the industry, many suppliers specializing in RV exteriors also are seeing a slowdown. That said, others selling into the RV exterior accessory and aftermarket niches have continued to thrive, supplying the burgeoning demand of new owners and used RV upgrades.
Bauer Products
Bruce Bacon of Bauer Products, a long time, front-end supplier of RV lock systems to the OEMs with some crossover aftermarket sales, is seeing a change in the RV industry and his firm is representative of the hurdles suppliers now face.
While there are signs the industry as a whole is regaining some traction, Bacon’s business is indicative of the current state of many in the RV exterior supplier scene.
Diversification, he said, is key to his operational lifeline.
“Thankfully, we do more things than just RV,” said Bacon. “So that helps out. But much of the RV stuff is still kicking along. We’re getting through it, and we’re finding other things to produce as well.”
Supply chain issues that hampered his business – and others – much of last year have eased considerably. At the time, though, the difficultly in sourcing the high-tech parts that are trending in the lock system business was a challenge.
“You’re scrambling around the world to try to find somebody who has some of it,” he stated frankly. “So, we’ve had our share of excitement with this whole supply chain nonsense.”
RV Covers Continue Growth
Liz White, national sales manager for Covercraft (ADCO), a supplier of covers for the marine, RV and automotive industries, said the company’s aftermarket operations are benefiting from the increase in RV ownership in recent years.
Her company got ahead of the curve early, she said, and responded to the supply chain issues by increasing production. Increased sales helped with this capitalization.
“We added a couple different manufacturing facilities at the end of 2021 to really ramp up production, so we’re at a really good inventory standpoint this year for this fall.” explained White.
Exterior Graphics Still Stable
Graphix Unlimited of Bremen, Ind. is a well-diversified custom graphics supplier that handles the RV OEM industry but also custom, large format screen printing, graphic design and even application training for OEMs.
For Melissa Vitali, CEO of the firm, business continues to grow in her market.
“Business is good. It’s busy, busy. Our sales are up,” she said. “We do a lot of custom design work and then manufacture the graphics in-house and do everything up to application. The manufacturers have their own applicators that put them on. We do a lot of motorized and then we do a lot of the smaller stuff too like the R-pod and IBEX.”
Camping Hardware and Soft Goods Selling Hot
Family owned JR Products, has been supplying the RV industry for over 50 years and is a supplier of RV replacement parts, hardware and accessories. Its product lineup includes everything from hardware to electrical, plumbing, to LP gas, and more.
Pat Harrington, national sales manager, said he the Buffalo, N.Y.-based company has diversified more into the aftermarket camping accessory business with the 2020 purchase of Camp Casual, which offers plates, bowls, coffee mugs, blankets and other gear with retro-inspired designs.
“Business is good,” said Harrington. “We’re an aftermarket manufacturer with a product portfolio of around 1,500 parts, and business is very good. Our product categories are hardware, electrical, plumbing, LP gas, and then what we call service parts. And there’s different parts within each of those categories that are always really fast selling items. There are 100 products within our hardware that are ‘A’ movers that we sell 10,000 of a year.”
Exterior Electronic Systems On Demand
Lynn Ford, marketing coordinator for ASA Electronics, stated that business has been good and steady for the company. Of course, developing high technology equipment remains key for the Elkhart, Ind.-based company.
“Sales have been good for our observation systems in terms of exterior products,” she stated. “We have the Voyager 270. Our iN-Command Global system is also a big one as it allows control of outside awnings and lights as well. TPMS (tire pressure monitoring systems) are also selling well and something we like to push.”
These high-tech systems used to be dedicated to larger, higher-end RVs, but are now in demand for many small- and mid-sized units as well.
“And app-related controls are becoming more popular with ASA introducing new features to iN∙Command Global Connect app,” she said. “But this Voyager 270 Observation System patented technology also saves your production team time and hassle.”
Three cameras generate a 270-degree seamless top-down image of the driver’s surroundings, displayed on a 7-inch monitor with auto-pairing capability. Auto-calibration between components happens in less than a minute, eliminating the need for perfect placement and constant adjustments. While on the road, Wi Sight 2.0 ensures a solid monitor image thanks to wireless communication immune to latency and interference—no wiring to the exterior components.
Exterior Sealants and Accessories Maintaining Highs
Lisa Rhinesmith, VP of sales said that LaVenture Products Company warehouses and distributes a wide variety of products.
“We do grab-handles, sealants, hardware and ball seals for the exterior of the units among many other things,” she said.
“What I see really trending is a lot of the solar power products,” Rhinesmith continued. “We have some new sealants that will combat UV and exterior elements that will support these installations. Of course its low VOC. We are also introducing some new mudflaps as well. We are constantly looking at new items to solve application needs.”
Solar Power a Bright Spot in Growth
British Columbia-based GoPower! gave its perspective on the state of solar in the RV industry. Mark Spilsbury, RV Division Manager for GoPower! gave his company’s perspective of the state of solar on the RV exterior as more OEMs make solar a standard feature for off the grid camping.
“Panel efficiencies are improving,” he said, “as well as solar charge controller efficiency and connectivity. Connectivity is getting easier to adopt, which aims to not only improve end user experience but tech support as well with ready diagnostics and over-the-air-firmware updates.”
The renewable energy mandate set forth by many states and the green movement have a direct effect on solar equipment producers. He also singled out a recent law in California to allow only electric vehicle sales in the state after 2035.
“This will have an impact on the RV industry,” Spilsbury said. “But the more recent ruling of banning generators in California in 2024/25 is having a shorter term impact. This is leading the OEM’s to look at high DC system voltages and working on creative ways to make the RVs more efficient and less reliant on fossil fuels. By 2035, I hope that the technology has advanced enough that we could have a Class B or C or even a Class A be all electric and able to travel a decent distance when fully loaded.”
When asked if this type of legislation will move the rest of the industry and how will this will change the appliance and accessory builders suppling the RV OEMs, Spilsbury’s response was tentative.
“It’s hard to say, but since I know the OEM’s are already looking at California’s ruling on generators it could mean a revolution in the way they manufacture and work on making the RV’s more efficient,” he said. “All technologies will need to import. Air conditioners will need to be more efficient. Maybe this is a combination with RV roofs being flat to allow more solar to help recharge batteries. Then the batteries need to be more powerful and more affordable, but hopefully these will all come soon.”
But the solar industry still has a few challenges ahead for RV manufacturers, dealers or customers adopting alternative power sources.
“Weight is a big issue,” he concluded. “RVs are also not more aerodynamic so trying to build an all-electric Class A with multi ACs with some actual usable driving range is going to be a challenge in the future.”
Exterior Cleaning and Maintenance Products
With the massive increase of RVs on the road, cleaning, maintenance and protectant products are in higher demand.
“For us I would say exterior products constitute the wide range of cleaners and protectants we make,” said Laura Petee with Thetford. “We have the Thetford line of products and then we also have a Protect All line of products. We do everything from black streak and bug removers to awning cleaner. We have a rubber roof cleaner with activation removers, wash and wax products as well. We cover it all.”
She concluded tat this segment has held up well with sales up to support all the new owners.
Water Filtration Systems
“With the advent of more campers boondocking, with solar and mini-grid systems using batteries and generators, staying in wild places for extended periods is not always a matter of power but rather the quantity of fresh water,” said Joe Kiley of Blu Technology a water filtration company based in Portage, Mich.
He said the trend of water filtration systems are on the rise in RVs, and Blu Technology is leading the way with a solar-powered pump system that augments its purification to pull water from a distance to the RV. Many OEMs are starting to take note offering it as a standard as the technology improves, he added.
He singled out the MRX Plus, saying it is the “first 5-inch NSF-certified filtration system on the market and it’s approved by the RVIA. The Blue Technology MRX Plus is a two-stage 0.2-micron filtration system with an onboard pump rated at three gallons per minute. So, this system will come with a 12-volt battery and a solar compatible charger to keep it flowing.”
Source: https://rvbusiness.com/suppliers-benefit-from-boom-with-new-product-development/
