Toyota Opens Its $100M Columbus Electric Forklift Factory, and the Competitive Window for Suppliers Is Already Open

Toyota Material Handling North America officially cut the ribbon on its new 295,000-square-foot Columbus factory on August 5th. The $100 million investment adds 140 jobs and brings the total campus to 1.9 million square feet with more than 2,100 employees.

The ribbon cutting is one leg of a coordinated $150 million-plus network realignment. TMHNA simultaneously invested $50 million across its Greene, New York and Muscatine, Iowa plants as part of the merger of Toyota Material Handling and The Raymond Corporation. Columbus is now the high-volume electrification engine. Greene pivots to automation and robotics. The electric forklift market is already approximately 70% electric and is projected to reach 80% before 2035, per TMHNA's own public statements.

What this means for Indiana C&I: The competitive pressure on TMHNA is immediate. Mitsubishi Logisnext launched a competing electric Class I counterbalance series in November 2025, the exact product category rolling off the Columbus line. BYD and Hangcha are pressing on price through vertically integrated battery supply chains. TMHNA is countering with domestic manufacturing efficiency, which means the Columbus campus will be running hard.

If you're a Tier 1 or Tier 2 supplier of motors, lithium-ion packs, or charging infrastructure in the Columbus area, the qualification window is open right now. Don't wait for a formal RFQ to find out you're behind.