Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1491409
18 SMT007 MAGAZINE I FEBRUARY 2023 Johnson: Can you scope out how much resource investment—time and energy, in other words—was required to get you to Level 2 CMMC? When did you start? How long did it take? Kottke: We started about a year and a half ago, when we first contacted somebody for an audit. It's probably been a full year of effort. Johnson: Do you think you could have done it faster? Other companies may not be as far along, and May isn't that far off. Kottke: Yes, we probably could have done it faster if we had wanted to, but we were maxed out in 2022. We're a $100 million company; that kind of growth is crazy. CMMC has not been something I've pushed hard on. Right now, I have one customer pushing a little bit harder; it's not so much, "You have to get this done," but more like, "It would be great to get ahead of this." Johnson: What dynamics do you see with regard to the global geopolitical situation, and what has the effect been on Rocket's business? Kottke: People are starting to realize China is a risk, and there is a real possibility that Taiwan could become part of China. It's a risk they're very concerned about. Aer 20 years of push- ing production to China and Taiwan as fast as we could, the supply chain can't come back in just a couple years. at's too short, yet at least a dozen of my top 20 customers are pushing to bring it back to the U.S. e changes in tariffs and overall govern- ment restrictions and regulations mean that a lot of customers want to move their business back to the United States so they can better control it, yet 90% of the BOM is still in China. I understand the assembly part—that's great. But 90% of your supply chain is still in Asia, so what can you do? I'm worried, like everyone else, that we are headed toward a global recession or that the supply chain might get worse—although it's hard to believe that the supply chain issues could get worse. But I do think we'll see more manufacturing move back here. Johnson: Do you see any new markets on the horizon for Rocket EMS, such as different market sectors, or even products, services, or manufacturing? Kottke: I'm positive that nobody our size has as many active customers or as many differ- ent market segments as we do. I know all our competitors here in California, and I know they have about 20 customers each. I had 87 customers last month, and typically, I have about 100 active customers. We are pretty diverse. My top five customers are in five differ- ent sectors. at has always been part of our plan—to have a very diverse base so that when a recession hits, we always have one or two that carry us. In the past I've been extremely blessed to have a great home-run customer during a recession. Right now, we have a cou- ple of great customers whose forecasts are ris- ing while everyone else is cutting, so that's cool. It's a crazy world right now. Johnson: Michael, thank you so much. Kottke: You're welcome, anytime. SMT007 People are starting to realize China is a risk, and there is a real possibility that Taiwan could become part of China.