Production Planning & Materials Supervisor The Production Planning & Materials Supervisor is responsible for converting customer demand and inventory requirements into an executable production plan, while ensuring the availability and controlled flow of raw materials, work-in-process, and finished goods required to support that plan. The position is primarily focused on production planning, scheduling, work order management, and material availability, with responsibility for coordinating warehouse activities to ensure production runs efficiently and without interruption. The role serves as a critical link between Sales, Customer Service, Production, Warehouse, Purchasing, and Quality, ensuring that production priorities are clearly communicated, materials are available when required, and the ERP system accurately reflects the actual status of production and inventory. The position is accountable for maintaining a reliable production schedule, accurate work orders, strong inventory discipline, and operational continuity. Some Spanish language is preferred.
Key Responsibilities 1. Production Planning & Scheduling
Develop and maintain the production plan based on customer demand, forecasts, inventory targets, available capacity, labor, and material availability.
Coordinate scheduling and production sequence across extrusion, drying/baking, and packing operations to optimize efficiency and minimize changeovers and downtime.
Continuously adjust the plan based on production performance, equipment downtime, material availability, quality issues, and customer priorities.
Monitor execution against plan and proactively identify and escalate capacity constraints, delays, and delivery risks.
2. Work Order & ERP Management
Supervise the accurate and timely creation, release, and closure of production work orders.
Ensure work orders contain the correct product, quantity, BOM, routing, and traceability requirements.
Maintain planning and master data accuracy, including lead times, BOMs, routings, and inventory parameters.
3. Material Planning & Inventory Control
Ensure raw materials, packaging, and other production requirements are available. Coordinate with Purchasing and Warehouse to anticipate and resolve material shortages or delays.
Maintain accurate inventory levels and strong lot/batch traceability across raw materials, WIP, and finished goods.
Lead cycle counts and investigate inventory discrepancies, focusing on root cause and corrective action.
Ensure proper material storage, handling, FIFO practices, and timely return of unused production materials.
4. Warehouse & Production Material Flow
Coordinate warehouse activities and material staging according to production priorities.
Ensure materials are correctly identified, available, and delivered to production when required.
Coordinate receiving, storage, transfers, and finished goods movements while maintaining accurate ERP transactions.
Ensure non-conforming, damaged, or unidentified materials are properly segregated and coordinated with Quality.
Ensure finished goods are properly identified, stored, and available for shipment.
5. Cross-Functional Coordination & Execution
Act as the key link between Planning, Production, Warehouse, Purchasing, Sales, Customer Service, and Quality.
Communicate production priorities, schedule changes, material constraints, and delivery risks clearly and proactively.
Coordinate with Sales and Customer Service to align production priorities with customer requirements and realistic shipping commitments.
Work with Production to improve schedule adherence and resolve execution issues.
6. Team Leadership & Continuous Improvement
Supervise and coordinate warehouse/material-handling personnel and ensure clear daily priorities.
Maintain accountability for safety, inventory accuracy, material availability, and adherence to established processes.
Analyze deviations between the production plan and actual results and drive root cause corrective actions.
