Light Rail Fleet Planner

West Midlands Metro; Wednesbury; On-site; GBP 36,000 - 44,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Free travel for you & partner

MML Pension

25 days holiday

Job summary

West Midlands Metro in Wednesbury is seeking an organised Light Rail Fleet Planner to optimise tram fleet availability and ensure safe, efficient operations.

You will own long-term maintenance planning, recovery programmes and resource forecasting, collaborating with Engineering, Production and Supply Chain teams to keep trams available and on schedule.

Qualifications

• Significant planning experience in rail, transport, engineering or asset-intensive industries.

Responsibilities

• Create and maintain a rolling 52-week fleet availability forecast.
• Develop annual maintenance plans and schedules for the fleet.
• Coordinate recovery programmes and balance depot capacity.
• Build resource plans considering staffing, capacity, equipment, and supplier support.
• Produce regular reports on fleet performance and future availability.

Skills

Advanced Excel

Analytical thinking

Scheduling & planning tools

Stakeholder collaboration

Education

Level 3/4 qualification in engineering/operations/planning

Planning/asset management qualification

Tools

AMIS

Agility

Power BI

Project planning software

Job description

Light Rail Fleet Planner

Location: Wednesbury, WS10 0AR
Salary: £40,000 per annum
Contract: Permanent, Full-Time
Benefits: Free Travel on Trams & NX Buses (for you and your partner) + MML Pension + 25 Days Holiday (plus Bank Holidays)

Help Keep the West Midlands Moving

West Midlands Metro is looking for an organised, analytical and forward-thinking Light Rail Fleet Planner to play a key role in maximising fleet availability and ensuring our tram network operates safely, efficiently and reliably.

This is a fantastic opportunity for an experienced planner from a rail, transport, engineering, manufacturing or other asset-intensive environment to take ownership of long-term fleet maintenance planning, recovery programmes and resource forecasting across our modern tram fleet.

Working closely with Engineering, Production, Operations and Supply Chain teams, you will provide a clear picture of fleet availability, ensuring maintenance activities, overhauls and recovery programmes are planned and delivered effectively whilst balancing depot capacity, resources, suppliers and parts availability.

What You'll Be Doing

As our Light Rail Fleet Planner, you will:

Fleet Planning & Availability

• Create and maintain a 52-week rolling forecast for the availability of our tram fleet.
• Monitor fleet availability against operational requirements, identifying potential risks and opportunities ahead of time.
• Keep track of trams that are out of service, ensuring recovery plans remain on track and obstacles are addressed quickly.
• Update plans as circumstances change, whether that's maintenance priorities, operational demands or supplier lead times.

Maintenance & Recovery Planning

• Develop and manage annual maintenance plans for the fleet.
• Schedule planned maintenance, inspections, overhauls and fleet improvement programmes.
• Work closely with Engineering and Production teams to help return out-of-service trams to service as efficiently as possible.
• Balance priorities and workloads to ensure the depot can deliver maximum fleet availability.
• Support the planning of major maintenance programmes, including overhauls, wheel and tyre work, bogie maintenance, modifications and warranty activities.

Capacity & Resource Planning

• Build and maintain resource plans that consider staffing, workshop capacity, equipment availability and supplier support.
• Collaborate with Engineering Support teams to ensure parts, materials and consumables are available when needed.
• Anticipate future challenges and develop practical solutions to minimise disruption.
• Highlight risks and resource constraints early, providing clear recommendations to support decision-making.

Reporting & Continuous Improvement

• Maintain accurate planning information within our maintenance and planning systems.
• Produce regular reports that provide clear visibility of fleet performance and future availability.
• Review planning performance and forecast accuracy, identifying opportunities to improve.
• Use reliability and maintenance data to support better planning, forecasting and decision-making across the fleet.

What We're Looking For

Essential Experience

• Significant planning experience within rail, transport, engineering, manufacturing or another asset-intensive environment.
• Proven experience creating and managing long-term maintenance, resource or production plans.
• Experience coordinating unavailable asset recovery programmes and managing complex dependencies.
• Relevant Level 3 or Level 4 qualification, apprenticeship or equivalent experience in engineering, operations, planning, maintenance or asset management.
• A recognised planning, project management or asset management qualification.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills.
• Experience using planning, scheduling or reporting systems such as AMIS, Agility, Power BI or project planning software.
• Strong understanding of maintenance regimes, overhaul programmes and asset lifecycle planning.

Knowledge & Attributes

• Understanding of resource constraints, supplier capacity, long-lead components and critical spares management.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to assess fleet availability impacts and planning risks.
• Ability to work across West Midlands Metro locations as required.
• Full UK driving licence is desirable.

Why Join West Midlands Metro?

At West Midlands Metro, you'll be part of an organisation that is helping shape the future of sustainable public transport across the region.

You'll work with a modern engineering team, contribute to the performance of a growing tram network, and play a vital role in ensuring our fleet remains safe, reliable and available for our passengers.