Toyota Industrial Equipment Manufacturing Inc (TIEM) cut about 10% of the workforce at its plant near Columbus as a result of the economic downturn and lower demand.

TIEM is providing financial assistance and job placement help for the impacted employees numbering about 70.

A reduction in June 2009 involved about 120 TIEM positions (Forkliftaction.com News #416) with early retirements, voluntary departures and performance-based actions accounting for most of the cuts. Earlier in 2009, TIEM imposed seven non-production days on the workers.

Toyota Industries Corp of Kariya, Japan established the new subsidiary, TIEM, as a business unit in October 1988.

Manufacturing in Indiana began in May 1990 and, as of November 2009, had produced 350,000 forklifts. Operations occupy about 870,000 sqft (78,300 sm) of manufacturing and support space and, after the recent layoffs, employ about 630 people.