Toyota Material Handling, U.S.A., Inc. (TMHU), a full-line material handling solutions provider of forklifts and related equipment, will strengthen its workforce at its corporate headquarters in Columbus, IN creating up to 71 new high-wage jobs by 2019. TMHU, which currently employs 182 full-time associates, plans to primarily hire for salaried professionals working in a corporate environment.
TMHU relocated its headquarters from Irvine, CA, to Indiana in 2012 and invested $4.6 million to expand the Columbus facility. Since then, the company has added 79 new positions in Indiana and is now investing in employee-focused initiatives to further strengthen its workforce. Toyota recently constructed a new restaurant-style dining hall, and is now building a new wellness center, the Toyota Recreational Complex, to provide more health and wellness opportunities to its employees through a basketball court, track, fitness equipment and group exercise classes.
“Relocating TMHU’s headquarters to Columbus was a great move for us,” said Tracy Stachniak, director of human resources and training and development at TMHU. “Indiana offers a robust economy, Midwest hospitality and an attractive overall lifestyle. It’s a great place to work and live.”
TMHU is physically connected to Toyota Industrial Equipment Mfg. Inc., a zero-landfill manufacturing facility where the majority of Toyota forklifts sold in North America are built. Both operations as well as two additional Toyota sister companies make up Toyota’s 126-acre campus in Columbus, which employs a network of more than 1,400 Hoosiers.
Founded in 1967, TMHU is the material handling division of its sister company, Toyota Industrial Equipment Manufacturing (TIEM). A subsidiary of Japan-based Toyota Industries Corporation, the company manufactures and distributes forklifts, reach trucks, order pickers, pallet jacks, tow tractors and AGVs. TMHU celebrated its 25th anniversary of operating in Indiana just last year, after locating its first North American forklift manufacturing facility in Columbus in 1990.
The Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) offered TMHU up to $100,000 in performance-based training grants based on the company’s job creation plans. In August, the city of Columbus approved a tax abatement in support of a separate $3 million investment by TIEM.
“Indiana’s economy is built for growing companies like TMHU,” said Governor Mike Pence. “TMHU chose to bring its headquarters here as our state was developing one of the nation’s top climates for job creation, putting Hoosiers at the helm of one of the top businesses in the heavy equipment industry. Today, as TMHU announces that it is adding even more high-wage jobs for Hoosiers, Indiana stands as one of the top-ranked economies in the nation.”
The announcement continues a trend of investments from across the Toyota brand of companies in Indiana. In May, Lt. Governor Eric Holcomb joined executives at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana in Princeton – where it has announced expansions three of the last four years – to celebrate the automaker’s 20th anniversary of assembling cars in southwest Indiana. And in July, auto supplier Toyota Boshoku Indiana announced plans to expand in Indiana, adding 160 new jobs in Princeton this year to produce vehicle seats and doors for the new Toyota Highlander.
Relocating or Expanding Your Business In Indiana
Considering Indiana for your company’s relocation or expansion project? Check out Business Facilities’ Indiana Incentives and Workforce Development Guide.
