Job #7 was a full week of learning! Even though Clayton Homes wasn't on my list of jobs that Sean Aiken gave me for the One-Week Job Program, I am thankful they hosted me for week #7. In case you're behind, you can read my first two posts of this week here and here. After working at the corporate office on Monday and Tuesday, I spent Wednesday at the Clayton Homes sales center.

Thursday, I got the true behind-the-scenes experience! I drove an hour from the corporate office to the Norris Homes building facility. Norris is just one of the "factories" where Clayton homes are built. As I stepped in the door, I was greeted by the manager Charlie. I spent some time with one of his salesmen to learn how they actually build a house!

I was very impressed when I found out that Norris does not only build homes, but they are currently building a dorm for Appalachian State University. It's mind boggling to think that individual dorm floors can be built in a factory, transported to the college, and then stacked on top of one another.

Here's a picture of the dorm building in progress:

After learning about the dorm project, my tour-guide informed me that many public buildings are actually manufactured in a similar factory. I had no idea!

The advantages of having a manufactured building are:

Speed: It's much faster to build a house in a home-building facility than building it on-site. They can crank out a house in 4 days!
Controlled Environment: Building a home under a covering is a huge plus since the house does not get weathered during the building process.
Cost: Due to the large number of houses that Norris builds, they get awesome deals on appliances and building materials.
Convenience: All of the builders, plumbers, electricians, and other specialists are all in the same place! This makes it much easier than arranging separate contracts for each speciality.

I had a great time at the Norris home-building facility. The only bummer was that there was not an I-House being built specifically. It was very fascinating though to see houses that were in the framing process, houses at the half- built stage, and then houses that had gorgeous cabinets installed.

Here's a video I took at Norris:

To be honest, I've never been too fond of the idea of a "trailer house." During my week with Clayton Homes, I learned that manufactured homes can be high-quality and stylish. There are basic models of course that have the "single-wide" look, but Clayton also makes homes that look just like they were built directly onto land. With all the options for people to customize, the sky really is the limit!

I wish there wasn't such a stigma attached to manufactured homes. This post is biased I know, but it's not because Clayton Homes said I had to write only good things. I saw for myself during this week that they make beautiful homes, including the super innovative I-House.

I will definitely try to be more open-minded in the future about things that I don't know about. I'm usually pleasantly surprised when I take time to learn about things.

Have a great week!

Only one more job to go!

-Kieley Best