TOSHIBA's U.S. TONER PLANT CELEBRATES 25 YEARS

For the first 22 years, the plant only produced black
and white toner for its copy machines. Three years ago the plant
invested $15 million to produce color toner.“Color is the future for
toner activity and we wanted to be on board with that,” Tronnes said.
“Toshiba invested in the facility and that really is what will drive the
long-term success of this factory even more.”Mitchell, Tronnes said,
was a good, central location for the plant. Also, the factory was a 3M
plant before it belonged to Toshiba. 3M wanted to get out of the toner
business, so Toshiba, which built copy machines for 3M, moved in.“It was
just a match made in heaven and boom, we came here,” Tronnes said.

Toshiba
is the only Japanese company producing color toner in the U.S., and
about 30 percent of the plant’s product is shipped overseas.As of
February, the Mitchell plant produced its 40 millionth kilogram of
toner, which is equivalent to 100 million pounds.“If you fill pop
bottles and lay them end to end they’d go around the world,” Tronnes
said. “If you put the toner in a basketball court and built the walls
300 feet tall, it would fill it. There’s a tremendous amount of toner
coming out of the factory.”Although Toshiba America Business Solutions
is headquartered in California, it is owned by the Japanese Toshiba
plant. There are two Japanese executives staffed at the Mitchell plant
at all times. The mix in culture has been a benefit to the Mitchell
plant, Tronnes said.

The Japanese culture differs not only through the human perspective, but the business perspective, too, he said.

“The
part that struck me the most is that if there is a problem, they don’t
go on a head hunt,” Tronnes said. “They group everyone together and say,
‘How do we fix it.’“They look at problems as an opportunity and not a
threat,” he said. “It’s very refreshing.”He added that it’s a major
difference from other major U.S. corporations.There is a constant stream
of communication between the Mitchell plant and Japan, and employees
are often sent overseas to see the equipment used in Japan.The company
knows, though, that without their staff, they wouldn’t have the success
they’ve achieved thus far.

Employees average 18 years of service,
and the majority are from Mitchell or the surrounding 60-mile
radius.“They are very local, dedicated and hardworking,” Tronnes said.
“Our employees are just top-notch.”And to enhance the plant even more,
the company is looking at how to entice younger employees to ensure the
plant continues its success in Mitchell.

Toshiba has made it a
point to share its success with Mitchell, Davison County and the
state.Over the years, generous donations have been made, including
$125,000 to Mitchell hospitals for medical equipment, $125,000 to
Mitchell schools, $75,000 for a Davison County storm warning system and
$100,000 to Shoto-Tein Japanese Gardens in Sioux Falls.Other projects
Toshiba has donated to include the Mitchell Ice Arena and Pepsi-Cola
Soccer Complex, among many others. The plant also gives copy machines to
non-profit organizations and recycles its testing paper by giving it to
schools and other organizations for notepads.“We’re trying to give back
all the time,” Tronnes said. “That’s part of the Japanese culture as
well. We want to be part of the community we’re in. We want everyone to
know who we are and what we do here.”