CityView Magazine

Discove r Cit yV iewN C.co m's fre s h up d ate d loo k ! | 3 S P E C I A L P R O M O T I O N A L S E C T I O N Carolina Power and Signalization 1416 Middle River Loop, Fayetteville NC 28312 910.323.5589 | www.carolinapowerandsignalization.com Carolina Power & Signalization got its start in 2012 with four workers, including owners Garret and Brian Fulcher. The Fulchers had $20,000 in cash and $15,000 on a credit card to fund the small traffic signal company. More importantly, the twin brothers had lots of experience in the field, having grown up working at their family's traf- fic-signal business, Fulcher Electric. Eight years later, Carolina Power & Signalization has mush- roomed in size and scope and is flourishing. The com- pany now has about 80 employees and operates out of a brand-new office and warehouse complex off U.S. 301 in Fayetteville. It continues to install and maintain traffic sig- nal systems, including performing drilled pier installations in demanding conditions. But it now also provides services in the energy industry, building and maintaining electric transmission, distribution and substation systems. "We're now pretty much a turnkey utility company," said Garret Fulcher, the company's president and CEO. The company also sends teams of utility workers to help re- store electric power when natural disasters cause outages. Carolina Power & Signalization, which now does business in both Carolinas and Virginia, has grown fast and the trend is likely to continue. Garret Fulcher said he expects to add another 80-100 employees by next summer. It's far different from the company's early days when Garret and Brian went without pay for three months or more and lived out of a suitcase while working out-of-town contracts. "We stayed in the worst motels ever," Garret said. The lodgings may have been lacking but their work clearly wasn't. Duke Energy was impressed and hired the company for a job on a substation near Cherry Point. "After that, they wouldn't turn us loose," Garret said. During that time, the Fulchers began to see opportuni- ties in the power line industry and started hiring managers with decades of experience in those fields to make sure the company not only met but exceeded customers' expecta- tions. The company's success hasn't distanced the Fulchers from the work on the ground. Both brothers work on job sites every day. Brian, head of the company's traffic signal divi- sion, makes sure those projects are delivered as promised. Garret often runs equipment at traffic signal installations. "I'm the janitor and the CEO and everything in between," he said. "There's nothing I won't do." The brothers started learning their business early. Their grandfather spent four decades with the Public Works Commission. In 1986, after retiring, he and his son started Fulcher Electric, where they specialized in installing traffic signals. Garret and Brian started working part-time for the family company in high school and then full-time after they graduated. Eventually, they decided to start their own business but even now frequently partner on projects with Fulcher Elec- tric. The twins take pride in having built a thriving company in their hometown and say they will never lose sight of their commitment to quality, service and customer satisfaction. Carolina Power & Signalization has mushroomed in size and scope and is flourishing. The company now has about 80 employees and operates out of a brand-new office and warehouse complex off U.S. 301 in Fayetteville.

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