Toyota Industries Corporation Australia (TICA) has announced that it has been appointed as Raymond Corporation's new forklift distributor for Australia and New Zealand.

TICA's Toyota Industrial Equipment dealer network will replace Raymond Australia Pty Ltd in distributing the products nationally but WA Fork Trucks(WAF) will continue to distribute in Western Australia.

TICA senior manager Nicholas Shepherd said the new arrangement enabled the company to better meet its customers' needs.

"The opportunity was there for TICA to gain the Raymond franchise in Australia and, by doing so, increase TICA's market representation to become a full materials handling solution provider for its wide customer base," he said.

WAF is the Raymond forklift distributor in Western Australia because of a previous agreement with Raymond.

"They (WAF) will retain distribution rights in Western Australia," Shepherd said.

He would not comment on whether TICA would take over distribution rights in Western Australia when WAF's agreement with Raymond expired.

"At this point in time it is for WAF to be our representative in Western Australia for sales and service of Raymond products," he said.