Forest River Inc. announced the acquisition of certain assets of Battisti Customs Inc., a vehicle conversion company located in Elkhart, Ind.
Battisti Customs produces luxury conversions on multiples platforms including Mercedes Sprinter, Ford Transit and the Dodge ProMaster chassis. They also perform a variety of limo and specialty upfits for various bus manufacturers, including an exclusive agreement with Berkshire Coach. Their conversions include mobile offices, mobile medical, executive shuttles, day cruiser RVs, and luxury shuttle buses.
The company was formed in 2009 by Bill Battisti and Carl Hazzard, who have extensive experience engineering and crafting interior vehicle concepts. The expertise Battisti Customs brings makes for unlimited possibilities for Forest River dealers and their customers. To keep up with their growing product line, Battisti Customs will be moving from their current 30,000 square foot manufacturing facility to a new 60,000 square foot facility in Elkhart later this month.
“We are excited to welcome Battisti Customs to the Forest River family,” said David Wright, division president for Forest River. “The opportunities that Battisti brings to our dealers and their customers are enormous.”
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