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Pilgrim Rolls Out Composite Fifth-Wheel Lines
Bob Ashley
RV Business
Friday, June 27, 2008

Pilgrim's new Ultima Composilite fifth-wheel

Pilgrim International Inc., Middlebury, Ind., this week introduced the Ultima Composilite and Supra Composilite fifth-wheel series that are manufactured with a composite substrata that replaces luan and shaves hundreds of pounds off the weight of the unit.

The roof and floor of the coaches also are made with the CosmoLite composite from TekModo LLC, Elkhart, Ind.

"It is a 'green' product," said Pilgrim Chairman Dave Hoefer during the Ultima and Supra introduction to about 120 dealers and suppliers at the Spring Meadow Farms Golf Course in Middlebury. "Our ultimate goal is not just to do the shell - the roof and the sidewalls - but to have 75% of the unit made of composites, including the cabinetry, partition walls and furniture.''

Hoefer told RVBusiness that the primary benefits of using CosmoLite are twofold as formaldehyde emissions are reduced while tow-vehicle fuel mileage is increased because the unit is lighter. "For every thousand pounds that we can take out of the unit itself, it will save 9% on fuel," he said.

Because the fiber-reinforced thermoplastic CosmoLite is manufactured in 8-foot-wide seamless rolls instead of panels, Pilgrim enlisted Patrick Industries Inc., Elkhart, and Amerimax Building Products Inc., Plano, Texas, to devise a special bonding technique for Ultima's and Supra's interior and exterior walls.

Pilgrim has been using CosmoLite in flooring for the last year and a half, and intends to work with TekModo to develop a sidewall composite using Spectralite enhanced by DuPont that will provide a colorable Surlyn finish.

Production on the Ultima/Supra will begin in August, and the company intends to use Spectralite substrata in its Pilgrim, Cirrus, Legends and Open Road towables by the first of December.

"All of our branded nameplates will be composite," said Jerry Sell, vice president of product development and marketing.

Ultima Composilite, with a beige finish, and Supra Composilite, with a gun-metal gray exterior, will be available in four two- or three-slideout floorplans in 32- to 35-foot lengths with a base weight of 7,410 pounds. MSRP: $45,000.