YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY
Springfield, MO
YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY
Springfield, MO
Sun Solar LLC CEO Caleb Arthur used federal tax cuts and lemonade from the lemons of President Donald Trump’s solar panel tariff to add 30 new jobs to his company.
Arthur credits his expansion to recent federal tax reform, which reduced the corporate tax rate to 21 percent from 35 percent. Additionally, he said a new 30 percent United States tariff on imported solar equipment caused him to reflect on how the company could operate more efficiently.
Arthur said he planned for changes from the tariff into the approximate $28 million 2018 Sun Solar budget, with the goal of not increasing charges to clients. When the federal tax cuts were announced, Arthur spoke with company accountants to estimate how the extra money could be used toward growth.
“We were going over how much flexibility it would give us to grow in 2018, and we were planning on growing anyway. It helped us speed up the process,” he said. “It allowed us to expand probably twice as much as we were originally anticipating.”
Arthur said Sun Solar already hired 15 of the positions and expects to fill the other 15 in the next two months. The new hires will add to the company’s current 100 staffers – 17 percent of which are military veterans. According to a news release, Sun Solar is attempting to have veterans account for 25 percent of its workforce.
Additionally, Sun Solar spent $1 million to buy a 15,400-square-foot facility for its headquarters at 2531 N. Patterson Ave., with plans to move in by May, according to a news release. The space was formerly occupied by Springfield Sign & Graphics Inc., which in 2017 moved to Partnership Industrial Center.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, photovoltaic installation is the No. 1 fastest-growing occupation in the United States from 2016-2026.
Sun Solar was the No. 1 fastest-growing company in Springfield Business Journal’s 2017 Dynamic Dozen. At the time, the company installed 2,500 solar panels per month.
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The dealership is moving from leased space to a parcel just east of the Partnership Industrial Center.
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