The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“RECOGNIZING SBE, INC. OF BARRE, VERMONT” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Energy was published in the Senate section on pages S8369-S8370 on Sept. 11, 2008.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
RECOGNIZING SBE, INC. OF BARRE, VERMONT
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize the innovation and achievements of SBE, Inc. in Barre, VT.
For decades, SBE has demonstrated an exceptional ability to adapt to the demands of a changing marketplace. The company started as Sprague Electric in 1945, but today SBE is using cutting-edge technology to develop capacitors for use in green cars, alternative energies, Taser stun guns, and advanced military equipment. These innovative products have created dozens of quality Vermont jobs that reflect our state's commitment towards moving to alternative energy sources.
I commend Ed Sawyer, president and CEO of SBE, and all of the hard-
working employees in Barre for their foresight and innovation. I ask unanimous consent that a September 1, 2008, Burlington Free Press article about the company be printed in the Record so all Senators can read about the success and commendable business practices of this sustainable Vermont company.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
Barre Firm Adapts Products to Survive: Capacitor Company Moves Focus
From TV and Stereos to Tasers and Hybrids
(By Dan McLean)
Barre.--SBE Inc., built on 20th century capacitor technology, has survived by continuing to adapt, taking a Vermont-made product and carving a national market.
SBE has branched off from its trademarked orange colored capacitors, known worldwide as the ``orange drop,'' and is pursuing ``power ring'' technology for hybrid vehicles, alternative energy producers and military applications.
``This is sustainable manufacturing. It's a different product mix,'' said Ed Sawyer, president and CEO of the SBE Inc.
SBE has landed two rounds of U.S. Department of Energy grants to pursue capacitor technology for the burgeoning hybrid vehicle industry. The money is helping to bankroll research and development that are creating jobs. ``We applied for the grant in a competitive process along with approximately 2,000 other firms across the U.S,'' Sawyer said.
By continuing to innovate, the manufacturer has been able to save itself from becoming obsolete.
Over a billion capacitors have been made by the Barre-based manufacturer during the past six decades, Sawyer said. A capacitor is an electronic device that can store energy.
Keys to survival
Boom times continued into the late 1960s and early 1970s for the capacitor manufacturer. During that time, about 900 employees built capacitors for companies such as AC Delco, Magnavox, RCA and Zenith.
The industry has changed a lot since Sprague Electric entered into a subcontracting agreement with the Rock of Ages Corp. to manufacture capacitors on their behalf in 1945. SBE Inc. is the successor to Sprague Electric Co.
SBE has retooled. The company has translated a mid-20th century technology into a modern application for green cars, alternative energies, Taser stun guns and military equipment. As the decades passed, foreign competitors--mostly in China, Korea, Malaysia and the Philippines--began making capacitors for one-quarter to one-third the price, Sawyer said. Aside from the hefty price competition, work was lost because the manufacturing of many electronic devices that use capacitors moved from the U.S. to Asia.
When Sprague Electric sold the company to SBE in 1986, it was down to 19 employees, Sawyer said. SBE now has about 50 employees and is hiring five more engineers to work on capacitors for hybrid cars.
The company survived, Sawyer said, because of its longstanding philosophy: ``new products need to be developed to keep the company viable.''
SBE Inc.--which leases 30,000 square feet of the 110,000 square feet the manufacturer owned a few decades ago--was created from the shell that Sprague Electric was leaving behind after being decimated by foreign competition, Sawyer said. The management team banded together to buy the operation, forming SBE, he said.
``If they didn't have the motivation, it would have been just one more `closed business' story,'' Sawyer said.
Since becoming president in 2002, Sawyer promoted the development of patents. Three patents have been issued on high-voltage, pulse technologies, and six more are pending, he said.
Unlike a semiconductor, which requires power be applied to it, a capacitor has the ability to hold a charge and can change direct current to alternating current, which is used to power an electric motor.
Job potential
Job growth, particularly skilled manufacturing positions, should continue at SBE.
If the capacitor technology SBE is developing for hybrid vehicles is embraced by General Motors, as Sawyer hopes, employment could grow by another 100 people. ``It would be huge job growth for the state,'' he said.
Rob Peterson, a GM spokesman, said suppliers for the Chevy Volt hybrid vehicle have not been established yet. ``We have made some decisions on suppliers, but we are very, very early on in the process.''
The Chevy Volt is set to hit markets in November 2010, Peterson said. The car is designed to travel 40 miles on an electric charge before tapping into electricity generated by a gas-fueled engine.
The bulk of SBE's sales remain in standard capacitors used in industrial lighting, welding equipment and supplies for cell phone towers.
``This is still what's paying the bills,'' he said.
SBE added to its product lineup when it became the exclusive provider for capacitors for Taser International Inc. in 2002, Sawyer said. SBE has sold about a million capacitors for the stun guns carried by police departments across the country, he said.
SBE landed Taser as a client because of the Barre company's history as an industry leader. ``They actually approached us, basically on our reputation in the industry,'' he said.
In 2007, SBE's revenue was $3 million to $5 million. Sawyer expects those figures to be 20 to 25 percent higher this year. Despite the sales, earnings are lackluster.
SBE, a privately held company, is not turning a profit, but that's because profits are being rolled back into the research and development budget, Sawyer said.
Funding sources
Department of Energy grants are helpful, but they don't offset the losses, he said.
SBE received $850,000 from the Energy Department to perfect hybrid vehicle capacitor technology. The technology could make lighter, smaller capacitors and slice a few hundred dollars from the price of a hybrid vehicle, Sawyer said.
Grant money isn't the only source powering new endeavors at SBE. The company's eye toward innovation, and reliable revenue stream, caught the interest of ``angel'' investors, Sawyer said. Such investors have poured in more than $2 million in the last four years, he said.
The work for Taser helped SBE get traction with the investment community and the existing capacitor business added a sense of security.
``There is less risk than two guys in a garage. We are an existing entity that is paying the bills,'' Sawyer said.
The military is interested in the power ring technology to shoot ``a high energy laser'' from a vehicle,'' Sawyer said.
The technology of the capacitors is similar. It's the sizes of the pieces that vary. Capacitors for the hybrid cars are 6 inches in diameter, substantially larger than the standard capacitors, which are \1/2\-inch to 1-inch wide.
Capacitors being used by solar and wind energy producers to store and filter electricity are about 12 inches in diameter, he said.
York Capacitor--a similar operation in Winooski--closed in 2005 after being purchased by a South Carolina company that moved manufacturing to Mexico. York Capacitor failed to adapt, Sawyer said. ``They never changed.''
``I don't think we'd be in business today . . . if we didn't make the choices we made to target the markets we are now,'' he said.
____________________
