# Churchill's Coming Home

**Source:** Pinball News Website  
**Type:** article  
**Published:** 2002-01-01  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.pinballnews.com/news/churchill.html

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## Analysis

Churchill Cabinet Company, a long-established cabinet manufacturer for Stern Pinball, is launching its own home-market pinball machine called 'Vacation America.' The game uses innovative printed circuit board assembly to reduce manufacturing labor from 40-50 hours to 10 hours, enabling affordable pricing at approximately half the cost of commercial machines. The design team includes legendary pinball designer Steve Kordek and original designer John Trudeau, with artwork by classic Bally/Data East/Sega artist Paul Faris.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Churchill Cabinet Company has been in business since 1904 and was acquired by Roger Duba close to 30 years ago — _Direct quote from Doug Duba in the article_
- [HIGH] Churchill currently manufactures all cabinets and finished playfields for Stern Pinball — _Opening paragraph and Doug Duba's statement_
- [HIGH] Vacation America uses printed circuit boards instead of traditional wire harnesses, reducing assembly time from 40-50 hours to approximately 10 hours — _Detailed explanation by Doug Duba about the patented assembly method_
- [HIGH] Steve Kordek finished the playfield design that John Trudeau started after Trudeau relocated to Iowa — _Direct statement about design process handoff_
- [HIGH] Vacation America will retail for approximately one half the price of a current commercial pinball machine — _Closing paragraph of article_
- [HIGH] The game is designed for home market only with no coin slot and warranty void if coin mechanism added — _Opening section describing product positioning_
- [HIGH] Churchill Cabinet operates two factories totaling approximately 250,000 square feet of space — _Doug Duba's quote about facilities_

### Notable Quotes

> "This type of circuit board construction is only unusual in the pinball industry. If you open up your TV you won't find very much wire … everyone has gone to the printed circuit board but pinball has stayed away from that."
> — **Doug Duba, Churchill Cabinet Company**, N/A
> _Articulates the core innovation: applying standard electronics manufacturing practices to pinball to reduce cost and labor_

> "Steve is amazing. He made a number of little adjustments to the game that made major differences. He would come in, play the whitewood and say, 'This is off 0.15 inches.' We'd build up another playfield that incorporated his changes and find that he was right on! The guy would just know. It was incredible."
> — **Doug Duba**, N/A
> _Demonstrates Steve Kordek's legendary design intuition and precision; emphasizes quality despite cost reduction strategy_

> "We saw a strong demand for used pinball machines. A number of our consumer customers have tried selling used reconditioned pinball machines and have had poor luck in that most pinball machines, by the time they hit the consumer market, are spent."
> — **Doug Duba**, N/A
> _Explains market motivation for new affordable home machine: used pinball market failure creates opportunity_

> "The earlier prototypes we built with full wire harnesses were taking us close to 40-50 hours to put together. We've cut that down to about 10 hours with our patient pending printed circuit board assembly."
> — **Doug Duba**, N/A
> _Quantifies the labor reduction achievement and notes patent protection strategy_

> "We eliminated a lot of labour by eliminating a good percentage of the wire harness used in the game. We replaced it by utilising printed circuit boards."
> — **Doug Duba**, N/A
> _Core cost-reduction strategy explanation_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Churchill Cabinet Company | company | Long-established cabinet manufacturer founded in 1904, acquired by Roger Duba ~30 years prior to 2002, currently manufactures cabinets/playfields for Stern Pinball, launching Vacation America home pinball game |
| Doug Duba | person | Leader of Churchill Cabinet Company, son of Roger Duba, managing the Vacation America pinball project |
| Roger Duba | person | Acquired Churchill Cabinet Company approximately 30 years before 2002, Doug Duba's father |
| Chicago Gaming | company | Second factory/division of Churchill Cabinet Company, responsible for selling Vacation America through standing customer outlets |
| Vacation America | game | New home-market pinball machine by Churchill/Chicago Gaming; cross-country travel theme; uses innovative PCB assembly; estimated to retail at half commercial game price |
| Steve Kordek | person | Pinball legend who completed playfield design and rules refinement for Vacation America after John Trudeau relocated |
| John Trudeau | person | Pinball game designer credited with 30+ games at Gottlieb and Williams (1982-1996); began Vacation America design but relocated to Iowa before completion |
| Paul Faris | person | Classic Bally/Data East/Sega pinball artist hired to create artwork/visual personality for Vacation America |
| Harold Washington | person | Former Alvin G. pinball designer who designed processor and PC boards for Vacation America |
| Jeff Powell | person | Capcom pinball sound/music designer who supplied sounds and music for Vacation America |
| Ken Krone | person | Motorola programmer who contributed programming talents to Vacation America |
| Stern Pinball | company | Major pinball manufacturer for which Churchill Cabinet currently manufactures all cabinets and finished playfields |
| Jim Schelberg | person | Editor of PinGame Journal who authored this special report on Vacation America |
| Gottlieb | company | Historical pinball manufacturer where John Trudeau designed games from 1982-1996 |
| Williams | company | Historical pinball manufacturer where John Trudeau designed games from 1982-1996 |
| Alvin G. | company | Pinball manufacturer; Harold Washington previously worked there as designer |
| Capcom | company | Video game/arcade company; Jeff Powell previously worked on pinball projects for them |
| Bally | company | Historical pinball manufacturer; artist Paul Faris worked for Bally/Data East/Sega |
| Data East | company | Arcade/pinball company; Paul Faris worked for Data East on pinball artwork |
| Sega | company | Arcade/entertainment company; Paul Faris worked for Sega on pinball artwork |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Manufacturing Innovation, Home Market Strategy, Cost Reduction through Design, Product Design and Talent
- **Secondary:** Distribution Strategy, Service and Maintainability, Market Entry by Cabinet Manufacturer

### Sentiment

**Positive** (0.85) — Article is enthusiastic about the innovation and market opportunity. Language emphasizes legitimacy of effort, quality of talent involved, and feasibility of the product. Doug Duba's statements convey confidence and clear strategic thinking. Tone is one of genuine excitement about a new entrant with credible backing.

### Signals

- **[business_signal]** Established cabinet manufacturer (Churchill) entering pinball market as home consumer product, leveraging existing manufacturing expertise and retail distribution relationships (confidence: high) — Article opening and Doug Duba's explanation of business motivation and customer demand driving product decision
- **[community_signal]** Recruitment of legendary designer Steve Kordek to validate and refine design quality despite cost-reduction manufacturing approach (confidence: high) — Doug Duba's account of Kordek's precision and impact; emphasis on his legendary status and ability to identify micro-adjustments (0.15 inches) with major impact
- **[design_philosophy]** Focus on casual/average player appeal rather than complexity; cross-country travel theme with milestone-based progression; emphasis on accessibility (confidence: high) — Article states: 'the game was aimed at the average, casual player' and describes Vacation America mechanics as cross-country trip with obstacles and city milestones
- **[market_signal]** Affordable home pinball pricing strategy targeting consumers unable to access or afford commercial machines; estimated retail approximately 50% of commercial game cost (confidence: high) — Closing paragraph stating estimated retail price at half commercial pinball machine cost; strategic positioning for home market segment
- **[personnel_signal]** John Trudeau began Vacation America design but relocated to Iowa; Steve Kordek took over design completion and refinement (confidence: high) — Direct statement: 'John was offered a job in Iowa and decided to relocate. This left Chicago Gaming without a designer until the ever-present pinball legend, Steve Kordek agreed to help out.'
- **[announcement]** Official announcement of Vacation America pinball machine with full design team, manufacturing details, and market strategy (confidence: high) — Comprehensive article with direct quotes from Doug Duba covering design process, manufacturing innovation, talent, and go-to-market plan
- **[technology_signal]** Churchill Cabinet applying printed circuit board assembly (standard in consumer electronics) to pinball manufacturing, replacing traditional wire harnesses to reduce labor costs and assembly time (confidence: high) — Detailed technical explanation of PCB-based assembly reducing build time from 40-50 hours to 10 hours, with patent pending protection

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## Transcript

Story
dated 21st November, 2002.

We've
heard numerous tales of new companies producing pinball games, but
this time it looks like they're serious. But why would a company which
produces cabinets for Stern Pinball go head-to-head with one of their
customers, or are there some important differences to their game?

Editor
of the PinGame Journal,
Jim Schelberg brings us this special report:

Vacation America … A new pinball … A new pinball company!
Wow. The game is the “child” of Churchill Cabinet’s
Doug Duba. Churchill has supplied cabinets for a number of pinball
manufacturers though out its history and currently makes all the cabinets
and finished playfields for Stern Pinball. But, how can this
be? The answer is that this game is aimed in a different direction.
This pinball is meant for the home market only. There

is no coin slot in the door. It’s not meant for commercial
use … in fact, if you somehow add a coin slot to the door it
will void the warrantee!

Doug Duba was kind enough to speak to us to get the scoop on this
very interesting product.

“Churchill Cabinet Company has been in business since 1904,”
Doug explained. “My father, Roger Duba, acquired it close to
30 years ago and started building cabinetry for the coin-op industry.
Over a period of time we integrated and started doing cabinet assembly
and then construction and game assembly. Close to 30 years later we’re
still doing the same thing. We’ve grown a bit and now have a
quarter million square feet of space between two factories one of
which is called Churchill Cabinet Company and the other is called
Chicago Gaming."

“We currently are contract manufacturers for the coin-op industry
which accounts for about 50% of our business. The other half is proprietary
consumer products like foosball, air hockey and bumper pool. The home
pinball machine is really a marriage of the two sides of the business.
We took the expertise we developed in contract manufacturing and coupled
that with our presence in the consumer industry."

“We saw a strong demand for used pinball machines. A number of
our consumer

customers have tried selling used reconditioned pinball machines and
have had poor luck in that most pinball machines, by the time they
hit the consumer market, are spent. So our customer base was really
asking for an affordable, coin-op calibre, pinball machine.”

The
project began, Doug told me, with their consumer customers talking
about the feasibility of making a new pingame to sell instead of trying
to fix older games. They knew Churchill made cabinets for Stern and
wanted to explore the possibility of them going all the way to create
a less expensive new game for the home market. The challenge was to
make a game to sell for substantially less than a commercial machine,
but to make it able to hold its own against those same coin-op games
when it came to quality and player appeal.

“For years we have been building playfields and cabinets so we
had a lot of experience in that area. We then took a close look at
what has historically done in pinball and discovered that the components
could be sourced more affordably in higher volume off shore. But that
was not enough to take a significant amount of money out of the product.
So we looked further and discovered that a huge percentage of the
total cost of a pinball machine is labour. We eliminated a lot of
labour by eliminating a good percentage of the wire harness used in
the game.

We
replaced it by utilising printed circuit boards. There is quite
a lot of wire in modern pinball machines but in our game we
have it down to where it’s almost purely ribbon cable plugs
into printed circuit boards."

“The earlier prototypes we built with full wire harnesses
were taking us close to 40-50 hours to put together. We’ve
cut that down to about 10 hours with our patient pending printed
circuit board assembly.

When
you look at the underside of our playfield you’ll find
three large printed circuit boards. On those boards the rollover
switches are mounted, lights are mounted, and there are a series
of connectors that connect other components like jet bumpers
and slingshots.

These
components which are made overseas, each have a cable that plugs
into the circuit board.”

Doug explained that the company has
spent much of its time and energy creating a system to enable the
average homeowner to fix their game, including the replacement of
a faulty component with a new one. Extensive diagnostic software was
created to identify the location of a problem. Once that component
is identified (with the help of tech support by telephone if needed)
it, or any other component in the game, can be replaced by removing
not more than four screws and one plug. This process was tested by
Doug’s wife. When she successfully read the manual, opened the
machine and replaced a faulty pop bumper, he knew the system worked.

“This type of circuit board construction is only unusual in the
pinball industry. If you open up your TV you won’t find very
much wire … everyone has gone to the printed circuit board but
pinball has stayed away from that. This product is an example of a
common electronic construction method applied to pinball.”

For the design areas of the game the company went to known and experienced
pinball people to create the actual game and the visual package that
surrounds it. The design process was begun about 18 months ago by
game designer, John Trudeau. John is credited with designing over
30 games at Gottlieb and then Williams from 1982 through 1996. As
the playfield developed, John was offered a job in Iowa and decided
to relocate. This left Chicago Gaming without a designer until the
ever-present pinball legend, Steve Kordek agreed to help out. Steve
actually finished the design process

John had started. Steve fleshed out the rules, refined shots and followed
the game through the tweaking process right into the pre-production
stage it is in now. Doug remembers how amazed he was at the knowledge
and design skill Steve showed.

“Steve is amazing. He made a number of little adjustments to
the game that made major differences. It really made me appreciate
the design process. He would come in, play the whitewood and say,
‘This is off 0.15 inches.’ We’d build up another playfield
that incorporated his changes and find that he was right on! The guy
would just know. It was incredible.”

As the name implies, the game takes the player on a cross-country
trip presenting obstacles to overcome before arriving at each city.
When you reach the West Coast, it’s time to come back. Although
completing the entire trip is difficult, the game was aimed at the
average, casual player. Art work is a very important part of making
a game attractive to consumers as well as players. CG chose the classic
Bally/Data East/Sega pinball artist Paul Faris to create the visual
personality of Vacation America.

Credits
for the creation of this game are rounded out by a mixture of pinball
and

non-pinball people. Former Alvin G. pinball’s Harold Washington
designed the processor and PC boards, Capcom pinball’s Jeff Powell
supplied the sounds and music and Motorola’s Ken Crone contributed
his programming talents to the project.

The game is slated to be sold through commercial, public outlets.
Chicago Gaming plans to allow their standing customers to sell the
“first batch” along with their foosball and air hockey tables.
It was shown at the Billiards Congress of America (BCA) which is a
recreation room product show and it was very well received. Many of
Chicago Gaming’s customers attend that show and company wanted
to give them the first view and chance to buy the new game. However,
talks are in progress as we speak with well known retail outlets.
The game is estimated to retail in stores for approximately

one half the price of a current commercial pin.

In addition, Doug says the company is about six months away from starting
on another model. This could get interesting!.

Article
and pictures courtesy Jim Schelberg at the PinGame
Journal.

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©
Pinball News 2002

_(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 257243b4-ed9f-4bd7-989c-ede7a3c68e3a*