Building on decades of experience—and backed by extensive research, development, and testing—Blackseries has made a name for itself around the world for its ability to bring all the comforts of home to the harshest and most remote locales. Mud, sand, sea, rocks, ruts; nothing can stand in the way of a Blackseries adventure!

Supported by a manufacturing footprint in Australia, China, and the U.S., and a dealer network of 65 dealers and counting on five continents, more than a hundred thousand Blackseries are taking people where they want to go—even if it is the road less traveled—to make memories that will last a lifetime.

Taking campers farther than ever before
Blackseries was born out of a passion for camping and the desire to design an RV that could withstand inclement weather and challenging terrain. Founded by CEO Hongwei (Jack) Qiu, an outdoors aficionado who has long held a love for camping and outdoor adventure, the company seeks to revolutionize camping culture around the world by taking people farther into nature than they have ever been capable of going.

The goal, according to Qiu, was to “develop a trailer that could go anywhere. A traditional RV needs to go to a campsite and plug in; you have neighbors, and you would be more stationary. But Blackseries started off-grid, so it enables customers to go somewhere beautiful: the mountains, the ocean—they can be completely off-grid.”

From the company’s founding in Australia in the mid-’90s through the 2000s, at which point it broke into the U.S. market, Qiu invested time and money into learning the ins and outs of RV manufacturing technology. He continued to refine his designs, a dedication to continuous improvement that continues to this day. Indeed, the Owner Development Program is a feedback loop that is regularly used to refine the design and performance of the company’s trailers by integrating improvements into the trailer designs to better adapt to off-road conditions with ease.

Today, there are several models available, including the HQ12, HQ15, HQ17, HQ19, HQ21 and the HQ21 Balcony, as well as toy haulers, HQ19T and HQ22T. The HQ19 is one of the brand’s best sellers and as Qiu notes, “I always take the HQ19 with me when I go camping with my wife.”

These homes away from home are just that; they offer the security and comfort of home from wherever adventure takes you. And they are tested in the real world, by putting the product to the test in some of the harshest conditions around the globe.

“We feel like the U.S. off-road community is growing very fast compared to the European market and Canadian market,” says Qui. “The Middle Eastern market is also important for us. In Australia, at least 30 percent of the RV market goes off-grid; I believe that could happen in the U.S. We just need to bring the price down.” Qiu thus plans to take advantage of the camping culture and the extensive camping infrastructure in the U.S., which includes a rich national parks system.

The promise of performance
Blackseries offer users a rugged, well-equipped design that is simple to operate. Well-appointed for off-grid activities thanks to carefully balanced weight and an articulating hitch—and customizable to meet personal preferences, including an Android-powered smart control system from which users can check tire pressure, water levels, and light controls from the palm of their hand—the features and performance of the equipment continue to expand and evolve.

Blackseries remains committed to its founding principles of innovation and evolution. The company continuously seeks ways to enhance its trailers by improving power recycling and storage systems, ensuring a reliable energy supply for greater comfort and performance. Additionally, it prioritizes sustainability features that not only elevate the customer experience but also minimize environmental impact.

“We started to research bigger power inverters that could take more appliances at the same time, making sure that it’s safe for the customer to use. Every year we introduce something better in terms of features to help customers enjoy more off-grid camping,” says Qiu, who notes that the power system can operate on battery or solar power.

“Our off-grid power system uses a 3,000-watt inverter to run everything,” he explains. “We are the first ones to do that, and we are still, to my knowledge, the only company that can do that.”

To facilitate this level of performance, Blackseries invests heavily in research and development, manufacturing, and real-world testing to ensure it is respected for its performance and longevity but also its economical price tag. This is why the company is often the first to market with new features and capabilities and why as a brand it continues to grow in popularity. Further, its tents and trailers are protected by a one-year manufacturer warranty, a five-year warranty for structural components, and a lifetime warranty on the chassis.

Offering peace of mind
Like the campers themselves, Blackseries employees also share a passion for camping, which enriches the company culture and the value customers derive from their service.

“We are a company that wants to do something different by bringing a new lifestyle of camping to our customers, so when our employees choose us, they already know about our brand, they already know about our company culture, and they love what they do,” says Qiu.

One of the advantages of employment with Blackseries is that “we offer employees free use of the campers so they can experience the product and give suggestions and advice when they come back. So, they understand our customers and know how they feel,” he says. “We have very strict quality control,” which includes vetting suppliers and inspecting components as well as the final assembled trailer, which is inspected off the line and prior to being shipped.

“In our manufacturing facilities in City of Industry, California, when the trailer leaves the assembly line, the quality control team will perform the first step of quality control, making sure all the gas and electric appliances work and making sure there are no problems,” Qiu explains.

While the state of the RV sector post-COVID has been marred by high interest rates, the market is returning to strength, and Qiu believes that Blackseries has good reason to be optimistic looking ahead.

“As the leader in the off-road RV market, we of course want to maintain this position because we are the first ones to do it, and we have had success in this area. So we are expanding and employing new elements in manufacturing, assembly, and quality controls,” with the larger goal of bringing more adventure tourists closer to nature.

Truly, wouldn’t we all rather be on a mountain top or a secluded beach, enjoying the spectacular beauty and power of nature while enjoying the comforts of home and connectivity to society—even if it feels like it is a world away.

The post A Camping Experience off the Beaten Path<p class="company">Blackseries</p> appeared first on Manufacturing In Focus.

In recent years, the company has garnered a slew of celebrity endorsements, awards, and new hires. Marketing Director Donna Schmucker explains the company’s success: “Our products are made here in the U.S.A., so that’s a big feature our customers love,” she tells us. “We also have our own patented technology called TORSION-FLEX that creates a smoother ride and a more enjoyable towing experience.”

A world of hitches
TORSION-FLEX Technology uses rubber torsion bars as a suspension system while towing. This clever—and beautifully simple—solution absorbs inertia between the trailer and tow vehicle, enhances safety, and reduces jerking, creating a gentler ride.

While GEN-Y also sells hitch pins, tow hooks, flag poles, steps, running boards, ball mounts, and other components, trailer hitches remain the firm’s flagship offering. “Our hitches are what we’re most known for,” says Schmucker.

GEN-Y hitches include the MEGA-DUTY (with 10,000 to 32,000 pounds of towing capacity with multiple drop options) and The BOSS (which uses TORSION-FLEX technology and also offers 10,000 to 32,000 pounds of towing capacity). Other popular company wares include the SPARTAN Gooseneck hitch (another TORSION-Flex-equipped product with up to 30,000 pounds of towing capacity) and a bumper coupler called The Admiral.

Although 98 percent of GEN-Y’s product stock is made in-house, a few items come from outside suppliers. Almost all manufacturing, other than “various small parts and pieces that we’ve outsourced in the past,” is self-performed.

Indeed, the company recently consolidated its manufacturing and office staff into a single building in Nappanee and last year, management decided to bring the powder coating process in-house as well. “We’re in the process of finalizing a powder coating addition to our facility and we hope to have that up and running with new equipment in the next few months,” Schmucker says. A facility at another location manages the aluminum manufacturing operations.

As befits a company that makes a wide array of hitches, GEN-Y sells its products through multiple channels. “We go to market in several different ways,” says Schmucker. “We sell directly to wholesale distributors across America and Canada; we sell directly to consumers from our retail website; we sell through Amazon; and we also have a large international market. Australia is the fastest growing international market for us. We sell through Canada, Mexico, Chile, and the UK and are expanding every year in international markets.”

Creating opportunity
The company owes its existence to founder Carl Borkholder’s dissatisfaction with existing hitches during his previous career running a tree-trimming business. Borkholder wanted a towing hitch that was “adjustable, heavy-duty, and able to get the job done,” but was unimpressed with what was available on the market.

He began tinkering and experimenting in a quest for a stronger, better towing hitch. He welded and stacked receiver tubes, made further refinements, and developed a hitch named MEGA-DUTY that met his needs. Borkholder fitted his homemade hitch on his fleet of trucks, and it worked so well that, very quickly, requests for the product from friends, family, and colleagues began to pour in.

Sensing a business opportunity, Borkholder and a partner launched a hitch-making business in 2012. Initially based in Borkholder’s garage, the new firm was named GEN-Y as a reflection of the ages of the founders (Generation Y: people born from the early 1980s through to the late 1990s). Despite its excellent product line, the company was not an instant success. GEN-Y struggled for a time but began to take off thanks in part to Borkholder’s energetic promotional efforts on social media.

“He put the pedal to the metal with social media—sharing our products, taking videos, posting them,” recalls Schmucker. “He was passionate about posting on social media, and that’s what has led to a big part of our success today,”

Another canny strategy was to send products to influencers and businesspeople in the trucking world. This mission was a success, and now the GEN-Y website has an entire page of celebrities and firms who use and endorse its products. Their ranks include the Diesel Brothers from the acclaimed reality TV show about a truck restoration business; TFL Truck (videos and commentary about trucks and cars); Goonzquad (vehicle-related products); and Mr. Truck (truck and trailer reviews).

Other pro-GEN-Y influencers include the Cummins Cowgirl (Chloe Yonker, a high-profile female mechanic); SMG (CJ Dunlap, a social media star who often posts images of customized trucks); Truck Guru (truck builder Cris Payne); Wild RV Life (recreational vehicle lifestyle by Craig and Victoria Shelton); and Big Truck Big RV (YouTube truck reviews by “JD”).

Personal touch and tech
This marketing outreach, which can only be called infectious, was matched with friendly service and a personal touch. “One thing with the retail world in this day and age, much of it is automated and robotic. We shy away from that in our interaction with customers,” says Schmucker.

Instead, GEN-Y employs a team of sales representatives who personally answer calls and emails, help customers, and educate people on company products. Clients are routinely amazed at such courteous treatment, says Schmucker, and this ‘lend-a-hand’ ethos applies to staff as well. GEN-Y employees frequently collaborate and assist on projects and in helping customers.

Clearly, people appreciate this approach, as employment at GEN-Y has gone from a staff of 51 in 2021 to 83 at present. Job applicants should demonstrate a helpful attitude, strong work ethic, and a high degree of flexibility, says Schmucker: “We’re looking for people who can quickly pivot and adjust. We try to make products that fulfill the customer’s needs or, if they have frustrations, we want to be able to create products that help them.” Day to day, this may mean tweaking an existing product based on customer input or even developing a whole new product.

All GEN-Y staff work in an environment where safety is paramount. Safety glasses and other PPE are mandatory in manufacturing areas, and workers are given extensive training in everything from using forklifts to performing CPR.

“We’re making sure we’re prepared for anything that could happen in a manufacturing facility. We have a lot of heavy machinery, equipment, and robotics, so all the team members in charge of those machines are trained on the safety aspects,” says Schmucker.

Alongside safety, innovation is at the heart of GEN-Y’s mission. “The goal of our engineering team is to come out with at least one new product every quarter. So, this year, when I counted, there were seven, maybe eight products we came out with,” shares Schmucker.

Ironically, GEN-Y’s recent rise has brought about a few challenges, she says. “One of our biggest challenges was getting our suppliers to keep up with the growth we’ve experienced. We’re on track to hit 40 percent growth this year over last.” But it’s a good problem to have.

Winning recognition
The company’s hard work and emphasis on quality is paying off in another area; as of late, GEN-Y has been showered with industry kudos, including a New Product of the Year award bestowed at the 2022 North American Trailer Dealers Association (NATDA) trade show in Nashville, Tennessee. The award (one of several GEN-Y has earned from NATDA) was in recognition of a product called the GoosePuck Offset Ball Puck System.

“The GoosePuck is the first, factory OEM offset gooseneck ball on the market. It offers an additional five-inch offset and connects directly to the OEM puck system in the bed of a truck,” said a September 7, 2022 NATDA press release. GEN-Y was also a finalist in the Manufacturer of the Year category at last fall’s Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) trade show in Las Vegas.

A believer in giving back to the community, GEN-Y actively supports charities such as the Family Christian Development Center (FCDC—a faith-based nonprofit group based in Nappanee that provides aid to individuals and families) and the local Boys and Girls Club. GEN-Y also supports Cultivate Food Rescue, an organization in South Bend, Indiana that provides meals to school children in need.

As for what the future holds, Schmucker offers a highly optimistic forecast: “We have a new product list that’s a mile long,” she says. “In five years, I envision us with many new products out in the market, getting our toes wet in a couple of new markets, gaining more market share, and becoming a much more common name.”

The post GEN-Y’s Secret of Success—Hitching the Business to Innovation and Service<p class="company">GEN-Y Hitch</p> appeared first on Manufacturing In Focus.