WALESBORO — Officials with Toyota Material Handling were joined by local and state officials and others Wednesday morning for a groundbreaking ceremony for a nearly $100 million expansion project for the production of electric-powered forklifts.

The new 295,000-square-foot manufacturing plant will lead to at least 85 new jobs, paying an average of $28.88 an hour. The company presently has a workforce of 1,883 at Walesboro making forklifts powered by a variety of fuels including gasoline, diesel and LP gas.

Construction of the new plant at 5559 Inwood Drive is projected to be complete in 2026.

The purpose of the expansion project is to meet the shift in the market toward electric products.

Brett Wood, TMH president and CEO of Toyota North America; Tony Miller, TMH senior vice president of operations, engineering and strategic planning; and Gov. Eric Holcomb spoke during the ceremony at the existing plant about what this day means to them and the importance of Toyota in the community.

“It takes a village,” Wood told those gathered for the occasion.

He also discussed his favorite subject — forklifts. The three that were located behind his spot on the podium were a model from 1967 that was the first forklift sold by Toyota in the country; one from 2017; and another that was built in 2020 on Veteran’s Day.

“It pays tribute to military heroes, past and present,” Wood said. That forklift features a camouflage paint scheme with the seals of the American military branches on its mast. On the back of its counterweight, the names of about 50 TMH employees who are veterans are engraved.

Wood said Oxford Economics conducted a study shows that 10% of the forklift industry’s workforce consists of veterans, more than any other industry.

Wood also talked about the importance of forklifts with some other numbers.

He said TMH makes more than 170 forklifts a day. Globally, he said two million forklifts are sold every year and, in the U.S. there are roughly four billion drivers who operate forklifts daily.

The move to electric may not be booming in the automotive sector right now as electric cars only make up 7% of total cars on the road, but for forklifts, that number is about 65%, he said.

“At Toyota, we will always be driven by what is best for our customers,” Miller said. “Electric products are more popular than ever.”

Miller said this investment journey started two years ago, when he was tasked to lead Toyota’s North American manufacturing strategy. They concluded the new plant was the next necessary step.

“We evaluated multiple locations for the expansion … ,” Miller said. “During our evaluation, it became clear Columbus was the ideal location for this investment.”

Part of the reason why Columbus was selected was Indiana’s proven track record of supporting business expansion, Miller said.

He also recognized and thanked the many people that were part of the expansion process before closing his speech.

That list included fellow Toyota members and members of Raymond Corp. and Bastian Solutions, sister corporations of Toyota Materials Handling, the Columbus Economic Development Commission, the Bartholomew County Plan Commission, the Columbus City Council and other agencies involved in the process.

“Your support of Toyota through this process was unwavering and overwhelming,” Miller said. “Each of you demonstrated why Columbus is such a great place to do business and to call home.”

Holcomb apologized for “crashing [the] party,” and expressed his appreciation and thanks for those involved in the project.

He said he was in a sentimental phase of his time as governor, counting down the 5,400 hours remaining of his term which ends Dec. 31.

“I just love seeing folks who don’t shy away from change,” Holcomb said. “Folks who have determined to build a team [to] steer our state, […] into the future to determine what their destinies will be.”

Holcomb said when he spoke about his remaining time as governor, it was more than sentimentalism, but a to-do list.

“I will be focused on community development, workforce development and economic development,” he said.

Holcomb gave credit not only to Toyota for its accomplishments, but the company’s ethics surrounding their focus on the people and the opportunities available to all types of people.

“They view everything through the lens of the family,” he said.

Holcomb said he attends groundbreakings and takes many trips around the country and the world to prove he is serious about his job, to those inside and outside of the country.

“The world is run by those who show up,” he said. “And I’m giddy when I learn, wherever I go, that it’s been a long time since the governor’s been here.”

He recognized Toyota’s overall significance to the community in not just Bartholomew County, but Indiana as a whole, and how important it is for him to show up to events like these.

Wood wrapped up the speeches by saying that they would ‘lift’ Toyota to new heights.

TMH Toyota Brand Ambassador Thomas Lego then gave some housekeeping items at the podium before the members of the audience were guided on a short tour toward the facility’s new location, to get a glimpse of how forklifts are made.

Ceremonially, the dignitaries and senior staff present took turns standing under a sign and posing with shovels in groups, digging into dirt at the site.

Over the course of 34 years, Toyota has invested nearly $400 million in more than 15 expansions. Once the new factory is complete, Toyota’s Columbus operations will reach nearly 1.8 million square feet, making it more than six times larger than the 280,000 square-foot facility initially opened in 1990.