Kubota Manufacturing of America announced Monday that it has begun construction on a 617,865-square-foot expansion of its national distribution center on the company’s existing property in Jefferson.

The project is adjacent to the Kubota Industrial Equipment facility off of I-85 North. Scheduled for completion in July 2017, the expansion’s nearly $16 million investment is a direct response to Kubota’s continued growth and manufacturing demands in its compact tractor, utility vehicle and turf product markets.

The extended facility will triple the existing square footage to accommodate 956,161 square feet of space that will allow the company to increase warehousing efficiencies to store and process more equipment produced by nearby Kubota Manufacturing of America and Kubota Industrial Equipment.

“This is an exciting time for Kubota as our continued growth has led us to several facility expansions in recent years – from our new manufacturing plant in nearby Gainesville to our new headquarters building in Grapevine, Texas,” said Alex Woods, vice president of product resources, parts and divisional operations for Kubota Tractor Corporation. “We are diversifying our product lines and expanding our operational footprint here in Georgia to better respond to ongoing dealer and customer demand for multiple product lines here in the U.S.”

In January 2017, Kubota Manufacturing of America in nearby Gainesville will start production at its new 502,000-square-foot plant to increase production of Kubota’s RTV Series utility vehicles.