Production Control Specialist - Shipping Planner

HL Mando America Corp•Hogansville, GA

5h•Hybrid

About The Position

The Shipping Planner is responsible for managing customer shipping requirements, shipment planning activities, and logistics coordination to ensure on-time delivery, accurate inventory control, and compliance with customer expectations. This position works closely with Production, Material Control, Sales, PM, and R&D to balance customer demand, production capacity, inventory levels, and logistics requirements.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree (4-year college) in Business, Supply Chain, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and relevant work experience.
Minimum of 1 years of experience in Production Control, Engineering Change Management, Supply Chain, or a related manufacturing environment.
Ability to prepare, review, and respond to technical and business documentation
Strong verbal and written communication skills
Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel and Power point, including XLOOKUP/VLOOKUP, INDEX-MATCH, IF, SUMIFS, PivotTables, and data analysis.
Experience with SAP (PP/MM), MRP, and ERP systems.
Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
Must be at least 18 years of age due to federal labor law requirements.
Must be legally authorized to work in the United States.

Nice To Haves

Strong knowledge of automotive logistics, customer delivery requirements, EDI processes, inventory control, and ERP systems.
Ability to effectively plan shipments by balancing customer demand, production schedules, inventory levels, and logistics constraints while proactively identifying and mitigating potential risks.
Strong analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills, with the ability to collaborate across multiple functions and clearly communicate customer requirements, priorities, and recovery plans.
Takes ownership of assigned responsibilities, maintains a strong customer-focused mindset, drives continuous improvement, and consistently supports operational excellence through accurate planning, timely execution, and effective cross-functional coordination.

Responsibilities

Develop and maintain daily and weekly shipment plans based on customer demand, inventory availability, production schedules, and logistics constraints.
Optimize carrier appointment schedules to minimize loading/unloading delays and prevent detention charges.
Adjust shipment schedules on a daily basis in response to demand fluctuations, carrier updates, shipping dock capacity, and material shortages.
Communicate to Logistics Supervisor and related teams when to collect, package and ship materials to other HL Mando sites. Maintain all essential documentation and complete inventory transactions.
Monitor customer EDI releases, forecasts, and shipping schedules daily to identify demand changes and potential risks.
Analyze demand fluctuations and communicate changes to all related teams.
Ensure customer requirements are reflected accurately in shipping plans.
Ensure invoices are submitted in customer portals (as applicable) in timely manner.
Establish and maintain consistent access to all customer and carrier portals.
Check customer portals for any updated requirements on a weekly basis to ensure proper compliance. If expectations are not clear, contact customer logistics team directly to verify.
Clearly communicate detailed customer requirements and expectations to Logistics Supervisor and shipping team to ensure shipments are properly packaged, banded, labeled, and staged for pickup.
Submit packaging proposals for customer approval as needed based on each customers’ guidelines.
Monitor finished goods inventory to ensure sufficient coverage for scheduled pickups.
Coordinate with Production Planner to verify timing if inventory is not sufficient.
Develop and communicate earliest recovery plans to customers and carriers as needed.
Conduct weekly PI to ensure physical inventory and system inventory is properly matched.
Monitor inventory transactions to ensure accuracy after each sales order is closed.
Identify root causes of inventory discrepancies and implement corrective and preventive actions to eliminate recurring issues.
Ensure all inventory movements are accurately recorded and comply with company procedures and inventory control standards.
Monitor customer scorecard status (Logistics/Delivery) to ensure full compliance.
Monitor shipping performance to ensure timely ASN submission.
Review weekly AR Chargeback report to assess if issues occurred due to logistics non-compliance.
Submit corresponding memos for approval by providing detailed supporting documentation.
Coordinate with: PE, Production, Quality (CS/PQ/SQ), Purchasing, PC, MC, R&D, SD, PM, Sales
Resolve issues affecting shipment schedules (carrier delays, demand fluctuations, etc.)
Support customer requirements through effective communication across departments.
Cross-training and essential task fulfillment may be required in event of Logistics Supervisor absence.
Identify potential risks associated with Logistics.
Develop mitigation plans for supply interruptions related to logistics.
Coordinate contingency plans when necessary.
Support root cause analysis for logistics issues
Maintain system accuracy to ensure sales orders, transfer requests, and labels are properly updated.
Support system improvements related to logistics planning.
Review and communicate necessary system modifications to improve shipment planning processes.
Prepare daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, and logistics compliance and chargeback reduction reports.
Support KPI reporting to management and Global Headquarters.
Analyze logistics performance, delivery performance, inventory, and customer scorecard status.
Participate in global KPI review meetings as necessary
Prepare and submit a weekly work activity report to the Production Control Sr Manager, summarizing completed work, progress, outstanding issues, and planned follow-up actions.
Proactively identify improvement opportunities related to assigned responsibilities, work processes, and system utilization to enhance operational efficiency, accuracy, and productivity.
Develop and implement continuous improvement initiatives for daily work processes and monitor the effectiveness of implemented solutions.
Submit a monthly Continuous Improvement (CI) activity report to the Production Control Manager summarizing improvement ideas, implementation progress, and measurable results.
Complete and document at least one (1) Continuous Improvement project annually, demonstrating measurable improvements in productivity, quality, cost, delivery, or process efficiency.
Participate in scheduled inventory audits conducted monthly, quarterly, or semi-annually to verify physical inventory accuracy and reconcile discrepancies between system records and actual inventory.
Support investigation of inventory variances, identify root causes, and implement corrective actions to improve inventory accuracy and maintain proper inventory control.