CAVCO
Cavco Industries needed to expand production at its Palm Harbor Homes facility while bringing its finishing operations into compliance with OSHA and NFPA 33 requirements. The existing paint booth location no longer supported growing demand or met current code standards. RTT Finishing Solutions designed and manufactured a custom pressurized open-top paint booth as part of a new 22,400-square-foot expansion, creating a solution tailored to the facility's overhead crane system and large manufactured home components. The result was a safer, code-compliant finishing operation with increased production capacity and improved manufacturing efficiency.
Project Details
Customer: Cavco Industries, Inc. (Palm Harbor Homes)
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
Industry: Manufactured Housing
RTT Regional Sales Manager: Bill Van Buren (Retired)
Application: Custom open-top paint booth for manufactured home finishing
Project Completion Date: Aug 30, 2021
Result: Delivered a custom code-compliant paint booth that integrated with the facility’s overhead crane system, increased production capacity, improved working conditions, and brought the finishing operation into compliance with OSHA and NFPA 33 standards.
About Cavco Industries and Palm Harbor Homes: Cavco Industries, Inc. is a leading producer of manufactured and modular homes, park model RVs and commercial buildings. Its Palm Harbor Homes production facility in Fort Worth, Texas, manufactures high-quality homes designed to meet changing customer needs. To support increasing demand, Cavco invested in a major facility expansion focused on increasing production capacity, improving working conditions and modernizing its manufacturing process.
Problem
Cavco Industries needed to expand production at its Palm Harbor Homes facility to keep pace with the rising demand for high-quality, affordable manufactured homes. The location of the existing paint booth did not meet OSHA or NFPA 33 requirements and could not efficiently support the size of the products or the facility’s manufacturing process.
During the early design phase, it became clear that relocating or modifying the existing booth would not provide the capacity, compliance or operational flexibility required. Because the large frames needed to be lifted by an overhead crane and lowered into the spray area, a standard enclosed paint booth would not work for the application.
Solution
RTT Finishing Solutions partnered with Cavco Industries to develop a custom finishing solution for a new 22,400-square-foot expansion at the Palm Harbor Homes production facility. RTT designed and manufactured a custom pressurized open-top paint booth that allowed large frames to be lifted by an overhead crane and lowered directly into the spray area.
The booth was engineered around Cavco’s manufacturing process and product dimensions rather than relying on a standard, cookie-cutter configuration. The system provides 26,000 CFM of input air and 26,000 CFM of filtered exhaust, helping the facility meet current OSHA and NFPA 33 requirements while creating a safer and more efficient finishing environment.
The broader facility expansion also added six tape-and-texture workstations, creating opportunities for increased output, improved drying times, reduced rework, fewer production delays and a more efficient workflow throughout the manufacturing process.
Customer Feedback
“`“These six additional stations for traditional tape-and-texture walls and ceilings will be a real game-changer toward addressing inefficiencies and improving our overall working environment for our team members. Our plant will enjoy increased output, less rework, improved drying times, fewer delays and less defects—while helping to create a highly efficient and employee-friendly workplace.”
— Eric Fletemeyer, General Manager, Cavco Fort Worth Palm Harbor Homes Production Facility
Installation Photos
