Many team members at Thompson & Johnson

Family-owned Thompson & Johnson Equipment Co Inc is celebrating its 60th year of providing forklifts, auxiliary equipment and other materials handling services.

The CenterState Corporation for Economic Opportunity's ambassadors' segment recognised the firm's milestone by presenting a certificate. CenterState is a 12-county business leadership and economic development organisation.

Thompson & Johnson plans to hold a celebratory party and invite employees' partners.

Lawrence Thompson and George Johnson founded the company in 1954. It now has more than 1,000 customers, 125 employees with average tenure of 11 years, and operates from four locations in upstate regions of New York.

David Schneckenburger is president and Chip Gorham is executive vice president. Both are Johnson's sons in law.

Thompson & Johnson is approaching annual sales of USD40 million from its principal end markets in warehousing, distribution and manufacturing.

Its headquarters are in East Syracuse and there are branches in Binghamton, Albany and Horseheads, near Elmira. Services extend to customers in western Vermont and Massachusetts and north-eastern Pennsylvania. The Horseheads branch was established in 1959, Binghamton in 1967 and Albany in 1991.

By the 1970s, the firm occupied 19,000 sqft. (1,765 sqm) on 10 acres in East Syracuse. Now the main facility has 45,000 sqft. (4,181 sqm) plus a 12,000 sqft. (1,115 sqm) warehouse.

Thompson & Johnson began representing Clark forklifts in 1954, Bobcat excavators and skid-steer loaders in 1969, Toyota forklifts in 1991 and Crown forklifts in 2000.

The firm also handles Sellick, Drexel, Bendi and Hoist materials-handling equipment; Nilfisk-Advance sweepers and scrubbers; Hawker industrial batteries and chargers; Bandit walk-behind forklifts; Cushman utility vehicles; and Universal horizontal directional drills.