Tennant Co. said its first-quarter sales will be down 4% as it dealt with two-week plant closures in China as well as suspended production at some plants in Italy and the U.S.

Quarterly sales will be $252 million, it said Friday. The Golden Valley-based maker of industrial cleaning equipment and supplies has 4,400 employees worldwide and manufacturing facilities in six countries.

Because of the spread of the coronavirus and the economic slowdown that has resulted, the company has taken several cost-cutting measures including reduced work schedules and furloughs for some employees.

The company said it is maintaining health insurance coverage of all its employees.

Chief Executive Chris Killingstad will forgo his salary from May 3 through the end of the second quarter, the company said. Killingstad's annual salary is $800,000 per year, so that action could save the company approximately $133,333.

Other senior executives will see salaries cut by 35% and board members by 50% during that time.

"The current market conditions continue to be very fluid, and we have a dedicated response team in place, led by our chief operating officer, to support our locations around the world in managing potential business impacts," said Killingstad in the news release.

Dave Huml was promoted to COO in March. He joined Tennant in 2014 as senior vice president of global marketing and has 25 years of experience in global leadership experience with stints at Pentair PLC and Graco Inc.

Tennant said its earnings per share for the quarter will be in the range of 26 to 29 cents, compared with 29 cents per share in first quarter of 2019.

The company also announced it is withdrawing financial guidance it gave for the entire fiscal year back on Feb. 20. Tennant will release final quarterly results on May 6.

Patrick Kennedy • 612-673-7926