Jacqueline Hochheiser, Corporate Communications
Mini-Circuits ships products to customers all across the globe. The company’s main shipping hub is located at our Deer Park facility on Long Island, New York, where the integral Prepping department is situated. The Prepping team is responsible for preparing and packing nearly all shipments Mini-Circuits makes to customers both domestically and internationally. In 2023 alone, the team was responsible for prepping over 170,000-line items for customer orders. This feat is only magnified by the sheer size of the Deer Park warehouse, which spans over 30,000 square feet of stock area.
To ensure that these orders ship on time and meet the exact specifications the customer requires, prepping team members must constantly be on top of their game. Currently, the Prepping department consists of four members, including Prepping Team Leader, Marc Penberg. His team consists of Melissa Najarro, Sugerlin Lopez, and Rina Ramos, and Marc could not be prouder of their dedication, work ethic and team effort. The prepping process extends beyond retrieving items from the shelves and placing them in boxes. Each item must undergo a detailed inspection for potential damage, as well as verification of part numbers and date codes against customer requirements. The items are then carefully packaged in trays, bags, or boxes before affixing labels and integrating them into master boxes for shipment.
Throughout the day, each team member is responsible for around 30-line items per batch. To start the prepping process, each member gets a “pick ticket,’ which lists all the items required for a specific shipping box or order. The ticket typically comes with detailed instructions including the quantity of each component and where to find it in the warehouse. The prepping team members then traverse the warehouse on mobile carts to pick the necessary items from stock. After the necessary tests are done, and quantities are double and triple checked, the team creates labels for the shipping team. These labels provide the quantity, date codes (the date the items were stocked), and respective part numbers for the components in the box. The Prepping team’s job, after receiving the boxes and labels, is to check that part numbers and quantities match what is in the box.
According to Nabil Mahmood (Senior Warehouse Manager at Deer Park), the Prepping department is one of the most demanding departments in the Deer Park operation, both physically and mentally. The team typically works 2 to three days ahead of the shipping schedule, but often, work can come in surges, putting more strain on the small department. A new order for the day can disrupt the schedule, but that doesn’t stop the team from getting the job done. Typically, the cutoff time for receiving new orders is 1 p.m., but the prepping team has stepped up to the challenge and regularly takes care of last-minute requests that come in up to 3 p.m.
“I’m of the opinion that I have the best department,” said Marc Penberg. “I wouldn’t trade my team for any other team in this warehouse or any other warehouse. My team is very adept at what they do. They have a great sense of teamwork, urgency, and they’re all hard workers. They never complain and they all want to improve and learn to be proficient in all areas.”
Not only is Marc’s team more than proficient in their duties in the prepping department, but they are also being cross trained to cover other responsibilities in the warehouse. This ensures that if someone were out sick, or they find themselves shorthanded, others in the warehouse can be adaptable and move where they’re most needed to distribute the workload and avoid shipping delays.
As the team heads into 2024, Marc says that he is looking to keep improving in all areas of the prepping department and his team’s cross training. “They’re on a good trajectory. There’s a lot of work and our goal is that all pick tickets printed on the day must be prepped the same day. Members average about 250 lines per day, but when it’s really busy, they can surpass that number comfortably. They just keep their heads down and work.”
The warehouse operations at Mini-Circuits’ Deer Park location are integral to the success of the company, ensuring that all stages the order shipping process are running smoothly and efficiently. The Prepping department is key to this success, and the small team more than makes up for their man power with the energy and effort they bring to the job each day.
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