COLUMBUS, Ind. -- Toyota Industrial Equipment Manufacturing (TIEM) and Toyota Material Handling, U.S.A., Inc. (TMHU) joined with the Arbor Day, and Columbus Parks and Recreation to plant trees at two local Columbus parks – Lincoln Park and Noblitt Park – on May 3. More than 100 volunteers, comprised of Toyota associates and representatives from the Arbor Day Foundation and Columbus Parks and Recreation Department, worked together to plant 100 trees divided between two of the city’s popular parks.

The TMHU-sponsored event resulted in the planting of indigenous trees, including: Scarlett Oak, Sugar Maple and other varieties like Zelkova at Noblitt Park and Lincoln Park as a part of the “greening” effort for these highly visited recreational spots.

Situated near Flat Rock River, the 46-acre Noblitt Park offers an array of amenities including picnic areas, people trails and softball fields. Lincoln Park, a 33-acre recreational resource, boasts softball fields, walking trails, and is home to the popular U.S.S.S.A. softball world series. Many of the trees planted here will help replenish the park and trees previously removed to build the softball fields.

“As a partner and business member of the community, we are delighted that our friends and associates have teamed up to enhance Columbus’ parks” said Shankar Basu, president and CEO of TMHU and a director of TIEM. “Toyota’s efforts to not only manufacture the earth’s most environmentally-friendly lift trucks here in Columbus, but also to support the parks and landscape in the communities where our associates work, live and play, embodies our company’s environmental charter.”

“The addition of 100 trees to our two Columbus parks is the largest donation of its kind experienced during my nine-year tenure with Columbus Parks and Recreation,” said Nick Rush, director of park operations and city arborist for Columbus Parks and Recreation. “The benefit these trees bring to our great parks in terms of shade, appearance and more is a tremendous asset to our community.”

This effort is the latest in TIEM’s and TMHU’s partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation and is part of the company’s overall global environmental stewardship program. Irvine, Calif.-based TMHU, the No. 1 supplier of lift trucks in the United States, first partnered with the Arbor Day Foundation in 2006 with the goal of helping reforest America. Since then, 20,000 trees have been planted in national forests that have been damaged by wildfires, insects and disease. In 2008, the company increased its commitment to the Arbor Day Foundation and will plant a tree for every lift truck sold this year, which is estimated to result in an additional 30,000 trees being planted in early 2009.

About Toyota Material Handling, U.S.A., Inc.

Celebrating more than 40 years of established operations in the United States, Irvine, Calif.-based Toyota Material Handling, U.S.A., Inc., (TMHU) has been the No. 1 selling lift truck supplier in the U.S. since 2002 and currently offers a full line of high-quality lift trucks sold under the Toyota brand. Built on a reputation of excellence, Toyota remains popular due to its quality, reliability and durability. Quality is the hallmark of Toyota’s world-renowned Toyota Production System practiced at all Toyota manufacturing facilities, including Toyota Industrial Equipment Manufacturing (TIEM) in Columbus, Ind. Most of the Toyota lift trucks, including the 8-Series, sold in the United States are manufactured at TIEM.

TIEM, and all Toyota manufacturing plants in the U.S. and Canada, comply with the ISO 14001 standard from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and have been honored for their environmental management systems and dedication to continuous improvement. Toyota remains the first and only manufacturer in the world to offer a factory installed Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) fuel system that is UL-listed, and EPA-CARB certified. Toyota’s LPG-, CNG- and gasoline-powered 8-Series lift trucks produce 70 percent less smog-forming emissions than the current federal EPA standard and meet California’s more stringent 2010 emission standard.1

Toyota’s commitment to excel<>lence in customer service extends nationwide. Sixty-eight authorized Toyota Industrial Equipment dealers, with a total of 190 dealership locations throughout the United States, offer comprehensive customer service support, including one-stop shopping for both new and Certified Used lift trucks, parts, service and financing.