IRVINE, Calif. (March 9, 2009) – Toyota Material Handling, U.S.A., Inc. (TMHU) recently announced the 2008 winners of its prestigious President’s Award. TMHU selects its top dealers each year from a nationwide network of 68 dealers and 190 dealership locations, recognizing them for demonstrating excellence in parts, service and equipment sales, customer satisfaction and overall dealership operations.               

This year, 15 winners earned the coveted award and were acknowledged at Toyota’s National Dealer Meeting in early March.

“We are honored to recognize our dealers for their achievements and their tireless efforts to deliver world-class customer support,” said Brett Wood, president of TMHU. “These dealers represent the best of the best in our industry. Through this prestigious award, we applaud them for being total solutions providers for their customers’ many materials handling needs.”

The winners are:

·Travis Hatmaker of Allied Toyotalift, Knoxville, Tenn.

·Al Rawson of Atlas Toyota Material Handling, Schiller Park, Ill.

·Ron McCluskey of Brodie Toyota-Lift, Lawrence, Mass.

·Gary Conger of Conger Toyotalift, Green Bay, Wis.

·Bob Whittingham of Forklifts of St. Louis, Inc., St. Louis, Mo.

·Don Herman and Kirk Sears of Lift, Inc., Mountville, Pa.

·Terry Bolinger of Mid Columbia Forklift, Inc., Yakima, Wash.

·Jim Shoppa of Shoppa’s Material Handling, Ltd., Fort Worth, Texas

·Larry McKevitt of Summit ToyotaLift, North Haven, Conn.

·Michael Elliott and Tom Edwards of SwiftLift, Inc., Victor, N.Y.

·Mark Segress of Southern Material Handling Company, Tulsa, Okla.

·Joe Quinto of Toyota-Lift of Los Angeles, Santa Fe Springs, Calif.

·Leslie Doggett and Ken Townsend of Toyota Lift of South Texas, San Antonio, Texas

·Scott Plummer of W. D. Matthews Machinery Co., Auburn, Maine

·Fred Stanley of Westquip, Inc., Oklahoma City, Okla.

The President’s Award, TMHU’s highest honor, has been awarded to select dealers since its inception in 1990 to acknowledge their outstanding business accomplishments. 

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, durability and reliability. Quality is the hallmark of Toyota’s world-renowned Toyota Production System practiced at all Toyota manufacturing facilities, including Toyota Industrial Equipment Manufacturing (TIEM). Most of the Toyota lift trucks sold in the United States are manufactured at TIEM in Columbus, Ind.

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’s commitment to excellence 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 and service, fleet servicing, and financing. For more information on TMHU, please visit www.toyotaforklift.com or call 1-800-226-0009.