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BigBelly Solar

Brian Smale

BigBelly Solar

bigbellysolar.com

Jim Poss, 36
Needham, Mass.

Jim Poss is cleaning up by cleaning up. His $4 million company's flagship product, a solar-powered trash compactor that holds around five times as much trash as a traditional trash can, is catching on with municipalities looking to slash budgets. (You can watch a video of the gizmo in action here. So far, Poss says he's sold over 2,000 of them in 30 states and 17 countries. The units, which are manufactured in New England, aren't cheap: They cost $3,100 to $3,900 a pop or lease for $70 to $90 a month, depending on purchase volume. But Poss says they typically pay for themselves within two to four years because fewer collections are needed, reducing money spent on man hours, fuel, and garbage trucks. Poss thinks the time is right to expand his 23-employee company, which has secured $5 million in angel investment since it launched in 2003: "Our product fits into the goals of the stimulus packageand it makes government smaller," he says.