Kubota Corporation, as part of its global strategy, has announced plans to establish a new production plant in the U.S. to build compact tractors for its North American market. Construction of the plant, located in the state of Georgia, will begin in January 2012, with mass production commencing January 2013.

1. Tractor business in North America

• Kubota Tractor Corporation (KTC), Kubota's first overseas company, was established in 1972 to sell tractors in the United States, as well as develop the North American market.
• In 1988, Kubota Manufacturing of America Corporation (KMA) was established as a manufacturing and development base for sub-compact tractors, ride-on mowers, and utility vehicles. In 2004, Kubota Industrial Equipment Corporation (KIE) was founded as a production base for tractor implements for a variety of models and to further expand our business.
• With the growth of the U.S. economy, sales of compact tractors increased rapidly during the last decade. In 2005, total units sold surpassed 1 million units. Today, Kubota has a major share of the U.S. market for compact-sized tractors.
• In recent years, business has been expanded by providing additional equipment for various tasks in agriculture-related markets such as pasture management and the transportation of hay.

2. Background and purpose of establishing new plant

• The North American market is one of the largest sales areas for Kubota compact tractors and further business growth is expected, mainly in the hobby farming and landscaping markets.
• "Further Promotion of Globalization" is a high-priority management direction and includes overseas production. By establishing this local production base, the risk from yen appreciation is reduced. In addition, cost advantages are gained through the optimization of global procurement ,as the new manufacturing plant will source key components not only from Japan but also from the Thailand production base.

3. Overview of the new plant

Location	Jefferson, Georgia, USA (To be newly constructed on the existing site of KIE. New tractor manufacturing will be integrated with existing KIE operations, such as tire and attachment installation. In this way, we will improve production efficiency and reduce production lead time from order entry to product delivery.)
Scale	Tractor factory building area: 500,000 square feet (45,000 square meters) KIE site area: 88 acres (356,000 square meters).
Total investment	About 73.2 million US dollars (about 5.5 billion yen at an exchange rate of 75 yen to the dollar)
Items produced	Compact tractors for North America (30 to 50 hp class)
Production capacity	22,000 units/year
Start of mass production	Planned for January 2013
Number of employees	About 200 (as of 2013)

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Reference: Production bases in the U.S.

Overview of Kubota Industrial Equipment (KIE)

Company name	Kubota Industrial Equipment Corporation
Established	November 12, 2004
Location	Jefferson, Georgia, USA
President	Kazunori Monodane
Scale	Land area: 88 acres (356,000 square meters); building area: 440,000 square feet (40,880 square meters)
Items produced	Tractor implements; loaders and backhoes
Number of employees	About 500

Overview of Kubota Manufacturing of America Corporation(KMA)

Company name	Kubota Manufacturing of America Corporation
Established	March 1, 1988
Location	Gainesville, Georgia, USA
President	Hironobu Kubota
Scale	Land area: 191 acres (772, 943 square meters); building area: 1,160,000 square feet (107,767 square meters)
Items produced	Sub-compact tractors, ride-on mowers, utility vehicles
Number of employees	About 950

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