We often see Pioneer Campers on-the-road or set up in remote locations around regional Australia. Their popularity among the more adventurous travellers is well known and understandable, given Pioneer Campers have been manufactured in Australia for over 20 years!
You can’t miss their eye-catching designs and upon closer inspection, the quality of construction and first class inclusions. These are excellent campers, built to handle the toughest of Australian conditions.
Actco-Pickering Metal Industries acquired Pioneer Campers in 2011 and moved camper manufacture from Perth to their factory in Dandenong, Victoria. They have been supplying quality componentry and turnkey solutions to the Defence and rail sectors for over 30 years. An impressive achievement. Actco-Pickering’s extensive manufacturing and design experience has resulted in exciting new models being added to the Pioneer Camper range, increasing their popularity around Australia.
Recently we were given a tour of the Actco-Pickering factory and Pioneer Camper’s head office in Victoria. Even their location instils confidence - Quality Drive, Dandenong! camper, recentlyMitchell We were very excited and keen to see the manufacturing process behind their much talked about awarded ‘Camper trailer of the Year’ for 2017 by Camper Trailer Australia.
Pioneer Campers are 100% Australian made. The chassis and body of each camper are manufactured ‘in-house’. Only top quality, locally sourced components (like Redarc electronics) are used in the construction of their range of robust – go anywhere hardtop/hard-floor campers. They use a local supplier for their canvas which is made to order and comes with a 5-year warranty. Full engineering compliance meets strenuous Australian standards. The factory has a metal laser cutter that runs 24 hours a day - computer programmed to ensure absolute accuracy.
Pioneer Campers would like to know how the customer is going to use their camper and will make it according to their requirements - providing basic off-road to rough-terrain options. They can vary the suspension setup to suit your vehicle and configure your camper for comfort and durability.
Actco-Pickering provides a range of options for their Pioneer Campers, including extra kitchen space and storage. In fact, they can provide the largest storage of any camper trailer in Australia. Diesel or gas heating, not a problem for the Mitchell. An air conditioner can also be included, protected by a bespoke cover to keep the unit safe during river crossings. They install DC-AC inverters to cope with a range of electrical appliances – merely tell them what appliances you plan to use.
The team at Actco-Pickering are enthusiastic and more than willing to help their customers design their dream camper. To make things easy, the Mitchell comes with a 120-litre stainless steel, baffled water tank with an option to include an additional 60-litre auxiliary tank. A Truma Gas Hot water system supplies your hot water to a shower and the kitchen sink. A good night’s sleep is assured with a full-size innerspring queen mattress sitting on a slatted bed which promotes air circulation, so you don’t get too hot at night. There is also a fully equipped stainless steel roll out kitchen including a swing away two burner stove, slide out prep tray, cutlery drawer and two drawer pantry with the top drawer uniquely accessible from both inside and outside.
The Pioneer Campers staff can customise a camper to suit your needs. During our visit, they were working on a unique modification to cater for the needs of an adventurer who was in a wheelchair. A swivel seat with hydraulic lifter was being installed so that the customer could move onto a seat at the lower level and then utilise the hydraulic lift to reach bed level.
The Actco-Pickering factory has recently installed a new water testing facility for the Pioneer Campers. We witnessed a new camper being thoroughly water tested prior to delivery. The campers are tested while packed and ready for travel, and then at all stages of opening to ensure the canvas and windows are fully sealed. This involves at least five levels of testing, which can take a full day to complete. Quality assurance is paramount.
During our tour, we witnessed a custom-made bike rack being developed for the Mitchell camper – sturdy enough for off-road travel with fold-down capability enabling easy access to storage containers on the drawbar.
The Actco-Pickering factory has two dedicated shifts to ensure DIFOT – ‘Delivery In Full and On Time’. Each station completes a stage of manufacture. An overhead crane is used to move the stock to the next area. It takes about ten weeks to complete a trailer to individual specifications.
Be sure to visit the on-site showroom dedicated to the Pioneer Campers. Actco-Pickering even carries a fleet of campers available for hire, the perfect way to trial a camper before purchase. You can buy directly from the factory or one of their dealers around Australia.
Actco-Pickering staff are also happy to organise a service for your Pioneer camper, at which time additional options and features can be added. Outstanding service!
We had a fascinating afternoon. Special thanks go to Jane Riley the National Sales & Marketing Manager for Actco-Pickering Metal Industries for her time and information provided on tour. It was an opportunity to talk to a manufacturer who is passionate about quality and customer satisfaction.
Actco-Pickering staff continually test the Pioneer campers in the outback. They have a passion for adventure, a trait which can be seen in the design and manufacture of these fantastic campers.