Material and Production Planner

Lotus Bakeries, Milan; Mebane (NC); On-site; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Lotus Bakeries, Milan seeks a Material and Production Planner to manage production planning and material replenishment for Plant Mebane, fielding daily schedules and ensuring smooth material flow onsite.

The role requires 5-7 years in planning, a Bachelor’s in an analytical discipline, and familiarity with SAP/ERP systems. APICS CPIM/CSCP preferred. Onsite work with limited domestic travel supports a dynamic supply chain.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in analytical discipline required.
• APICS CPIM/CSCP preferred.
• Experience with ERP systems (SAP, Oracle) required.
• 5-7 years of experience in planning or purchasing.

Responsibilities

• Develop and manage daily production schedules for Plant Mebane, balancing customer demand, production capacity, material availability, and operational efficiency to achieve service, inventory, and cost objectives.
• Create and execute material replenishment plans utilizing MRP outputs, demand forecasts, inventory targets, supplier lead times, and business requirements to ensure material availability while optimizing working capital.
• Create, release, maintain, and manage purchase orders in SAP to support production requirements and inventory replenishment strategies.
• Monitor open purchase orders, supplier commitments, and material deliveries, proactively resolving shortages, delays, and supply risks to minimize production disruptions.
• Collaborate with suppliers, Procurement, and internal stakeholders to develop delivery schedules, expedite critical materials, and improve overall supplier performance.
• Analyze inventory performance, including Days on Hand (DOH), inventory turns, excess and obsolete inventory, and warehouse capacity utilization, driving initiatives that improve working capital and operational efficiency.
• Monitor production results and schedule adherence, adjusting plans and priorities as needed to support changing customer demand and manufacturing requirements.
• Serve as the primary liaison between Production, Quality, Procurement, Warehouse, Logistics, and Sales, communicating priorities, resolving issues, and ensuring alignment across the supply chain.
• Own the creation, management, accuracy, and closure of production orders in SAP while maintaining planning parameters, master data, and system integrity to support effective planning and execution.
• Lead continuous improvement initiatives and supply chain projects through data analysis and cross-functional collaboration to improve service levels, inventory performance, operational efficiency, and total supply chain cost.

Skills

MRP concepts

Analytical thinking

Problem solving

Inventory optimization

Supply chain awareness

Education

Bachelor's degree in analytical discipline

APICS CPIM/CSCP preferred

Tools

SAP

Oracle ERP

Excel

Job description

Material and Production Planner

Mebane

The Material and Production Planner owns production planning and material replenishment activities for Plant Mebane, ensuring timely and efficient delivery of products by balancing customer demand, production capacity, material availability, inventory levels, and overall supply chain costs. This position reports to the Planning & Materials Manager and works fully onsite at Plant Mebane. The expected work hours are 8 am to 5 pm, Monday through Friday. Minimal domestic travel is expected.

• Develop and manage daily production schedules for Plant Mebane, balancing customer demand, production capacity, material availability, and operational efficiency to achieve service, inventory, and cost objectives.
• Create and execute material replenishment plans utilizing MRP outputs, demand forecasts, inventory targets, supplier lead times, and business requirements to ensure material availability while optimizing working capital.
• Create, release, maintain, and manage purchase orders in SAP to support production requirements and inventory replenishment strategies.
• Monitor open purchase orders, supplier commitments, and material deliveries, proactively resolving shortages, delays, and supply risks to minimize production disruptions.
• Collaborate with suppliers, Procurement, and internal stakeholders to develop delivery schedules, expedite critical materials, and improve overall supplier performance.
• Analyze inventory performance, including Days on Hand (DOH), inventory turns, excess and obsolete inventory, and warehouse capacity utilization, driving initiatives that improve working capital and operational efficiency.
• Monitor production results and schedule adherence, adjusting plans and priorities as needed to support changing customer demand and manufacturing requirements.
• Serve as the primary liaison between Production, Quality, Procurement, Warehouse, Logistics, and Sales, communicating priorities, resolving issues, and ensuring alignment across the supply chain.
• Own the creation, management, accuracy, and closure of production orders in SAP while maintaining planning parameters, master data, and system integrity to support effective planning and execution.
• Lead continuous improvement initiatives and supply chain projects through data analysis and cross-functional collaboration to improve service levels, inventory performance, operational efficiency, and total supply chain cost.

Profiel

Experience:

• 5-7 years of experience in planning or purchasing
• Bachelor's Degree in an analytical discipline
• APICS CPIM/CSCP preferred
• Experience working in an ERP system (SAP, Oracle, etc.)
• Experience working with vendors to make and execute delivery plans
• Experience with primary and tertiary packaging materials
• Experience in food and CPG is a plus

Specific Knowledge:

• Math and analytical thinking
• Advanced understanding of MRP planning concepts
• Materials management and warehouse fundamentals
• Advanced knowledge of Excel. Able to use Formulas, pivot tables, and import text files to spreadsheets. Experience with Macros a plus.

Personal competences:

• Problem solving and decision making
• Accountability and responsibility
• Flexibility and willingness to adjust with shifting responsibilities in a growing environment
• Customer focus (internal and external)
• Interpersonal skills and conflict management
• Entrepreneurship and “hands on” mentality
• Creative and out of the box thinking
• Organizational skills
• Ownership of the production plans success
• Strong safety awareness