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Beyond Staffing: How FourA Constructs Becomes Part of the Factory Floor

Writer: Audree Grubesic
Audree Grubesic
12 minutes ago
7 min read

Getting workers through the doors of a factory is one challenge. Creating a workforce that can learn, adapt, work alongside an existing team, and contribute to long-term production is something entirely different. 


In Part 1 of Offsite Dirt Network's conversation with Brian Bogert and Trey Shelton of FourA Constructs, we explored the company's approach to "process labor" and why modular manufacturers may need to rethink the traditional conversation around skilled labor. 


Part 2 takes that conversation further. Because once you've found the people, the next question becomes: How do you turn those people into an effective part of the factory? 

For FourA Constructs, the answer involves much more than placing workers. It means developing people, understanding factory operations, working alongside existing employees, identifying opportunities for improvement, and ultimately becoming part of the operation itself. 



Creating Opportunities to Learn and Advance 


For workers transitioning from traditional stick-built construction into a factory environment, the change can require some adjustment. Instead of moving across a traditional jobsite, workers may initially find themselves performing a repeatable task within a specific production station. But that doesn't mean their development stops there. 

As workers become familiar with the factory, they may have opportunities to move from framing into plumbing or other areas of the production process, developing additional skills along the way. FourA Constructs also emphasizes advancement from within its existing workforce. 


Brian explained that the company is constantly looking for its next leader—someone who can be developed and given additional responsibility. That means encouraging workers to continue learning, educating themselves, and becoming stronger contributors to the team. 


Building a Team Instead of Individual Stations 


Development isn't only about learning another trade or production station. It's also about how workers treat the people around them. When a bottleneck occurs or someone is struggling to learn a task, Brian described an environment where workers are encouraged to help rather than criticize.


Instead of calling someone out for falling behind, the goal is to step in, teach them, support them, and help that person become a stronger part of the overall process. That's an important distinction in a production environment. 


A factory isn't simply a collection of individual employees completing isolated tasks. Each station contributes to what happens next. When workers begin thinking as partners in that process, the entire production floor can benefit. 


Experience Across Different Types of Offsite Factories 


No two factories are exactly alike. Over nearly a decade, FourA Constructs has worked across a wide range of offsite manufacturing environments—from manufactured housing facilities to modular and volumetric factories. 


Their experience includes both wood-frame and light-gauge steel construction, with Trey noting that while much of their earlier work was predominantly wood, the company has increasingly moved into light-gauge steel facilities in recent years. That variety matters because every factory comes with its own processes, people, challenges, and production goals. The strategy can't simply be copied and pasted from one facility to another. It has to begin with understanding the factory in front of you. 



Ninety Workers. Two Weeks. One Critical Project. 


One example from the conversation demonstrates just how quickly workforce needs can change. While attending an offsite construction event in Pittsburgh, Trey was approached by someone who needed approximately 90 workers in Colorado—and needed them quickly. 


Within two weeks, FourA Constructs had mobilized 90 workers from the East Coast to Colorado. They arrived outfitted with boots and tool belts and were ready to work on the factory floor. According to Trey, that workforce helped the facility fulfill a client project within roughly three weeks that it otherwise would not have been able to complete. 

What began as an urgent workforce need turned into a relationship that continued for years. For FourA Constructs, it also became a model they would later repeat—demonstrating the ability to mobilize a workforce across the country when factories face significant production demands. 


Before Making Changes, Watch the Factory Work 


Speed matters when labor is urgently needed. But once inside a factory, Brian emphasized something much more deliberate: Observe first. During an initial factory visit, one of his priorities is safety. Are workers following appropriate safety practices? Is scaffolding being used correctly? Are people tying off where required? Making sure everyone goes home safely at the end of the day comes first.


From there, the team watches. Brian described essentially standing back and observing how the factory operates before determining the best way to integrate FourA Constructs' workforce. 


How does work move through the plant? 

Where are the challenges? 

How do people interact? 

Where can additional labor be inserted most effectively? 


Those observations become part of the strategy. 


Adding Workers Can Change the Existing Workforce 


Bringing a new workforce into an established factory changes more than the number of people on the production floor. It can change the energy, relationships, and even the way existing employees view their own roles. Brian shared that when FourA Constructs first enters a facility, there can naturally be some uncertainty among the existing W-2 employees. People may wonder why the new workers are there, what it means for their jobs, and whether they are eventually going to be replaced. 


That uncertainty can initially create an interesting shift in production. Brian has seen existing employees become more motivated, focused, and productive when the additional workforce first arrives. However, that initial reaction doesn't necessarily last. Once people realize the FourA Constructs team isn't there to replace them, everyone becomes more comfortable and some of the old habits can begin to return. This is where the more important work begins, because sustainable improvement can't be built around fear or competition. 


The real opportunity is getting everyone working together. Bringing additional labor into a factory isn't simply about filling positions or increasing production capacity; it's about integrating people into an existing operation. FourA Constructs wants its workforce working side by side with the factory's employees, learning the processes, understanding expectations, sharing knowledge, and building trust. Over time, the distinction between the two groups should become less important. The goal is not to have "our workers" and "their workers." The goal is to create one production team working toward the same outcome. 


Why FourA Constructs Doesn't Call Itself a Consultant 


This approach also helps explain why FourA Constructs doesn't position itself as a traditional consulting company. Consultants can bring tremendous value to manufacturing operations by evaluating production, developing standard operating procedures, improving station layouts, identifying inefficiencies, and recommending operational changes. FourA Constructs, however,


sees its role differently because its team isn't only evaluating what happens on the production floor from the outside. 


Brian and Trey described an approach that puts their team directly inside the operation. They work alongside supervisors, managers, skilled workers, and the factory's existing W-2 employees. That proximity allows them to see what is actually happening during production, understand where challenges are occurring, and participate in solving those challenges with the people doing the work every day. Instead of handing leadership a list of recommendations and walking away, they become involved in helping those changes take hold. 


That integration is an important part of the FourA Constructs model. They don't want their workforce separated from the rest of the facility or viewed as an outside labor group that simply arrived to complete a contract. They want their people to become a trusted part of the operation, contribute to the culture, and help the entire factory become stronger. That's why the word partner is important to them. The relationship isn't only about providing workers or offering advice; it's about becoming part of the team and working together toward better production, stronger processes, and long-term success. 



What Does Long-Term Factory Success Look Like? 


Trey described a successful factory as a well-oiled machine, and that is a good way to think about it. No single person, workforce provider, or process can create success on its own. A factory works because many different pieces come together every day—leadership, production teams, supervisors, outside partners, vendors, suppliers, and the people responsible for keeping projects and materials moving. 


For FourA Constructs, the goal is to become a trusted part of that larger operation. That happens when factory leadership welcomes their team, existing employees begin working alongside them, and everyone starts moving toward the same production goals. Over time, relationships develop, processes become more aligned, and the distinction between the factory's workforce and the FourA Constructs workforce becomes less important. They aren't there to operate on the sidelines; they are there to become part of the team. 


After nearly a decade of working inside offsite manufacturing facilities, that philosophy continues to shape how FourA Constructs approaches each factory. They understand that solving a labor challenge isn't simply about finding enough people to fill open positions. Putting more people on a production floor doesn't automatically make a factory more productive. 


Long-term success comes from having the right people in the right roles, creating processes that people can actually follow, developing relationships between teams, and building enough trust that everyone can work toward the same outcome. When those pieces begin working together, the conversation moves beyond simply solving a labor shortage. It becomes about building a stronger operation that can keep production moving today while creating a better foundation for what's next.


FAQs 

1. What does FourA Constructs look for during its first visit to a factory? 

Safety is one of the first priorities. The team also observes how the factory operates, how work moves through production, and where its workforce could be strategically integrated. Rather than immediately making changes, Brian described watching the operation first and using those observations to develop a plan. 


2. Does FourA Constructs only work in wood-frame modular factories? 

No. Trey described experience across manufactured housing, modular and volumetric construction, as well as both wood-frame and light-gauge steel facilities. While much of the company's earlier experience was in wood construction, it has expanded into more light-gauge steel factories in recent years. 


3. How is FourA Constructs different from a traditional factory consultant? 

FourA Constructs does not describe itself as a consulting company. Its approach is centered on becoming an operational partner. Its leadership, supervisors, managers, and workers are physically present on the factory floor and work alongside the facility's existing workforce rather than only evaluating operations and providing recommendations. 


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