Toro to Close Second Plant

The Toro Company announced that it is closing another American manufacturing site as part of an overall strategy to reduce production costs and to improve asseet utilization.

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. -- The Toro Company announced that it is closing another American manufacturing site as part of an overall strategy to reduce production costs and to improve asseet utilization.

The company said it will sell its Riverside, Calif., headquarters and plant and move manufacturing operations to its facility in El Paso, Tex., and office operations to a leased facility to be established in the Riverside area. 

Earlier this year, Toro began to shift manufacturing of residential and commercial irrigation products to El Paso but was to retain the manufacturing of golf-related products in Riverside.  Consolidating the manufacture of all products in El Paso follows strategic moves by other industry competitors and maintains the company's position in response to unfavorable economic conditions and changing market dynamics.  

"Toro has been a part of the Riverside community since 1962 and that makes this move extremely difficult," said Kendrick B. Melrose, chairman and chief executive officer of Toro.  "But these are challenging times to survive in this intense competitive environment with a slumping economy, and we need to take proactive steps to position Toro for continued success.  We remain committed to the Riverside area and will keep an office operation in the Riverside area."

About 145 salaried and 25 hourly employees will remain in Riverside after the shift.  As a result of the plant closing and associated restructuring, about 440 jobs will be eliminated. The move is expected to cost between $6.4 million and $6.9 million in fiscal 2002 and provide annual savings beginning in fiscal 2003 of between $7.0 million and $7.5 million. 

The Toro Company has more than 5,000 employees around the world and is a provider of outdoor maintenance and beautification products for home, recreation and commercial landscapes.