Lead Production Planner

Interaction Recruitment PLC; Burton Latimer; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 39,000; Full time

Job summary

Interaction Recruitment is seeking an experienced Lead Production Planner for a Burton Latimer-based manufacturing operation. You will coordinate daily planning, maintain capacity data and ensure schedules meet customer requirements.

Working with Supply Chain, Production and Customer Service teams, you will drive OTIF targets and continuous improvement initiatives in a fast-paced environment.

Qualifications

• Recent experience in production planning/scheduling within manufacturing.
• Experience using ERP systems, ideally Dynamics 365 BC.
• Strong ability to analyse data and manage schedules.
• Excellent planning, organisational and time-management skills.
• Strong numerical and attention to detail.
• Proficient IT skills and cross-department communication.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate daily production planning and scheduling activities.
• Maintain fabrication capacity plans with accurate information for production needs.
• Review orders and allocate appropriate production schedules.
• Assess lead times, sizes and configurations to identify issues.
• Provide planning worksheets to support replenishment of stock.
• Monitor production orders and communicate delays to relevant departments.
• Update launch documentation and production reports.
• Support continuous improvement and OTIF targets.

Skills

Production planning

Production scheduling

Data analysis

Excel

IT literacy

Communication

Tools

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central

Excel

MS Office

Job description

ad Production Planner

Location: Burton Latimer, Northamptonshire
Salary: Up to £35,000 per annum
Hours: 39 hours per week, Monday to Thursday 8:30am - 5:00pm, Friday 8:30am - 4:00pm
Contract: Permanent
Recruitment Agency: Interaction Recruitment

The Opportunity

Interaction Recruitment is currently recruiting for an experienced Lead Production Planner on behalf of a well-established manufacturing business based in Burton Latimer.

This is an excellent opportunity for an organised and analytical planning professional with previous experience in a manufacturing environment to take responsibility for coordinating daily production planning activities, maintaining accurate capacity plans and ensuring production schedules meet customer requirements.

Working closely with the Supply Chain Manager, Production and Customer Service teams, you will play a key role in ensuring the efficient running of production operations, supporting the achievement of on-time, in-full (OTIF) targets of 95% or above.

Key Responsibilities

Production Planning & Scheduling

• Coordinate daily production planning and scheduling activities.

• Maintain and update fabrication capacity plans, ensuring accurate information is available to support production requirements.

• Review orders awaiting confirmed dates and allocate appropriate production schedules.

• Assess production order lead times, sizes and configurations, identifying and challenging potential issues where necessary.

• Produce planning worksheets to support the replenishment of manufactured stock.

Production Orders & Documentation

• Prepare, update and issue production orders and associated launch documentation.

• Maintain accurate launch reports, ensuring paperwork reflects current production requirements.

• Manage fast-track orders, amendments and cancellations.

• Review and amend existing production schedules in response to changing customer requirements and available production capacity.

• Ensure revised orders are communicated and relaunched promptly.

Production Monitoring & Communication

• Monitor production orders throughout the manufacturing process to support timely completion.

• Provide daily production lead-time and capacity updates.

• Work closely with Production, Customer Service and Supply Chain teams to communicate potential delays and resolve scheduling issues.

• Ensure relevant departments are kept informed of changes to production plans.

Performance & Continuous Improvement

• Review and maintain standard production costs and timings.

• Monitor, analyse and report on production order failures, supporting initiatives to achieve OTIF targets of 95% or above.

• Analyse supply chain and production performance data to identify opportunities to improve efficiency, reduce waste and control costs.

• Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives and departmental projects.

Skills & Experience Required

To be considered for this position, you will ideally have:

• Previous experience in a production planning or production scheduling role within a manufacturing environment - essential.

• Experience using ERP systems, ideally Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central.

• Strong experience working with spreadsheets and analysing data.

• Excellent planning, organisational and time-management skills.

• Strong numerical and analytical abilities, with excellent attention to detail.

• Confident IT skills, including Microsoft Office, particularly Excel.

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to liaise effectively across different departments.

• The ability to manage changing priorities and work effectively under pressure.

• A proactive approach to problem-solving and continuous improvement.

• The confidence to challenge existing processes constructively and influence positive change.

• The ability to work independently and as part of a wider team.

The Ideal Candidate

You will be a motivated and detail-focused planning professional who enjoys working in a fast-paced manufacturing environment. You will have a structured approach to organising workloads, be confident analysing production data and have the communication skills needed to coordinate effectively across multiple departments.

You will also be keen to identify opportunities to improve processes, increase efficiency and contribute towards wider business performance.