Appliance maker Whirlpool Corp. is closing one of its three U.S. contact centers because of a decreasing number of calls received from customers needing assistance.

Whirlpool said Tuesday expects to close its call center in Yakima, Washington, during the second quarter of 2011, citing a need for greater efficiency. The closing will affect 160 employees.

It will add 50 jobs to each of its two remaining U.S. call centers, in Benton Harbor, Mich., and Cleveland, Tenn. Whirlpool said said those two centers have sufficient capacity to serve U.S. and Canadian customers.