Materials Manager: Inventory & Operations Leader

Hitachi, Ltd.; Michigan City (IN); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Hitachi Global Air Power US, based in Michigan City, Indiana, seeks a Materials Manager to oversee inventory and material movement across multiple facilities, ensuring production lines are supplied on time.

The role reports to the Vice President of Operations and leads material-handling teams, coordinating with manufacturing, purchasing, engineering and quality to optimize costs and delivery performance. Strong leadership and continuous improvement mindset are essential.

Qualifications

• Five plus years of experience in material management, including inventory management systems.
• Ability to establish self as credible leader and partner with site leadership as a trusted member of staff.
• Humble, respectful, agile, eager to learn; Transparent, shares information candidly.
• Focused, quick learner, strategically prioritizes work and commits to results.
• Leadership ability: strong communicator, decision-maker, collaborative.
• Problem solver: analytical minded, challenges processes, critical thinker.

Responsibilities

• Manage material inventory control, shipping/receiving, handling, and storage to support production and delivery schedules.
• Identify opportunities to reduce transportation, storage, and handling costs.
• Strategize inventory volumes and storage capacity to maximize productivity and efficiency.
• Support transformation efforts to digitally transform material handling systems (AGVs, AMRs, cobots) for palletizing.
• Maintain balanced workloads and optimize resource allocation across teams.
• Explain work requirements and procedures; train workers in new procedures; provide guidance.
• Coordinate with manufacturing, purchasing, engineering, planning, and quality to resolve shortages.
• Provide weekly schedules for direct reports, including overtime hours.
• Monitor overtime to stay within budget while ensuring adequate coverage.
• Enforce Hitachi governance and safety policies; discipline as needed in coordination with HR.
• Review and act on safety incidents; oversee audits for improvements.

Skills

Material management

SAP

Microsoft Office

Leadership

Inventory control software

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Inventory Management, Supply Chain Management, or Logistics

Graduate degree in logistics- or business-related field

Material Management certification (CPIM, CSCP, CLTD, CLT)

Tools

SAP

Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access)

Job description

Hitachi Global Air Power US, based in Michigan City, Indiana, seeks a Materials Manager to oversee inventory and material movement across multiple facilities, ensuring production lines are supplied on time.

The role reports to the Vice President of Operations and leads material-handling teams, coordinating with manufacturing, purchasing, engineering and quality to optimize costs and delivery performance. Strong leadership and continuous improvement mindset are essential.