Thanks to Fairfax County Office of Public Private Partnerships for this great article. 

Sundog Productions, a brainchild of CAS Shiver, is a 30 year old, made in America, “fashion factory” located in the heart of Fairfax that specializes in green and sustainable solutions. Its 40,000 square foot plant makes 1.2 million screened and specialty tye-dyed t-shirts annually for companies like Disney, Joe’s Crab Shack, Grateful Dead and Fairfax County. 

What makes them special and unique is their commitment to the community, environment, and innovation. Their “factory” is a repurposed Verizon parking garage, most of their ink is made from seaweed and is certified 100% organic. By using solar panels and specially designed green energy to power their entire production process they avoid 80 tons of Co2 production a year and reduce their carbon footprint by 40%.

Sundog employees are part of and give back to the community.  Many of the employees are Fairfax County natives who have all been together for more than 30 years. Their 50+ employees include 10-15 people who are from the Fairfax County Detention Center’s Alternative Incarceration Branch (AIB) and local women’s shelters. These offenders and victims are not only given a position, but they learn a marketable skill.  And, many stay with Sundog after their AIB work is done.  In keeping with their name, Sundog offers Animal Shelters across the country a 15% discount on all work.

And they continue to innovate. Sundog houses 4 ‘start up’ companies that are incubating and growing their business in Fairfax.  They only purchase used equipment – keeping it out of landfills. They have projects to reuse their ‘gray’ water and have reprogrammed many of their commercial washing machines to become “smart” technology. These machines recognize the type and size of each load and adjust the water and heat accordingly to not only save energy, but water as well.

For their commitment to Fairfax County residents and the environment, we salute Sundog Productions as January’s Company that Cares. {Check out our gallery of photos}