Forklift Maker NACCO Adds 401 Jobs
By K.J. Williams
The Daily Reflector
November 9, 2010 - The Greenville facility of Cleveland-based forklift truck maker NACCO Materials Handling Group Inc. has added jobs in response to an improved economic outlook, a spokesman said Monday.
At the plants in Greenville and Berea, Ky., second shifts are starting up in painting and in some assembly lines to meet growth expectations and speed production. Altogether, the Greenville site on Martin Luther King Jr. Highway and the three other plants that manufacturer forklift trucks will add 401 jobs, and some unidentified locations will add a third shift, the company announced Monday.
The move stands in contrast to the company's announcement in late 2008 that it had begun laying off workers at the Greenville facility in response to declining demand for its products. At the time, the Greenville plant had about 1,100 employees, a spokesman said.
NACCO spokesman Brett Turner said Monday that he could not disclose the exact number of employees to be hired in Greenville.
“Most of them have already been hired,” he added.
He was unable to say whether any of the new hires were laid-off employees who had been called back to work.
“The main reason we're seeing it is the change in the economy,” Turner said of the hiring. “It looks like things are picking back up, and part of this is preparation. (It's) preparation for the uptick.”
Hiring also will take place at the company's manufacturing facilities in Sulligent, Ala., and at its location in Ramos Arizpe, Mexico.
Jonathan Dawley, the company's vice president of marketing, said in a news release that the company has withstood the recession and is ready to take part in an economic rebound.
“We aren't ready to say that the economy is totally out of the woods yet, but we feel that we are in a solid position to take advantage of the rebound that is occurring,” he said. “We are very happy to play our part in putting Americans back to work.”
Colin Wilson, chief operation officer and president of NMHG Americas, said in a news release that the company is ready to expand.
“NMHG is well positioned financially and with product and personnel to capture opportunities as the market continues to strengthen,” he said.
The company also is launching new product lines in phases.
NACCO Materials Handling Group is one of the world's largest forklift truck manufacturers.
Its product line includes forklift trucks for all types of uses from warehouses to large-capacity cargo and containers. Products are marketed under brand names including Hyster and Yale.
NACCO Materials Handling Group employs about 4,500 people worldwide and is a wholly owned subsidiary of international NACCO Industries Inc.
Contact K.J. Williams at kwilliams@reflector.com or (252) 329-9588
