257: Building a System Built Factory in the Colorado Mountains
Charlie Chupp, Founder and CEO of Fading West Development, and Matt McMullen, AOC Executive Director, join us for episode 257 of Art of Construction. As the former CEO of Load King Manufacturing in Florida, Charlie spent 20 years manufacturing and general contracting over 4,000 food service stores across the US and Canada. With clients such as Starbucks, Einstein Bros Bakery, Safeway, Kroger and others, Load King delivered and installed turnkey, off-site built stores using systems that reduced standard times to open by over half. Through the application of Toyota’s Production System, commonly called “Lean” in the US, Fading West is focused on bringing the same speed and value to the national housing crisis with a particular focus on essential workforce buyers. They recently opened their brand new, 110,000 square foot state-of-the-art housing manufacturing facility in Buena Vista, Colorado. Recently named as one of Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential Companies of 2022, Fading West is making waves in the industry. Join Devon, Matt and Charlie as they discuss the backstory behind Buena Vista's new System Built factory, the manufacturing philosophies of Fading West, and how System Built homes may be the key to solving Colorado's, and the country's, incredible housing shortage.