Production Planner

Location: Shakopee, MN

About Us: PowerPusher, a division of TC Nu-Star, Inc., is a leading manufacturer of heavy-load moving devices designed to decrease workplace injuries and increase efficiency and productivity. We are committed to safety, innovation, and operational excellence.

Job Summary: We are seeking a punctual, detail-oriented Production Planner to join our team. The Production Planner is responsible for creating production schedules and ensuring that they align with customer demand, inventory levels, and material availability while optimizing production efficiency and resource utilization. This role requires collaboration with cross-functional teams, including sales, engineering, production, purchasing, logistics, and finance to ensure seamless execution of the production plan.

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop and manage production schedules for production areas ensuring alignment with customer orders, forecast demand, and production capacity.
• Ensure consistency in planning processes and accuracy in ERP scheduling, making timely adjustments as needed.
• Collaborate with the Production Manager, Sales, Engineering, and Inventory & Operations Planning teams to align departmental schedules with overall demand.
• Optimize the use of labor, materials, and equipment to minimize downtime and eliminate bottlenecks in production.
• Monitor and adjust production plans in response to changes in customer demand, material availability, or capacity constraints.
• Create, review, release, and update work orders and perform associated work order completions.
• Keep production schedules updated and communicate changes to maintain accurate estimated completion dates.
• Tracking and responding to inquiries regarding expedited orders.
• Inform operations management about critical bottlenecks and propose actionable solutions.
• Share updated priorities with line leaders to ensure clarity and alignment.
• Track and report key metrics, including on-time delivery, schedule adherence, capacity utilization, and production efficiency.
• Proactively identify and mitigate production risks, such as resource constraints, machine availability, or material shortages.
• Use our ERP system and other software tools to manage scheduling processes and ensure accurate, real-time data is available for decision-making.
• Communicate regularly with departmental teams to ensure alignment on production priorities and timelines.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Operations, Business Administration, or a related field.
• 5+ years of experience in production planning or scheduling in a manufacturing environment, preferably in industrial equipment or similar industries.
• Strong understanding of ERP systems and production scheduling software. NetSuite experience is a plus.
• Advanced analytical and problem-solving skills. Advanced Excel skills are highly desirable.
• Strong communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to work across departments and with different levels of the organization.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience applying lean manufacturing principles and continuous improvement methodologies.
• 3+ years of experience working in Sales, Inventory & Operations Planning (SIOP) processes.
• Ability to balance long-term planning with short-term problem-solving.
• Proven experience using material requirements planning (MRP) and capacity planning.