Jan Jansson has been named the 2003 U.S. Small Business Administration?EUR??,,????'???s Small Business Person of the Year in San Diego, California for his company, Soil Retention Systems Inc. (SRS), who build retaining walls, manufacture blocks, sell to contractors and perform extensive product research and development. Born in Sweden as the only child of a brick-laying father, Jan Jansson, in the five years since he moved to America, built Soil Retention Systems Inc. into a $10 million-a-year business. He holds numerous patents and his retaining wall products are distributed through The Home Depot in Southern California. The license holder of Loffelstein block for California, Arizona and Nevada, SRS has installed two million square feet of retaining walls in Southern California housing developments, commercial centers, resorts, golf courses, retail centers, highways and public works. The company?EUR??,,????'???s goal is to ?EUR??,,????'??develop, produce and build cost effective, attractive, plantable retaining walls up to 45 feet in height.?EUR??,,????'?? But accomplishing this is no easy task. ?EUR??,,????'??Retaining walls are a very, very risky business,?EUR??,,????'?? says Jansson, his company?EUR??,,????'???s chief executive and president. ?EUR??,,????'??The dirt on any site is not the same. And if there?EUR??,,????'???s not enough reinforcement, the wall will have trouble standing up. If the foundation is not right, the house will come down. There are a lot of failures in this business, but we haven?EUR??,,????'???t had one in 15 years.?EUR??,,????'?? While that?EUR??,,????'???s a matter of pride for Jansson, he?EUR??,,????'???s also pleased to have brought the company through a difficult recession and to have many longtime employees among his staff of 50. The company recently purchased an office building in Carlsbad with SBA funding and owns a manufacturing plant in Romoland. In addition to SRS, Jansson owns Soil Retention Products Inc. and Toy Rental Inc. (its sole business is to rent heavy equipment to its sister companies, SRS and SRP). Research and development is key in Jansson?EUR??,,????'???s business plan. SRS has developed the Yardstone block product as well as its Verdura line at The Home Depot. The company also has special techniques for installing retaining walls and controlling soil erosion. To keep abreast of the industry and its needs, Jansson belongs to professional organizations, including Associated General Contractors of America-San Diego branch, the Building Industry Association of Southern California-Orange and San Diego, the North American Geosynthics Society & International Geosynthics Society, Construction Specifications Institute, National Concrete and Masonry Association, Southern California Contractors Association, Specialty Contractors Council and Southern California Builders Exchange-SCOP Program. ?EUR??,,????'??I like to work building and developing things,?EUR??,,????'?? Jansson asserts. ?EUR??,,????'??It?EUR??,,????'???s what keeps me getting up in the morning.?EUR??,,????'??