The Career of Marge Janitschek at MH&W

In April 2023, Marge Janitschek, purchasing manager at MH&W International Corp, celebrated 50 years with the company. As part of a recent Q&A session, Marge shared details about her current position and how her role and the industry have changed over time.

When did you begin working at MH&W?

I joined MH&W back on April 30, 1973.

What does your current role involve?

Right now, I’m responsible for purchasing and supply line management with approximately 10 vendors located in Europe and Asia. These vendors fall under three divisions of MH&W: cores and components, filters and TIM, and gaskets and seals. I’m also involved in receiving operations, as well as entering and processing purchase orders and material transfer orders for value-added orders.

What does a typical day look like for you?

A usual day for me consists of:

• Checking the vendor portals for stock availability and in-transit items
• Entering new parts into the software databases
• Entering and sending purchase orders to vendors
• Updating new incoming delivery dates for all open POs
• Tracing the whereabouts of in-transit products
• Optimizing minimum and maximum inventory levels based on input from the sales division about future use and product history
• Replying to customers asking for compliance forms for specific parts, such as RoHS, REACH, etc.

How has your role changed since you started at MH&W?

The most dramatic change was that, starting in order processing, I’ve seen and lived through the transition from manual entries to digital platforms. On average, a manual order took three days to enter, process, and ship, while now an order can ship within the same day. After five years in order processing, I transitioned to inventory maintenance, in which a computer system for purchasing was installed and greatly improved our lead times. From inventory management, MH&W promoted me to purchasing manager, the position I hold today.

Is there anything else you would like to share regarding your experience at MH&W?

MH&W was and is a great place to work, and I’ve experienced the evolving changes in the world and the work environment. New skills were developed and required to keep up with the automation and digitalization of almost all business processes. This is an endless learning process.

I’ve witnessed the evolution of technology in my lifetime. For example, when I started at MH&W, I was working in collaboration with several research facilities, such as Lawrence Livermore and Brookhaven, to provide very large, soft magnetic ferrite rings to create and harness the potential power of fusion. Now, after my 50 years of service and the observation of research and experimentation results, fusion reactors are closer to becoming a reality.

Technology has moved me from an analog to a digital world. In the 1970s, Bell Telephone Labs developed the ability to switch the telephone system from analog to digital. All central switching stations in telecommunications and telephones were converted to digital communication from rotary touch-tone telephones. I was part of the transition in handling the tremendous amount of ferrites used by AT&T, later called Lucent, Northern Telecom, and others.

Also, there’s the commercialization of the cell phone. As part of MH&W, I was instrumental in procuring and selling large amounts of microwave components imported from TDK in Japan for the development of cell phone networks for Motorola and GE.

Learn more about MH&W

Since MH&W’s beginnings in 1964, the company has developed into an industry leader in high-performance nanocrystalline components, magnetic cores, power conversion parts, and noise-filtering and EMI-prevention solutions. Our team of experienced engineers serves clients across North America with inductive and line absorbers, filters, and chokes for EV, VFD, solar, and wind applications. Our goal is to deliver standard and custom products that help our clients be competitive in their various markets. To learn more about MH&W and our capabilities, contact us today.