Overview
The material planner is an essential part of the manufacturing team and ensures the flow of materials necessary for all manufacturing operations. The planner ensure that the company never runs out of necessary manufacturing materials. The planner will work both as part of a team and independently in a variety of settings. Depending on the situation, the material planner may be required to perform physically intensive work, such as surveying inventory and inspecting the production line.The position is part of our Operations team and will report to the Supply and Distribution Manager.Responsibilities
- Manage production flow
- Ensure the steady flow of materials necessary for production to produce according to production plan and forecast.
- Make sure there’s adequate supply of materials for production without over-ordering or wasting resources .
- Ensure product supply
- Make sure there are adequate materials to ensure steady imported product delivery to customers.
- Monitor materials flow to identify bottlenecks and forecast problems.
- Maintain inventory
- Use forecast to plan adequate raw material and finished good supply to support production requirements and delivery to customers.
- Work to achieve 6 stock terns within 12 - 18 months.
- Manage cycle counts for raw material and imported finished goods.
- Track material shipments
- Organise and schedule deliveries of raw materials from call off orders.
- Track raw material deliveries planned by procurement.
- Track raw materials and finished goods imported by logistics.
- Track min/max stock levels of raw materials and imported finished goods in warehouse.
- Communication with other departments
- Act as liaison between manufacturing, logistics and procurement.
Qualifications
Material planning requires industry knowledge more than academic creditentials. We are looking for candidates with industry experience as well as the following skills:
- Knowledge of shipping and receiving – material planners plan and verify incoming shipments and fully understand the process of receiving shipments.
- Knowledge of manufacturing process – managing the supply of materials for manufacturing means material planners are highly skilled in all processes related to the manufacturing their company performs.
- Critical thinking – material planners can think clearly and rationally about every task at hand. They often work independently to review logistics and can analyse situations to solve problems and create solutions.
- Time management – material planners must keep tight schedules and possess the ability to prioritize, schedule, and set and meet manufacturing goals.
- Organization skills – managing a production line requires coordinating multiple parts of the manufacturing process to run smoothly, so material planners must stay organized and keep production flowing at an appropriate pace.
- Communication skills – material planners work within a team and are often the only point of contact between the manufacturing department and suppliers.
Experience:
- Planning experience.
- Experience in logistics (imports).
- Experience in buying.
- Experience with stock management.
- Good knowledge of Office 365.
Key Competencies:
- A high degree of personal motivation, sense of urgency and desire to make an immediate contribution.
- Good oral and written skills in English and Afrikaans.
- Computer literate.
- Having high attention to details.
- Being able to meet strict deadlines.
- Being able to work with a team.
- Having good communication skills.
- Being proactive.
- Having planning skills.
- Being able to work under stressful circumstances.
- Knowledge of ERP systems.