Manager - Production Planning & Purchasing-Aerofil
About The Position
The Production Planning & Purchasing Manager is responsible for leading all procurement and production planning activities to ensure material availability, accurate scheduling, and uninterrupted production flow. This role oversees a team of four Buyer/Planners and two Planner Assistants, ensuring that each Buyer/Planner manages both purchasing and production planning for two assigned production lines. The manager drives material readiness, production schedule accuracy, supplier performance, and SAP data integrity. This position partners closely with Operations, Quality, Engineering, and Warehouse teams to ensure production is fully supported with the right materials at the right time.
Requirements
- 5+ years experience in Purchasing, Procurement, or Supply Chain.
- Experience with SAP or similar ERP system.
- Strong understanding of MRP, supplier management, and inventory control.
- Demonstrated ability to lead teams and manage competing priorities.
- Strong analytical, communication, and negotiation skills.
- Strong problem‑solving and decision‑making skills.
- Ability to work cross‑functionally and influence without authority.
- High attention to detail and commitment to data accuracy.
- Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
Nice To Haves
- Experience with LEAN, continuous improvement, or process optimization preferred.
Responsibilities
- Oversee creation, release, and management of purchase orders in SAP based on MRP, forecasts, and production requirements.
- Maintain strong supplier relationships to ensure reliable delivery, quality compliance, and responsiveness.
- Support sourcing initiatives, negotiate pricing, and identify cost‑reduction opportunities.
- Monitor and adjust supplier lead times to maintain accurate planning data.
- Partner with Quality to resolve supplier non‑conformances and performance issues.
- Champion SAP data integrity (pricing, lead times, vendor master, material master).
- Ensure production schedules are accurate, feasible, and aligned with material availability.
- Lead planning activities to ensure production orders are released, sequenced, and executed on time.
- Ensure all required materials are on‑hand to support scheduled production.
- Identify bottlenecks and adjust schedules to optimize throughput.
- Collaborate with Operations, Warehouse, and Quality to ensure smooth execution of the production plan.
- Participate in daily/weekly production meetings to communicate risks, shortages, and recovery plans.
- Manage and develop a team of 4 Buyer/Planners and 2 Planner Assistants.
- Assign line ownership: each Buyer/Planner manages purchasing + planning for two production lines.
- Balance workload, coach team members, and build capability in planning and procurement.
- Create and maintain standard work for all planning and purchasing processes.
- Maintain dashboards and reports for: Material availability, Production schedule adherence, Supplier OTD, Inventory coverage, Past due POs, Excess & obsolete inventory.
- Provide leadership with visibility into risks, trends, and required actions.
- Identify process inefficiencies and lead improvement projects across planning and purchasing.
- Support LEAN initiatives, root cause analysis, and workflow optimization.
- Improve accuracy of MRP, master data, and planning parameters.
- Monitor inventory levels to support production without excess.
- Reduce excess/obsolete inventory through proactive planning and supplier collaboration.
- Partner with Finance and Warehouse to ensure accurate valuation and tracking of materials.
- Support budgeting, cost planning, and spend analysis.
- Other responsibilities as outlined by management.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Manager
