Pedricktown, NJ— A veteran reporter limits hopes for a great interview when meeting Frank Manfredi Sr. at one of his business-expansion sites.

If one’s feelings are hurt to be left for the refrigeration guy, or the fellow testing precise Clementine bag weights on just-installed European packaging equipment, then one has come to the wrong place.  And certainly, arrived with mistaken expectations.

The reporter expects to take a few construction photos — which will very soon be outdated — enjoy an interesting conversation with Frank (Frankie) Manfredi Jr.  and then leave to call Senior when he’s anywhere but amid his latest passion.

Discussing his father’s inclination toward perfectionism, Frankie noted that Frank is at least as interested in keeping his boat engines eat-off-the-floor clean as he is in piloting the boat. 

Extrapolate this stance to Frank’s thoughts when building his latest 100,000 square feet of refrigerated warehousing.

Frankie lent more insight into his father’s mind…

When Frankie was in school, his dad told him to imagine a dollar sign at the beginning of every line he read.  “That adds some importance” to the study process, Frankie was taught.

Furthermore, “If you miss a question on a test, imagine that’s the mistake you made that sent you into bankruptcy,” Frank told his son.

Opening door to future

While leading the brief new-construction tour on June 8, Frank strode to a back door of the warehouse.  Outside, the view was unremarkable, with a pad area in the foreground, with a tilled field beyond.  A few hundred yards further to the east was a road, and a line of trees.

Frank noted that the wall holding the door in his hand would be knocked down immediately after the current warehouse work was complete. This short-lived wall bore no weight, so when another 42,000 square feet of warehousing went into place, the wall vanished.

By the time Manfredi’s New Jersey facility reaches 600,000 square feet, it will run almost to the distant trees, he said.

Why be so positive?

Manfredi said the oncoming $500 million ocean container seaport in Edgemoor, DE, being built by GT Wilmington, “will be fabulous” for growth in the Delaware River Valley.

Meanwhile the Holt family, which owns Holt Logistics Corp. is expanding its vast services on the Delaware’s New Jersey shores.  Pedricktown is in a great position to handle that oncoming perishable business.  And of course, Manfredi’s Kennett Square position is a few miles from Wilmington, and all of Philadelphia’s seaport facilities.

Manfredi noted that the Holts manage all of their port interests “extremely well. You see the next generation of Holts all getting involved.” Such youth and energy are needed in the trade, he added.

The here and now

On a June 15 follow-up telephone call — conducted as Frank drove to Pedricktown from his Kennett Square, PA, home base — he indicated that New Jersey cold storage, packing and cross-docking facility would receive its first truckload of produce by July 1. 

Frankie said on June 8: “We turned the building on two weeks ago.  She is speaking to us.”  By that, he meant that all the rooms and refrigeration equipment were fully wired in, and keeping managers informed that all is well.  If there is a hitch, Manfredi management is equipped for an immediate resolution.

The design and function of the New Jersey facility almost entirely reflects Manfredi Cold Storage facilities in Kennett Square, using an ideal design settled upon a dozen years ago.  Exceptions, Manfredi noted, are that the cold chain-controlled Pedricktown loading docks give operators more room to safely navigate.  Another improvement in New Jersey is that the sophisticated repacking facility is immediately adjacent to the cold room for finished products.

This project was first conceived in 2008.  For a variety of reasons, the site shifted, and construction was delayed but the acreage, time and location are now prime for Manfredi Cold Storage to expand with the Delaware River’s burgeoning trade of perishable imports.

The site is on 52 acres with rail access.  Manfredi can provide rail service to customers from either his New Jersey or his Pennsylvania operations.

Labor concerns

Frank Manfredi Sr. said his greatest concern about the new facility is not having customers or any other critical issues… except for adequate labor!

“For us, and everyone else on the (Delaware) river, the biggest issue is labor.”

Dockworkers and others are in very high demand.

In Pedricktown, as well at as the 40-year old Manfredi Cold Storage business in Kennett Square, the firm is training new employees to be forklift drivers and respect and understand the fragile subtleties of handling fresh fruits and vegetables.

Manfredi maintains his workforce by offering 401-K’s, health, and vacation programs, paid time off, Spanish and English classes to train to workers to better communicate with each other and customers.   Also Manfredi offers paid 12 weeks of maternity leave. 

“On the waterfront, they all have the same problem” in finding and keeping workers.

As a result, business operators have been forced into greater and greater efficiencies to keep product costs down. “But you can only absorb so much,” after a labor crisis over the last 36 months.

Also on the personnel front, he said his food-safety specialists, Hector Nunez and Kelly Rios led The Manfredi Cos. through the COVID-19 crisis so well as to scarcely skip a beat. With such good management “it was not as bad as we thought it might be.  We have six people cleaning everything every two hours. They wipe and sanitize.”

Despite internal efforts, workers would go home to conditions that were not necessarily as guarded.  As some workers were forced to quarantine, their coworkers would accept overtime work to maintain Manfredi service.

The new construction was a team effort

Frank said of the New Jersey project: “The whole thing was very much a group effort. All the people at Manfredi contributed. Frankie was instrumental in the site purchase and preparation. Rob Wharry, a 30-year Manfredi veteran did tons of extra work to cover for me, he was instrumental in the design and implementation of the refrigeration systems control and helping with the fit out of the new facility.

“Johnny Carrillo and Patrick Campise handled the packing room, its design, packing equipment purchases and all the necessary supplies. Dave Cifune and Jeff Hedrick worked on the warehouse side training and prepping the new employees that were headed to New Jersey along with all of the material handling purchases.  Dan Migala and Steve Zurl have done a great job in IT, including a systems update in Kennett Square which included new Dell Virtual Servers, Disaster Recovery Server, additional Cloud Storage and Cell Tower internet rollover.  Carina Zamores works so hard in customer service, hiring and training the new shipping and receiving team that will staff her department in New Jersey. Debbie Tully on the accounting side managed all of the bill paying for the new construction in New Jersey.  Manfredi acts as their own general contractor overseeing all of the construction.  Frank Manfredi also credited his talented daughter, Jaclyn, for coordinating the new customers to launch the New Jersey facility.”

“Everybody, across the board, has stepped up and took ownership. 

“There were a lot of people standing behind this to get it to fruition. There were a lot of people instrumental in getting this over the finish line. The response has been really upbeat. Honestly, it’s been great!” I am very proud to be associated with such a great team and very fortunate to work with such great people.

Frank and John’s plans

Frank Manfredi Sr. will be 66 this year. His brother and lifelong partner, John, will be 71.

“No one can tell the future of their health. Now, we’re enjoying what we’re doing. Our business will continue to grow through handling domestic and imported products.”

Frank credits the next generation of Manfredi’s with being bright, ambitious, and capable. Importantly, “they work well with everybody.”