I read your post. Frankly, I don't really understand your point. What line of work is your wife in? What causes her to go to a production plant once every two years? It sounds like she stays at the plant for a few days. What is she doing there? Your last sentence is also confusing. What do you mean by "it's quite a different world here"?

I would caution you that hourly workers in plants are dumb like foxes. They may not be educated, but they are quite savy. Many times they say what they know you want to hear. When you leave, they say what they wanted to say, but didn't because of who they are talking to. I make this statement based on many years managing in a production plant environment.

Steve