Sr. Production Planner

Senior Production Planner

SUMMARY: The Senior Production Planner III is responsible for leading advanced production planning and scheduling activities to ensure optimal material flow, on‑time delivery, and efficient use of manufacturing resources. This role develops and executes production plans aligned with customer demand, capacity constraints, and inventory targets while driving continuous improvement across planning processes.

The Senior Production Planner III collaborates cross‑functionally with operations, supply chain, procurement, engineering, quality, and finance to balance demand and supply, mitigate risks, and resolve complex planning challenges. This position serves as a subject matter expert in ERP/MRP systems (prefer Epicor E10), capacity planning, forecasting, and inventory management, and may mentor junior planners.

Key responsibilities include developing master production schedules, analyzing capacity and material constraints, managing work order priorities, driving inventory optimization initiatives, supporting S&OP processes, and ensuring adherence to company policies and regulatory requirements. The role requires strong analytical skills, data‑driven decision‑making, and the ability to influence stakeholders at multiple levels of the organization. Commitment to and support of the Company Core Values are key to success in this position.

• Develop, maintain, and execute the Master Production Schedule (MPS) to meet customer demand and on-time delivery targets.
• Translate forecasts and customer orders into detailed production and work order plans.
• Balance demand and supply while considering capacity, labor, tooling, and material constraints.
• Monitor schedule adherence and adjust plans to address changes in demand, shortages, or production issues.
• Prioritize and release work orders in alignment with business objectives.
• Lead planning activities for new product launches from development through production ramp‑up.
• Partner with Engineering, Program Management, Supply Chain, and Operations to ensure material readiness, capacity availability, and schedule alignment for NPI programs.
• Validate BOMs, routings, lead times, and planning parameters prior to production release.
• Develop ramp‑up plans and transition strategies from prototype to full‑rate production.
• Identify supply chain and production risks during NPI and implement mitigation plans.
• Support first article builds, pilot runs, and customer milestone schedules.
• Ensure ERP/MRP system setup is accurate and aligned with program timelines.
• Perform capacity planning and load analysis to ensure efficient utilization of equipment and labor.
• Identify bottlenecks and recommend corrective actions to mitigate risks.
• Coordinate with manufacturing leadership to align production schedules with available resources.
• Partner with procurement and supply chain to ensure material availability and resolve shortages.
• Analyze inventory levels and drive initiatives to optimize inventory turns while preventing stockouts.
• Review MRP outputs and validate planning parameters for accuracy.
• Work closely with Operations, Engineering, Quality, Finance, Sales, and Program Management to support production and customer commitments.
• Participate in Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) and demand planning meetings.
• Communicate risks, schedule impacts, and mitigation strategies to stakeholders.
• Track and report KPIs such as on‑time delivery (OTD), schedule attainment, inventory turns, NPI milestone adherence, and forecast accuracy.
• Analyze variances between planned and actual production performance.
• Provide data‑driven recommendations to improve planning effectiveness.
• Lead and support process improvement initiatives related to planning, scheduling, NPI execution, and system optimization.
• Improve ERP/MRP data integrity including BOMs, routings, lead times, and safety stock parameters.
• Develop and document standard work procedures for planning processes.
• Serve as a subject matter expert in production planning and ERP/MRP systems.
• Mentor and provide guidance to junior planners.
• Support training efforts and promote best practices within the planning team.
• Identify…