Production Material Planner

Position Summary The Senior Materials Planner is responsible for ensuring materials are available to support production requirements while maintaining appropriate inventory levels and accurate production schedules. This position coordinates material planning, production scheduling, inventory control, and cycle counting activities to support customer requirements and efficient plant operations. The role works closely with Production, Purchasing, Customer Service, Warehouse, Quality, and other plant functions to identify material risks, resolve shortages, maintain inventory accuracy, and support on-time delivery in a fast-paced automotive manufacturing environment. Essential Duties and Responsibilities Materials Planning Plan and coordinate raw materials, components, and purchased parts based on production requirements, customer demand, and inventory levels. Review MRP requirements and release or communicate material needs as appropriate. Monitor material availability and proactively identify potential shortages that could impact production. Work with Purchasing and suppliers to address material shortages, delivery changes, and other supply concerns. Monitor inventory levels and help balance material availability with inventory targets. Support engineering changes, new product launches, and material phase-in/phase-out activities as applicable. Production Scheduling Develop and maintain production schedules based on customer requirements, available materials, capacity, and plant priorities. Communicate production schedule requirements and changes to Operations and other affected departments. Monitor daily production performance against the schedule and adjust planning priorities when necessary. Identify scheduling constraints and escalate risks that could affect customer delivery. Coordinate changing priorities in response to customer releases, material availability, equipment issues, or other operational conditions. Inventory Control Support accurate inventory transactions and physical inventory processes. Coordinate and perform cycle counts and investigate inventory discrepancies. Analyze variances and work with Operations, Warehouse, and other departments to identify root causes. Support corrective actions to improve inventory accuracy. Review slow-moving, excess, and obsolete inventory and communicate concerns to management. Support annual physical inventory preparation and execution. Operational Support Monitor material-related issues that could cause production interruptions or customer delivery risks. Participate in daily production and materials meetings as required. Maintain planning reports, inventory data, and key supply-chain metrics. Support continuous improvement initiatives related to material flow, inventory accuracy, scheduling, and planning processes. Maintain accurate information within the company's ERP/MRP system. Follow established safety, quality, environmental, and company procedures. Qualifications Education Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Operations, Logistics, or a related field preferred. Equivalent combination of education and relevant manufacturing experience may be considered. Experience 5+ years of materials planning, production planning, scheduling, or inventory-control experience preferred. Automotive or Tier 1/Tier 2 manufacturing experience strongly preferred. Experience working with MRP/ERP systems. Experience with cycle counting, physical inventory, inventory reconciliation, and material shortage management. Experience supporting a fast-paced manufacturing operation with changing customer requirements. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities Strong knowledge of MRP and materials planning principles. Strong understanding of production scheduling and inventory management. Ability to analyze customer demand, inventory, production requirements, and material availability. Strong Microsoft Excel skills. Strong analytical and problem-solving skills. Ability to prioritize multiple pr…

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