Small businesses will thrive and grow under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, Sen. Pat Toomey touted Monday while touring the Sussex Wire manufacturing plant in Palmer Township.

The tour was Toomey's second stop this month in discussing the benefits of the federal tax legislation, which passed last month. He previously visited M&S Precision Grinding Inc. in Hatboro, Montgomery County on Jan. 5.

Sussex Wire began 45 years ago in a garage in Sussex County, NJ, employing just a handful of workers. Today, it employs 58 employees and another five potential hires, said CEO Tim Kardish.

The company specializes in the design, manufacturing and distribution of highly-engineered, specialty metal parts and components. It then utilizes cold-forming technology to form metal wire and specialty alloys at room temperatures into highly engineered precision, micro-miniature components faster in a more cost-effective manner than traditional machining, stamping, metal injection molding and casting methodologies, according to the company's website.

The parts are then used in various industries, including health care, electronics and aerospace.

Toomey toured the site with Kardish, stopping briefly to shake hands with workers. He congratulated a particular employee on his longevity with the company and a recent promotion.

Afterward, Toomey predicted even more growth for Sussex Wire, saying the federal tax bill would allow such manufacturing plants to to expand, train, buy better equipment and hire more workers.

Under the tax bill, the corporate tax rate -- which small companies are subjected to -- was reduced from 35 percent to 21 percent. The previous rate of 35 percent represented the highest corporate tax rate in the developed world. The new rate of 21 percent puts the United States rate just below the international average of 22.5 percent.

"What you saw here is just a tremendous example of Pennsylvania American manufacturing," Toomey said following the tour. "It is a very sophisticated, technologically advanced form of manufacturing and it is one that is thriving ... the tax reform we just did is going to help this company to grow. The tax reform is going to help ... them to bring on more workers, it's going to help them to invest in more equipment; more equipment makes their workers more productive, more productive workers can be paid more, and this is exactly the idea that was behind this tax reform from the beginning."

Toomey said the tax reform will allow American business to compete around the world and encourage more hiring and "more opportunities for the people that I represent."

"It's gratifying to me to hear about a great company, medium-sized business, right here in the Lehigh Valley, my back yard, where the tax reform is working out exactly as we had hoped. So it's been a great visit from me this morning."

Kardish agreed, saying the law will give his company two crucial benefits: a strong free cash flow to reinvest in his business and the ability to invest in both human capital and new technology.

He called those two benefits alone a "home run for a company like Sussex Wire."

Additionally, Kardish said cash flow from the reductions in federal corporate tax would help the company expand its workforce to be able to support new initiatives with new customers.

"Now because of the fact the marginal tax rate has gone down for a company like Sussex Wire, we have this great opportunity to begin to invest ahead of actual growth of what we're going to anticipate over the next couple years," he said.

"In addition to that, the fact that we can now fully depreciate our capital expense investments over the first five years, it gives us a chance to make those exact investments I talked about in terms of new technology and to be able to bring that equipment in to further advance the company and as Sen. Toomey mentioned this gives us a chance to really grow ... in the Valley."

"Right now, there are too few workers available for companies like Sussex Wire and as we grow the business and become more attractive as an employer in the Lehigh Valley, it becomes a self perpetuating machine ... we're very excited by what's been done in Congress," Kardish said, referring to tax reform. "It helps Sussex Wire tremendously."

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.