BRANDON PERKINS
Title: Vice President/Project Manager
Company: Perkins Electric, Inc.
Location: Tallahassee, Fla.
Age: 29
Years on the job: 11
At the age of 14, Brandon Perkins decided he wanted to become an electrician. His father, David, started Perkins Electric in 1995, and his mom, Tammy, handles the accounting for the company. Perkins, who was born and raised in Tallahassee, Fla., has been in and around the electrical trade as far back as he can remember.
“During my summer vacation from school, I helped the guys, and I loved it,” he says. “I liked the atmosphere, how competitive all the guys seemed to be, and the fact that I was working with my hands. The work was physically and mentally challenging.”
He says his favorite part of working as an electrician is that it’s such a vast field that it’s impossible to ever know everything.
“There are always opportunities to learn something new, expand your knowledge, and become a better electrician,” he says. “Knowing that tomorrow I could run into something I’ve never seen before keeps me coming back for more.”
The most challenging aspect of the job for him is walking the line between craftsmanship and profitability. As a self-described perfectionist, he enjoys the pressures of making deadlines and embracing the challenge of running jobs smoothly and efficiently.
Perkins started out in the electrical trade as a helper in residential construction, but his father said after a few years, it was not challenging enough for him.
“He progressed to commercial and proficiently ran small jobs after about a year of experience,” says David Perkins, Brandon’s father. “He has since continued his progression of learning how to manage electrical projects large and small.”
Today, he is specializing in commercial work, which requires more planning and intricate work than other industry segments. Right now, his company is working a 10-unit and four-unit retail center, a school cafeteria; rewiring the historical St. Mark’s Lighthouse, originally built in 1831; and performing residential new construction, remodeling and service work.
To ensure Perkins Electric is on the forefront of the latest tools and technology, he is constantly reading magazines and emails to check out new tools, gadgets, or materials that his company could benefit from. For example, his residential crews are using new boxes, and the field workforce has a wide range of battery-powered and hand tools at their disposal.
“Compared to previous generations, today’s electricians are more efficient due to modern tools and materials,” he says.
In addition, mobile devices and technology help to improve the productivity of the field workforce. He takes his iPad with him from one job to the next. His father says his son uses the iPad for job file storage, referencing plans or an article in the specifications, and tracking labor and material costs on each project.
“It’s quick and easy to pull up plans or specs on any one of my jobs, and it beats carrying paper copies any day,” he says.
After earning his journeyman’s license at the age of 22 years old, he set his sights on taking the exam for the electrical contractor’s license for the states of Florida, Georgia, and Alabama.
“I wanted to set myself apart from others my age and ensure that my family’s business lives on,” he says. “It was challenging to say the least, but it was a huge accomplishment, and I am extremely proud. I did it all on my own with no study courses — just my workbooks and Code book.”
Perkins, who has been with his high school sweetheart, Lacy, for the last 14 years, has been married for the last six years. They have two sons, four-year-old Brooks and three-year-old Beau, who both love to play with his hand tools and climb on all of their tractors and equipment.
In the future, he hopes to keep expanding his knowledge and continuing to refine his skills so he can keep the family business going.
“If I’m lucky, my boys will get to work side-by-side with their dad, like I have with mine,” he says.
