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Also how many employees worked on a shift?
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Jim,
I dug up the newspaper article from the Tripoli Leader for Aug 1, 1973. It says:
-Tri-Fab employed 35 people in a 50x200' cement block building.
-At that time they fabricated the
Love Bug, other fiberglass related items which included a fiberglass pick up cap.
-At one time Tri-Fab contracted to build 1,000 units for "Boler"
-Forty-three Boler travel trailers were in a storage area alongside the fiberglass plant,
-Two of these "Love Bug" trailers were parked in front of the manufacturing site
-In September of 1972 the firm completed their first production model of the "Love Bug" travel trailer.
-The future of Tri-Fab's 2-year existence remains uncertain
Extrapolating. Tri-Fab started in early 1971. I was able to find reference to a loan document online saying they were granted a loan 27/12/1971 about the time the Manitoba Business Journal had the article about bolers being made in the US. That would indicate that Tri-Fab was making the boler American for Eleanor International for approximately the 1st 8 months of 1972. One of the owners of a boler American (serial # in the 5000 range) forwarded me a copy of the brochure that came with their trailer and it had the Tri-Fab stamped on as the manufacturer.
That leads me to believe that Tri-Fab made the 5### serial numbers.
Next highest production was Evelands, I assume to be the 3###
Leaving the lower production 1### to Century.
Now the above is postulation on my part, but the info and documents I have so far seems to point in that direction.
The article from the Jan 1972 Manitoba Business Journal is posted here:
http://www.bolerama.org/bolerbusiness.html
It says:
-The first 3 plants will be going into operation in three north-central states in January.
-Boler has made three fiberglass trailer molds for the U.S. company, and two more are now being produced.
I have not been able to confirm if the other two molds were delivered and who got them. I'd like to believe that Tri-Fab got one of them (possibly both), with Evelands possibly getting the second.
From:
http://www.scamptrailers.com/About/TheScampStory.aspx
-"negociated a contract with Bolar in which Eveland's Inc. would manufacture trailers and Bolar would market them. Bolar had their own problems and went out of business late in 1972. This left Eveland's Inc. with molds "
-"by the end of 1972 about 130 trailers had been produced"
-"As mentioned above about 130 were built the first year. The following year was much the same, but by 1975, five hundred trailers were built, "
I'm not sure what is meant by "molds" above. That could be 1 mold for each top and bottom or more than 1 set. Production numbers, working days and your suggesting it would take two days makes me believe Eveland's only had 1 set. (52weeks x 5 days = 260 possible working days. 1 unit every 2 days = 130 units.
Mike Watters mentioned he was a former boler American owner (pre 2005), I'm not sure who got his. His posts indicate there was no serial # on the frame. But he did have a
title. It would be interesting to know what his serial # was.