Logistics Planner

Chep; Durban; On-site; ZAR 350,000 - 520,000; Full time

Job summary

CHEP is seeking a Logistics Planner to take ownership of demand and supply planning, focusing on hire equipment availability and cost efficiency across CHEP’s service centre network.

You will collaborate with Planning, Logistics, Operations and Commercial Sales to balance supply and demand, develop short- to mid-term plans, and ensure service levels meet 100% DIFOT targets where possible while controlling costs.

Qualifications

• Diploma qualification in Supply Chain or a related field.
• 3-5 years in Demand and Supply Planning and Inventory Management.
• Experience with JDA/Blue Yonder forecasting and rebalancing modules.
• Proficiency in MS Office, PowerBI, SAP and Blue Yonder planning tools.

Responsibilities

• Own the Customer Forecasting process with Sales to validate forecasts using historical data and market intelligence.
• Develop and maintain KPIs to monitor logistics operations with proactive alerts and detailed reporting.
• Drive continuous improvement projects to reduce costs and improve service delivery.
• Partner with regional teams and stakeholders to implement logistics strategies aligned with business goals.
• Design and generate real-time dashboards and reports tracking progress of logistics initiatives.

Skills

Demand and Supply Planning

Inventory Management

Process Improvement

Analytical Skills

Education

Diploma in Supply Chain or related field

Tools

MS Excel

PowerBI

SAP

Business Warehouse

Blue Yonder

Job description

CHEP helps move more goods to more people, in more places than any other organization on earth via our 347 million pallets, crates and containers. We employ approximately 13,000 people and operate in 60 countries. Through our pioneering and sustainable share-and-reuse business model, the world’s biggest brands trust us to help them transport their goods more efficiently, safely and with less environmental impact.

Job Description

Key Responsibilities May Include:

• Conduct comprehensive analyses of transportation patterns, inventory metrics, and logistics costs to uncover improvement opportunities that optimize efficiency and reduce operational costs.
• Develop, maintain, and refine Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to monitor logistics operations, offering proactive alerts and insights to stakeholders through detailed reporting.
• Initiate and drive continuous improvement projects to streamline logistics processes, focusing on achieving cost reduction, operational efficiency, and superior service delivery.
• Partner with regional teams and external stakeholders to ensure effective implementation of logistics strategies and initiatives that align with business goals.
• Design and generate real-time dashboards and reports that track the progress of logistics initiatives, providing insights for performance improvements and strategic decision-making.
• Regularly engage with senior leadership, presenting data-driven insights and recommendations for long-term supply chain enhancements and business growth strategies.
• Maintain compliance with internal controls, company policies, and legal requirements, contributing to logistics planning, budgeting, and financial performance monitoring.

Position Purpose

The Logistics Planner role takes ownership for planning and fulfillment of customer demand, and for transport revenue and costs. This role acts as the liaison between Planning & Logistics, Operations and the Commercial Sales teams to ensure supply and demand needs are met; and will be responsible for developing the short to medium-term hire equipment demand and supply plan, ensuring sufficient hire equipment availability at the right time and right location to meet customer demand. Through stringent analytical processes, the Logistics Planner will control, drive and implement procedures to ensure that the Service Centre network is optimally balanced and CHEP hire equipment are adequately planned to positively impact overall Customer Experience (CX) through striving toward achieving 100% DIFOT and 100% CIFOT at the lowest cost to serve.

Key Accountabilities

Equipment Flows (Demand Planning)

• Own the Customer Forecasting process, working with the Commercial Sales teams to obtain and validate customer forecasts through monitoring and utilizing historical demand data as well as market intelligence to ensure a high level of short to medium-term issue and return forecast accuracy by customer and Service Centre
• Develop and maintain an in-depth understanding of dynamics and influencing factors specific to CHEP products at a customer, Service Centre, geographical area and regional levels, including seasonal fluctuations and reasons / causes of fluctuations.
• Strive toward achieving 100% Demand Planning forecast accuracy in Blue Yonder through ensuring that customer master data in Blue Yonder is maintained and through suggesting changes to forecasting algorithms to improve customer level demand forecasts.
• Conduct detailed analysis of network flows to identify, setup and maintain Inventory Management and Order fulfillment & distribution in Blue Yonder, including identifying all rules and constraints affecting the supply of Hire Equipment at customer and Service Centre level, ensuring that relocation flows suggested by Blue Yonder are optimised for efficiency and cost.
• Conduct network balancing studies to identify and provide recommendations on changes to activities at Service Centres (inspection and conditioning) and to customer flow patterns to improve customer service and reduce cost to serve.

Production Planning (Supply Planning)

• Calculate national production plans by Service Centre and material based on customer forecast, hire equipment flows as well as Service Centre conditioning capacities.
• Daily monitoring of Service Centre output vs. target and inventory cover to ensure sufficient hire equipment availability to meet demand
• Discuss any shortfall on target production and stock cover with Operations leaders and make alternative plans to ensure availability of stock to meet customer demand.
• Liaise with Hire Equipment Planning team to ensure supply capacity is effectively planned and monitored to support new purchases and demand capacity in line with desired Field Stock Ratios.

Inventory Control

• Responsible for maintaining optimal inventory levels at the various Service Centres as well as communicating the inventory levels and stock transfer plans to internal customers.
• Ensure that the Service Centres remain within safe storage capacities
• Develop and maintain an in-depth understanding of service centre capabilities and constraints relating to specific products:
  • Availability of yard space to store
  • Forklift availability
  • Load handling capability and time constraints (hours of operation and loading bays)
  • Production capacity
• Understanding of the new product procurement plan including quantity on order and lead times to determine how these can be optimally deployed.
• Define stock transfer / collection & delivery plan requirements (i.e. product code and status, quantity, source, destination, timing) based on equipment flows, whilst taking into consideration service centre and transport constraints

Order Planning and Fulfillment

• Correctly place customer orders, ensuring that the orders are planned on the lowest cost lanes
• Ensure accurate change codes are applied when making changes to customer orders
• Maximise truck utilisation, and work with Planners across other categories where required to build a full load
• Liaise with Operations or Sales team to ensure that trucks are turned in the quickest possible time at Service Centres and Customer sites, minimising standing time charges
• Reduce the number of failed collections and deliveries

Financial Control

• Relentless focus on identifying and implementing initiatives to drive efficiencies in Logistics and reduce transport spend.
• Responsible for setting and communicating customer collection and delivery charges
• Review actual relocation flows and network imbalances against relocation charges to identify and realign relocation charges where there is under and over recovery.
• Ensure that all transport spend is fully recovered from customers
• Integrate planning to include budgetary requirements.
• Compile monthly commentary to Finance on Logistics Costs vs Budget/Forecast for hire equipment category being managed

Key Requirements

• Diploma qualification in Supply Chain or a related field
• 3 - 5 years in Demand and Supply Planning, and Inventory Management
• Experience setting up and maintaining JDA customer forecasting and rebalancing workbench modules
• Computer Literacy – MS Office including advanced MS Excel and PowerBI, SAP, Business Warehouse, and Blue Yonder Supply Chain Planning, including Demand planning & forecasting; Inventory management; and Order fulfillment & distribution

Skills And Knowledge

• Demand and Supply Planning
• Inventory Management
• Knowledge of process improvement techniques.
• Ability to thrive in time-sensitive high-pressure environment
• Excellent analytical skills
• Advanced MS Excel skills
• MS PowerBI
• Effective written and communication skills.
• Knowledge of the principles of planning optimization and Inventory Management techniques.
• Ability to collaborate and work effectively in teams of individuals from various business units.
• Strong planning, prioritisation, and organising skills.
• Strong influencing skills
• Customer centric values.

Remote Type

Not Remote

Skills To Succeed In The Role

Adaptability, Business Intelligence (BI) Reporting, Continuous Improvement, Customer Service, Data Analysis, Empathy, Experimentation, Logistics Execution, Operational Efficiency, Taking Ownership, Teamwork, Understand Customers

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer, and we are committed to developing a diverse workforce in which everyone is treated fairly, with respect, and has the opportunity to contribute to business success while realizing his or her potential. This means harnessing the unique skills and experience that each individual brings and we do not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, sex, age, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, status as a veteran, and basis of disability or any other federal, state, or local protected class.