Job DescriptionThe Senior Production Planner is responsible for leading production planning and scheduling activities across the Pelzer Operations manufacturing campus. This position ensures customer demand is translated into executable manufacturing schedules while balancing production capacity, material availability, labor resources, and business priorities.
The role serves as the primary owner of production schedule execution and Work Order Number (WON) governance within Oracle ERP, ensuring production orders are accurately planned, released, prioritized, monitored, and closed in accordance with established business processes.
Working closely with Operations, Materials, Engineering, Program Management, Procurement, Warehouse Operations, and Customer Service, the Senior Production Planner ensures manufacturing plans support customer commitments, operational efficiency, and revenue objectives.
Primary Responsibilities Production Planning & Scheduling
- Develop and maintain daily, weekly, and monthly production schedules for multiple manufacturing facilities.
- Translate customer demand into executable production plans while balancing labor, equipment, material availability, and manufacturing capacity.
- Prioritize production based on customer requirements, revenue commitments, and operational constraints.
- Continuously review production performance and adjust schedules to address changing business priorities.
- Monitor schedule attainment and implement recovery plans when production falls behind schedule.
- Coordinate production priorities with Plant Managers and Manufacturing leadership.
- Support month-end, quarter-end, and year-end revenue execution through effective production planning.
- Drive schedule stability while maintaining flexibility for changing customer requirements.
The Senior Production Planner is the functional owner of Work Order Number (WON) execution and governance across Pelzer Operations.
Responsibilities include:
- Manage the complete lifecycle of manufacturing Work Orders within Oracle ERP.
- Review customer demand and convert approved demand into executable manufacturing WONs.
- Ensure all production WONs are accurate, complete, and released in accordance with established business processes.
- Validate Bills of Material (BOMs), Routings, Engineering Changes, and material readiness prior to work order release.
- Coordinate work order priorities across multiple production lines and manufacturing plants.
- Monitor open WONs daily to ensure production progress aligns with planned schedules.
- Identify and resolve issues preventing WON release, including missing BOMs, engineering changes, routing errors, inventory shortages, or system constraints.
- Maintain work order integrity by ensuring proper status updates, completions, closures, and transaction accuracy within Oracle.
- Lead daily WON review meetings with Manufacturing, Materials, Planning, Engineering, and Program Management teams.
- Monitor aging work orders and implement corrective actions to prevent unnecessary work-in-process inventory.
- Ensure all production transactions are completed accurately to maintain inventory integrity and revenue recognition compliance.
- Develop and improve standardized WON governance processes across Pelzer Operations.
- Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on reducing planning errors, improving work order accuracy, and increasing production visibility.
- Partner with Materials Management to ensure material availability aligns with production schedules.
- Coordinate with Purchasing regarding supplier shortages impacting production.
- Collaborate with Warehouse Operations to ensure material staging supports manufacturing schedules.
- Work with Engineering to support BOM releases, engineering changes, and manufacturing readiness.
- Partner with Program Management to prioritize customer deliveries and project milestones.
- Support Manufacturing leadership with daily production planning decisions.
- Communicate production risks, schedule impacts, and recovery plans to senior leadership.
Qualifications Education
- Bachelor's Degree in Supply Chain Management, Operations Management, Industrial Engineering, Business, or related discipline preferred.
- APICS CPIM or CSCP certification preferred.
Experience
- 5-10 years of production planning or manufacturing planning experience.
- Experience supporting multi-plant manufacturing operations preferred.
- Strong knowledge of Material Requirements Planning (MRP).
- Experience working within Oracle ERP or similar enterprise planning systems.
- Demonstrated experience managing production schedules in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
Knowledge, Skills & Competencies
- Advanced understanding of production planning and manufacturing operations.
- Strong experience managing Work Order (WON) processes within an ERP environment.
- Knowledge of Bills of Material (BOMs), Routings, Engineering Change Orders (ECOs), and manufacturing workflows.
- Excellent analytical and organizational skills.
- Strong communication and leadership abilities.
- Ability to prioritize multiple production demands while maintaining schedule integrity.
- Advanced Microsoft Excel and reporting capabilities.
- Continuous Improvement mindset with experience implementing standardized business processes.
- Ability to influence cross-functional teams and drive operational execution.
