Union Carbide Corp.v. Commissioner
Experimentation to improve the company's production processes qualified as research. The court set the standard: a methodical series of trials to test a hypothesis.
The R&D credit rewards solving technical problems in what you build and how you build it. Most manufacturers never claim everything their floor has already earned.
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R&D isn't just a lab down the hall. It's the line you fixed last quarter.
Manufacturers solve technical problems on every job, in the product and in the process. Most never claim it, so we made the work fast, rigorous, and priced for a shop.
Whatever you make, the technical problem-solving behind it can earn a dollar-for-dollar credit. Here is what usually qualifies.
Two cases define the line. Improving how you make things is research; you just have to show the experimentation behind it.
Experimentation to improve the company's production processes qualified as research. The court set the standard: a methodical series of trials to test a hypothesis.
A shipbuilder's credits were denied because it couldn't show a process of experimentation. No hypothesis, no alternatives tested. Experimentation has to be real and documented.
“We thought R&D meant new products. Onshore found six figures in the line changes we make every year.”
“They documented the experimentation behind our tooling the way the IRS wants. Our old CPA never did.”
“A real engineer-turned-CPA reviewed every number with us. No black box, no guesswork.”
Link the payroll, BOMs, engineering change logs, and machine data you already keep. No new software, no busywork.
Our agents map your projects to specific business components and the four-part test, including the process improvements firms overlook.
A credentialed tax professional reviews every number, documents the experimentation the way the courts expect, and stands behind it through audit.
Often yes. Reducing scrap, tightening tolerances, automating a line, or developing new tooling can all qualify, not just new products. The work has to resolve real technical uncertainty.
The technical problem-solving behind a new or improved product or process: prototyping, first articles, CNC and process development, fixtures and molds, materials and finishes. Routine production doesn't; experimentation does.
The assessment is free. If we find credits worth claiming, our fee is a share of what we recover, so you only pay when you save.
We work alongside your CPA on the credit specifically, with the experimentation documentation the IRS expects. You keep your accountant.
Tell us about your operation and we'll tell you plainly what you're likely owed. No cost, no obligation, and a real person to talk to.
Check your plant