Production Planning Manager – Ashington, Northumberland

£60,000–£75,000 per annum, depending on experience
Permanent, full-time and office-based
8:00am–5:00pm Monday to Thursday and 8:00am–3:00pm Friday
Further package details available on application

White Label Recruitment is working with a manufacturing business in Ashington to recruit a Production Planning Manager. As factory activity increases, the business needs someone to lead its planning team and oversee how customer projects are scheduled through design, manufacture, delivery and installation.

The business supports a range of customer projects, each with its own technical requirements and deadlines. It places a strong emphasis on quality, reliable delivery and customer service, and continues to invest in its people, systems and manufacturing capability. You’ll have the scope to develop the planning team and improve how work is planned as the operation grows.

What you’ll be doing

• Lead and develop the planning team, allocating workloads, setting priorities and maintaining clear standards for planning and reporting.

• Oversee project programmes from design through to installation, working with Technical and Contracts to align design approvals, factory schedules, site readiness and customer deadlines.

• Lead factory capacity planning, balancing confirmed orders and forecast demand against labour, equipment and material availability.

• Keep milestones, dependencies and critical paths up to date, and make sure manufacturing schedules and daily production worksheets are accurate and issued on time.

• Track factory output and project progress, identify bottlenecks or delays early and agree practical recovery plans with the teams involved.

• Work with Logistics and Contracts to align deliveries with production progress and site requirements, and give Sales realistic lead times for upcoming work.

• Improve planning systems, processes and reporting so senior management has a clear view of capacity, programme performance and emerging risks.

What we’re looking for

• A background as a Planner with manufacturing or construction industry experience.

• Experience managing, leading or supervising a planning team.

• A relevant qualification in construction, manufacturing or planning.

• Experience building and managing project or production programmes using planning software, including critical path analysis.

• Strong Excel skills, the ability to interpret technical drawings and experience balancing capacity and resources across competing priorities.

• The confidence to challenge unrealistic timescales, explain constraints clearly and agree a workable plan with colleagues and customers.

Experience improving ERP or planning systems, coordinating deliveries to site, or overseeing stock and material planning would be useful.

Interested?

If you’ve led or supervised a planning team and want the scope to shape how projects are planned from design through to installation, apply with your CV. This is an opportunity to develop a team, improve the way a busy factory schedules its work and have a direct say in what the business commits to delivering.

For a confidential conversation about the role and package, contact Neil at White Label Recruitment.