PHOENIX (AZFamily) -- It's crunch time for the holidays. The USPS West Valley Processing and Distribution Center at 47th Avenue and McKinley Street is Santa's workshop in the desert.

"So far, since Thanksgiving, we've processed almost 6 million packages. Daily, we do 700,000 at this facility, so it's pretty busy for us," said Robert Santa Cruz, the Senior Manager for Distribution Operations.

Arizona's Family is told the plant processes 700,000 packages daily, a record-breaking number.

That's why all hands are on deck for the holidays at the nearly 550,000 sq. ft. facility, which is said to be one of the biggest in the nation.

"Roughly, right now, we've got about 350 employees on the clock right now," said Santa Cruz. "We've got maintenance here. Mail handlers. We've got clerks here. Everybody's got a different function to do this job."

Tour 3 Shift Manager Vanessa Araux said she monitors the facility to ensure all packages are handled carefully and quickly.

"Every year, they (employees) know it's coming every year and this is what we're about every year," said Araux.

Santa Cruz said they hired 120 part-time workers to help with the demand and deadlines.

"We process it pretty fast here and we get it out on time to the customer--at all costs here," he said.

If customers want their packages delivered by Christmas, deadlines must be met.

The shipping dates for the contiguous U.S., which includes every state except for Alaska and Hawaii, are:

The recommended shipping dates for Alaska and Hawaii are:

For more information on USPS shipping deadlines, and international and military shipping deadlines, visit the USPS website.

If customers drop off their packages on time, Santa Cruz said they're covered. "It'll be on time. This facility will have it there on time. We guarantee that," he said.