Kalmar completes employee negotiations

As a result of the negotiations, Kalmar is to transfer the production of forklift trucks from Sweden to Poland, invest in new, state of the art premises in Sweden and transform its operations in Southern Sweden into a Business, Innovation and Technology Centre.

The change will lead to a permanent reduction of 160 employees as well as the gradual closing of the operations in Lidhult.

Dan Pettersson, senior vice president of mobile equipment at Kalmar, said: “The decisions are of course sad for the people in Lidhult. However, these actions are needed to sustain our global leadership position on the global markets.

“Through the change, we will gain synergies and make our production setup most cost competitive, enabling us to focus on our technological competence development in digital business.”

The new Business, Innovation and Technology Centre, meanwhile, is expected to create new business and job opportunities in Southern Sweden. Kalmar estimates that around 200 people will be employed at the new site in the future.

Elsewhere, in Stargard, Poland, Kalmar is expanding its operations to facilitate the production of forklift trucks, which will create around 200 new jobs in the region, added Mr Pettersson.