Rayder Hobbs on 51 Years of American Waste Equipment

Carl Holden:0:00
Welcome to What's Made in the USA, the podcast that celebrates the people, companies, and ideas behind American manufacturing. I'm your host, Carl Holden, and on each episode we meet the entrepreneurs, engineers, and skilled professionals who are building real products right here in the United States. Today I'm pleased to have Rader Hobbs of MAC Corporation headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. Let's get started. Welcome, Rader.

Rayder Hobbs:0:26
thanks for having me. I appreciate you letting me be on here.

Carl Holden:0:30
I don't know why Indianapolis tripped me up, but it's a it's a weirder word to read than it is to say out loud.

Rayder Hobbs:0:37
Yeah, yeah. You got you got two Indiana's and they're just Appleis at the end of the one. It's it's you're you're saying it double.

Carl Holden:0:44
Yeah. So the awesome. Well let's jump right in, Raider. tell us top level overview of what you make at Mac Corporation.

Rayder Hobbs:0:53
Yeah, yeah. So, you know, we're a family-owned business. We've been in business now for 51 years. So what we manufacture mainly at Mac is waste refusal equipment. So what does that mean for someone not familiar? That would be we build dumpsters, we call them roll-off containers. Now we build those for a couple of different setups. We build them for trailer setups, we build them for cable or hook lift setups. and then something else we manufacture, we do compactors. So what you'll see going into the back of shopping centers, or button, you know, going into an industrial complex. so we build stationary and self-contained compactors, and I can kind of explain what those are later on. And then we also build a few front load containers here and there that go on a front load truck that do, you know, just residential routes.

So think like when you're taking your toter down to the end of your driveway. we we build for those trucks as well. So that's that's kind of what we build for. anything made with steel, we're we're happy to build it. Now we also refurbish compactors as well. We have a facility set up for that. and then we build cart dumpers down there. And the cart dumpers feed stationary or self-contained compactors. A lot of automation now. you get warehouses, you know, you got your Amazon, you know, they don't want people getting hurt, so they'll go and feed a cart tipper which will automatically feed the comp.

Carl Holden:2:31
Alright, so help me make sure I understand you're basically building all of the containers that sit on the back of the waste trucks, as well as I'm seeing on the site, as small as, you know, a front load container that's sitting on, you know, a property, to the big containers that you'll see at a home builder that they're throwing stuff into.

Rayder Hobbs:2:56
Yeah. Absolutely. We build all of that. So yes.

Carl Holden:3:01
Okay, great. what is your role, Raider, at Mac Corporation and what led you to this journey at that company?

Rayder Hobbs:3:09
Yeah, yeah, great question. So I'm the president of operations at the company, and then I'm also an in house salesman. So I kind of do a little bit of everything. You know, we're a family owned business, like I mentioned. So I wear a bunch of different hats. so I'm involved in, you know, shipping and receiving. I'm involved in some of the quality control process. I'm involved in, you know, management of our employees. and then obviously I just said salesman, so I, you know, connect with different customers. I manage over 200 accounts. So I do that. kind of what led me to Mac. Sa I mentioned it's family owned, but I really didn't think I was going to get into the family business when I was younger. And then as I got older, kind of exiting high school, I knew I was going to I I went to Butler University, which is in Indianapolis. I went to the Lacey School of Business there. So I studied entrepreneurship and I worked at Mac in the summers, in between college. I actually worked out in the shop. I was wiring panel boxes for power units for the compactors. so that's kind of how I got started. and then once I completed school and I got my degree, I came in, you know, right after COVID and and I've been at Mac five five years now full time. And I've just kind of as I've you know started out in the office once I came out of school and just kind of slowly rose up in my responsibilities and, you know, what I'm doing. At first I was just shipping and receiving and that's all I did. And then I kind of grew out of that into multiple different roles, I guess you could say. So

Carl Holden:4:54
So it's funny, just in my head, I have interviewed multiples son of a business. You're a you're a son of a business that is coming in. And what is great is every single time, especially companies like you, the the family is like, all right, if this something you want to do, let's start your ground floor and work your way up. And that's what you're really doing, and that's really inspiring that you stuck to it.

Rayder Hobbs:5:04
Yeah.

Carl Holden:5:24
And that you did a lot of the business so you one day, if you know you take this over, that you really understand it because there is a stat that says that people like Raider will fail. But I think that a lot of companies make the mistake of not letting Raider have that experience. And so we're proud of you and your family and the infrastructure that you're creating.

Because people don't understand how much it goes into just to get this stuff. I I mean, I just put the trash out the other week and I had no flip and clue thinking about like who is getting all the equipment on that truck or all these things to manage all of this. And you see stuff in like New York when the trash doesn't go out, all heck breaks loose. And it's incredibly important.

Rayder Hobbs:6:17
yeah.

Carl Holden:6:21
the our waste is managed properly, so it's awesome what you guys are doing.

Rayder Hobbs:6:26
Yeah, I appreciate it. Yeah. I mean, it's you're exactly right. I get that all the time. I tell my friends like what I do, and then they start noticing, they start seeing our boxes, our sticker around town, and then they're like, Man, I see you guys all over, but I just would have never thought about it. Or you know, they'll go into the back of a shopping center. We do all of the Simon Mall group. We do their self-contained compactors, and I'll see guys see have friends walking around the mall and they're like, Yeah, I see your compactors back there.

Carl Holden:6:37
Mm.

Rayder Hobbs:6:55
So they're like, yeah, I knew somebody had to do it, but I didn't know it was you. So it's kind of it's kind of cool to see it. I kind of take it. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. You know, we're so we're full family connected too, Carl. So I love what you said about starting ground level. That's how my grandfather wanted me and my brother to learn because that's how my dad learned. So it's a full

Carl Holden:7:00
That's awesome. Well, and it's something you can really take pride in, right?

Rayder Hobbs:7:21
It's gone through the full family. My grandfather started the business nineteen seventy-five. Then my dad came in. My dad went to IU. and then he got out of IU in the early nineties. And then he came in and was in the family business for about five to ten years. And then he started a compactor rental business, and he was our biggest customer. so you know, it's kind of all been family connected, but

Carl Holden:7:41
Hm.

Rayder Hobbs:7:48
anyways, he had my dad start out in the shop. That was very important. you know, he wanted the other employees to respect my dad, but he also wanted my dad to learn everything about the business and be a sponge. So that's what he did with me and my brother, and I'm super grateful he did that because especially wiring panel boxes for power units, I know a lot more electrical. I'm not an electrician, but I know a lot more electrical information than I ever would have.

So it's very valuable information to have when you've got compactors going all over the country. So

Carl Holden:8:24
For sure. That's awesome. Speaking of people working in the company, how many do people do you employ? how has it been finding those right kind of people and how do you keep them engaged in your company culture?

Rayder Hobbs:8:37
Yeah, yeah, that's a great question. So we have a hundred and fifty employees at Mac. So we've got two different shifts. So we've got two really long shifts and we actually work 24-6. So we go every day but Sunday. and then we have our main facility, which we have 13 acres, and we've got six bays in our main building, and then down the street we lease a property. where we do all of our refurbish work. So outside of office, we probably got around 125 guys. 10 out 10 at the refurbished property, 115 at the main property, again, two shifts. a lot of our employees have been with us, you know, we've done videos on it over 20 years. Our plant manager has been with us 23 years. Our original engineer is still with us and he's been with us 50 years. he was one of my grandfather's first employees. so and talking about our our supervisors, most of our supervisors, I believe every single one except one has been with us over ten years. So that being said, we don't like to lose our people. So we talk about how it's a family culture, but with that, I really think you have to take care of your your people. you take care of them, they take care of you. So that's been crucial for us and very important. and and we've been very fortunate. We've stayed busy. you know, we're on pace I mean, we broke a record in July, we broke a record in June, we're on pace to break a record in August. So you know, we're continuing to to go the right way, but people is they're so important. all of our guys, I mean, when you have guys that have been with you for over twenty years, fifty years on an engineer, that it that knowledge, that exp that industry experience, you cannot replicate that. So, we really respect our people that have been with us and we like to take care of So

Carl Holden:10:47
Silly question. Do you ever get confused to where to throw away your own trash? If you're making all of these things, does that ever get confusing?

Rayder Hobbs:10:54
We we have like a stationary compactor at our facility. So it's funny because whenever my wife gets a bunch of Amazon packages or whatever, she'll be like, Okay, load your car up today. You're taking them all the Mac so I can put them in a compactor. So so yeah, sometimes it gets confusing with with whatever I'm putting in our toter. but yeah, yeah, that does happen. Yeah.

Carl Holden:11:10
Yeah.

Carl Holden:11:18
That's funny. I just popped into my head. so who's your main customer? What does a typical transaction look like?

Rayder Hobbs:11:27
Yeah, so a lot of our customers are independent haulers as far as, you know, the the roll off container side. we ship in all fifty states. So we have containers in all fifty states, including Hawaii, Alaska. so you know, we're shipping to I have loads this week going out to Nampa, Idaho. I've got a load that's going down to Houston, Texas. we ship to Florida. So a lot of what we do is, you know, just

Carl Holden:11:41
Mm.

Rayder Hobbs:11:57
business to business, but a lot of it's independent haulers. and then, you know, on the the compactor side, our biggest customer there is Compactor Rentals of America. they're the biggest independent rental company in the United States. And we build a majority of their compactors. that, funny enough, is is who my dad's company was PackRite Rentals. and he was acquired a few years ago. So my dad built that company and then he was the first biggest and then Compact Reynolds of America was the second and now they've merged and they're one big conglomerate. So we service them as well. So that would be that would be who our main customers are.

Carl Holden:12:35
Hmm.

Carl Holden:12:44
Well that was smart to create some of your own demand by creating another part of the business to that can buy stuff from said company. And we we have a couple of companies that that's literally what they do is they rent the the the drop off ones. It's huge business and multi million dollar business that people don't really understand that Most people aren't going to buy these things. They're going to rent them for a period of time. And I didn't think about it. I guess you're saying that businesses will often rent a com compactor instead of buying one.

Rayder Hobbs:13:20
Yes. Yeah. So basically the way that program works is, you know, you can do a three or a five year, you know, lease rental agreement on the compactor. and the good thing about that is a lot of a lot of these companies don't even know where to start as far as servicing the compactors. So included in those rental agreements, a lot of the times Mac will do it, but we have five full-time service crews and we'll go out, we will install the compactor.

Carl Holden:13:39
Mm.

Rayder Hobbs:13:50
hook all the electrical stuff up, you know, make you know, get the compactor operational running. And then we also maintain the compactor. So we're responsible for all the general maintenance on the machine. So that's a huge plus. You know, we get some customers that buy that, you know, have techs that they can service, but you know, that's a that's a huge plus because a lot of people don't know where to start as far as who do I get a hold of to service this this compactor.

So it's really a turnkey process. You know, you can do the whole thing through me. You know, I am at the manufacturing company and then I work hand in hand with the rental company. So I'm in char you know, I'm manufacturing the machines and then, you know, I can set up our service crew. And so it's a pretty smooth process. So I think that's why a lot of people like going that

Carl Holden:14:43
Kind of twofold question. Do you sell internationally and in the last couple of months, et cetera, have tariff well how have tariffs affected your company?

Rayder Hobbs:14:54
Yeah, so to answer the first question, we have a few compactors in Canada. we do all of the Simon Maul groups across the company or country. We do we build all their compactors. So we have some compactors in Toronto, Canada. outside of that, we don't have anything internationally, it's all within the United States. and then as far as tariffs goes, we've definitely seen increases this year. like sheet steel for us has gone up around four to five percent. and then paint. we we're a water based solvent, but paint across the whole industry has gone up. for us it's gone up around seven or eight percent. So that's the two increases we've seen kind of based off the tariffs and kind of what had been going on, you know, around the world. So

Carl Holden:15:46
Gotcha. any other hindrances to business or opportunities for growth? Like what what's what's the future look like or how are you going to be adjusting to that and any other opportunities for Mac?

Rayder Hobbs:16:03
Yeah. So automation is huge. I was just talking about we're doing we're building a lot of cart dumpers. that's something that's become a lot more prevalent. especially like I said, when you're going to industrial complexes, they don't want people hand feeding these machines. someone could, you know, bend over and hurt their back, and it's a liability. So we're seeing a lot more hay go up, load this cart into a cart dumper, automatically feed the machine.

So we've seen a huge uptick uptick in that. So I've really focused on having four or five different standard dumpers that we offer that, you know, our customers can utilize. But we also build custom application cart dumpers as well. I built one about four or five months ago that so it's pretty cool. The cart dumper actually lifts up about four or five feet in the air and then dumps into a shredder.

So basically what they're doing is it's a lot of wood scraps and they're going into this cart dumper and then it's lifting up and feeding a shredder that grinds it down even more and then it feeds a compactor. So they're basically trying to get it, you know, broken down as minimally as possible before you know they they haul it off. So that's one thing I've seen.

Another thing is there's been a huge uptick in independent haulers starting out with what I call under C DL trucks. So it's a lot easier for guys to get in. You don't have to have a C DL. you can get a hook lift or a trailer or whatever and you can start hauling trash. so that's been a huge I mean, I'd probably say thirty percent of our customers have have been that way within the last three or four years. So that's that's been a huge difference in the industry from when I, you know, first started out in the shop. So a lot of guys it's it the entry point into the business is is a lot better. So yeah.

Carl Holden:18:06
Interesting. Well, we're really proud of everything that you're doing at Mac Corporation. It's kind of stuff that people don't really think about, but somebody has to make it and make it well because I'm sure you have competitors that that you compete against that you know have their own products, but I can tell that y'all really want to build something that lasts and that the customer's happy with and that you support the products that you send out. through that maintenance and that's great. Sure.

Rayder Hobbs:18:37
Sure, absolutely. You know, there there are a lot of manufacturers, but you know, that that I never badmouth anyone out there. Everyone, there's a lot of independence and they're family owned businesses just like us. They're just trying to do the best they can to to grow. And so I always look at us internally, like, hey, as long as we're doing the right things, we're saying, you know, whatever we say we're gonna do, we do it. communication with the customer, that that's key.

And I think that's what people really want to see. So that's what I've kind of learned in my five years is just worry about you internally. Don't worry about all the outside noise. You do the right things and it'll take care of itself. and that's really worked out well for us.

Carl Holden:19:23
That's great attitude. Sometimes it's easy as you know, an American, the let's win, let's beat the others. So you can get caught up in saying or doing the wrong things. And so kudos to you for keeping the right type of attitude and respecting that others are on the same journey as you. And that's awesome.

Rayder Hobbs:19:41
Sure. Yeah. That's why I do a podcast as well. You know, we are in an industry that, you know, ten, fifteen years ago, there was a lot of people that were not really willing to share information. You know, a lot of people hold their cards, you know, close to their their their vest. but I like sharing information. Like anything I can share with my customers, I will do it. Reason being, I want my customers to succeed. because they're independent haulers. If they're growing, then I'm gonna grow.

So I'm gonna share every single bit of information I have to help them because I want them to do well. So

Carl Holden:20:20
That podcast is talking trash, correct?

Rayder Hobbs:20:22
Yep. Talking trash podcast. I have a co-host on there. He's actually a hauler. He's an independent hauler. and he runs a transfer station. So, you know, we've kind of got two different viewpoints, the manufacturing viewpoint and then the actual hauler. So we're kind of trying to capture a little bit of everything in the industry. So we have some guys that are do finance stuff on there. We have other independent haulers, You know, we had my dad on there who was in the compact rental business. So we're kinda trying to get a bunch of different viewpoints. So

Carl Holden:20:57
Great. That's awesome. Well, let's shift a little bit, ask you a couple personal questions, Raider. what's a favorite place that you like in the US to visit?

Rayder Hobbs:21:08
That's a good question. you know, I obviously do like it here in Indianapolis. I love going to Colts games. That's always fun. I really like going down to Florida. I real there's a place just south of Naples, called Marco Island, Florida, and that's like my relaxed spot. That's where I like to go down. It's really quiet. my wife loves it. My lil I've got a eighteen month old daughter, so we'll go down there a few times a year and it it's just a lot of fun. It's fun to spend time with family and I do love what I do, but just like anybody, you know, you can get burnt out after a while. So it's nice to it's nice to go and, you know, unplug for, you know, even if it's just a few days. So I like going down there. It's a lot of fun.

Carl Holden:21:54
Florida has been a very popular spot that people have mentioned. So I wasn't surprised. I'm going down there, well, down to the coast next month as well. So the be the beach is a great place to relax.

Rayder Hobbs:21:58
I'm sure.

Rayder Hobbs:22:06
Yeah, what part are you going to?

Carl Holden:22:09
we go down to like Gulf Shores. It's more technically the, you know, Mobile Bay of Alabama. Sometimes we'll go over into Florida depending on what we want to go see or do. But we have a couple different spots we like to visit. And not this time, but we all sometimes take our camper and having a camper at the beach is just it's awesome.

Rayder Hobbs:22:23
That's awesome.

Rayder Hobbs:22:31
yeah, absolutely. That's great.

Carl Holden:22:34
What's a favorite childhood or younger memory of the USA that you hold dear?

Rayder Hobbs:22:40
Hmm, that's a that's a great question. Well, you know, I always love spending the Fourth of July at my grandfather's house. My my grandfather's also a veteran. So I always love going there and spending time with him and my family. And he had a big firework show at the end of the night. That's what he would always do. So that's something I hold very fond. I have good memories with my cousins, with my brother, sister. so and you know, my grandfather,

Carl Holden:22:50
Hmm.

Rayder Hobbs:23:09
He w he would have like a ton of people there. And for me, a ton of people's like seventy-five to a hundred. And it it was just a good fun get together, cookout style, swim. So I always enjoyed that. And you know, talking about USA, you know, my grandfather, you know, made a huge sacrifice. You know, he served during the Vietnam War. grateful that he came back here and started Mac and we wouldn't have any of this. So we're W he definitely means a lot to me, so that's a that's a great memory from my younger years.

Carl Holden:23:41
For sure. Shout out to our veterans and especially our veteran business owners like your grandfather that came back and made a a critical difference by starting a business and participating heavily and and giving back even more than they already gave. It's so so inspiring to see people like your grandfather do what they did and take many people have a hard time afterwards and take the energy and grit.

And put that into something of building jobs for America. And so tell your grandfather, I said thanks.

Rayder Hobbs:24:18
Absolutely. Absolutely. Yeah, he loves what he does. And he's still, you know, my grandfather's seventy six and he's still very active in our business. So I give him a lot of props for that. He's on the road traveling today to see a customer. So he loves it. and and kudos to him. You know, he doesn't have to do anything at this point. but he loves he truly loves to do it. and he loves being involved and

Carl Holden:24:38
Right. Yeah.

Rayder Hobbs:24:44
he's a great mentor for me and my brother. You know, you talk about having someone that's taught us that has fifty one years of experience, you know. I have to give him a lot of credit for for my my journey and my growth. Same with my dad, you know. My dad's fifty five but has over thirty years of industry experience. that's that's very rare. So I'm very grateful to have both of them as my as my mentor or my mint mentors. So

Carl Holden:25:04
Mm.

Carl Holden:25:13
Well speaking of mentorship, if all the future US professionals that are coming into the workforce could hear you, what is some advice that you would give them?

Rayder Hobbs:25:23
Man, that's a really good question because I would say don't ever get discouraged. early on you you work you're when you're young to like real young, like right out of college, you're ready to go, or even whatever you're doing. If it's out of high school, you're ready to go, you're ready to start doing things. just fail. Fail and learn. don't be discouraged if you do fail. That's that's part of the learning process. I have employees that Have been with me for a year that are in new roles. I want them to fail. not all the time, but you know, you do need to fail to learn. It's just part of it. I remember early on, I was setting up shipping for one of my dad's malls, and it was a Simon Mall, so it was a big deal. And I was going down to Miami, Florida, and I was all used to stuff shipping within the Midwest. So, you know, talking within a 250 mile radius, and I was supposed to have compactors there. on a Monday when they were set up for you know a Tuesday install and I didn't call the truck till Monday. So had to push the whole install off. It was a big deal. I made a big mistake. but I'll tell you what, I never made that mistake again. So you know don't be don't be discouraged. Don't be afraid to fail. That would be my advice. just put in the work, do the best you can and it'll all work out.

Carl Holden:26:39
Mm-hmm.

Carl Holden:26:49
That's great advice, Rader. Thank you so much for that and for everything your family's doing in making things in the USA and for us to create a country that is both independent and capable of taking care of everything. including our our waste. And it's critically important that people like yourself are out there and carrying on through multiple generations the vision of what you're doing and growing. And we're really proud of you. Thank thank you for all you do.

Rayder Hobbs:27:20
No, hey, I I appreciate it. Again, I appreciate you letting me be on here and talking about our family business. this is what matters and that's why I do my podcast too. I love hearing I I went to school for entrepreneurship. So I love hearing about businesses, startups. It's it's what I love to do. So I I enjoy doing it. So thanks for having me on here too.

Carl Holden:27:44
Well thanks for coming on and we'll talk soon.

Rayder Hobbs:27:47
Yeah, absolutely. Thank you very much.