Exclusive: Keystone Execs on Reaching 1 Million RVs

Today, as Keystone RV celebrated production unit number 1 million, a Montana 3761FL fifth wheel, to roll off its line in Goshen, company executives note it is more than simply a milestone that few companies can claim. It is clear recognition of the solid foundation laid by company founder, Cole Davis, in 1996.

Likewise, the RV chosen as the 1 millionth unit produced by Keystone is fitting because it is the company’s first highly successful brand and flagship. The Montana also reflects the innovations and responsiveness so highly regarded by Keystone’s leadership, staff and team members.

Following today’s ribbon cutting ceremony, the Keystone Montana 3761FL was driven from the Keystone corporate complex and delivered to Walnut Ridge Family RV Center, in New Castle, Ind.

RV News discussed the significance of production unit number 1 million with current and recent Keystone leaders and learned of a shared appreciation for the solid foundation Davis laid for Keystone but also how on that foundation, the company has built a reputation for agility, responsiveness and steady confidence in its capacity to provide what its customers want.

“Producing one million RVs is a remarkable milestone and a tough act to follow,” Keystone President and CEO Jeff Runels says. “We are building a sustainable business that is based on always staying close to our customers.”

Although he has worked at Keystone for 15 years, Runels says he started his career while still in college as a salesman at an Indiana RV dealership that did not sell Keystone units. From that perspective, he says he could easily see that Keystone was a different kind of RV company.

“Everything I could see about Keystone told me that it moved fast and the people that worked there were part of team. Unfortunately, they were also taking my sales,” Runels says.

“Keystone was just the kind of company I wanted to work for,” he adds.

Matt Zimmerman, previously Keystone’s CEO and now Thor Industries RV Group Manager for Airstream, Keystone and Thor Motor Coach, recalls a similar experience when he joined the company 22 years ago.

“What impressed me from the beginning was the loyalty Keystone earned from its people,” Zimmerman says. “The Keystone campus was in a cornfield then, so the outside has changed quite a bit.”

“This is a much bigger operation now, but the company culture really is the same,” he says. “The 1 millionth RV proves that the incredible trust Keystone puts into our dealers to tell us what to do, is the right approach.”

Mark Bullock is the Keystone Senior Vice President of Engineering. He also has more than 20 years with the company. He joined the company while it was still considered a start-up and values the opportunity to learn the business from Cole Davis.

“Once the first Montana’s and Cougars got out into the market, things happened quickly,” Bullock says. “At first, we were building brands. As those 18 brands were established, we pushed innovations and the improvements dealers told us they wanted.”

Lately, Keystone has worked to take advantage of advances in technology to bring new levels of control and convenience to RV owners and simplification to RV service techs, he says.

“As we began integrating the iN-Command™ system from ASA Electronics, it allowed us to establish standards for wiring codes and numbers,” Bullock says. “Now a service tech can easily tell which wire connects to which slide out just by looking at the wire color and number.”

Bullock points out that Keystone has also standardized many features across its brands ranging from common connections for multisource signaling under the KeyTV system to composite flooring across the brands that resists moisture and rot.

Although he is just months away from his 20th service anniversary at Keystone, David Chupp, the Chief Operating Officer, recognizes the remarkable progress the company has made to reach its 1 millionth unit milestone.

“I started here as an intern while still in college,” Chupp says. “Like many of us here at Keystone, I grew up in Northern Indiana and joined the company when I was young.”

His career path so far has seen Chupp head the IT and financial accounting departments before being named Vice President of Finance and eventually his current role.

“From early in our careers, we all had mentors who showed us the ropes,” he says. “One of the important lessons we all learned was that when our dealers hear about something important, they will tell us. That’s what keeps us going.”

(This article was originally posted on rvnews.com. To view the original post, click here)