Executive - Material Planner

Title: Executive - Material Planner

Location: Makson, Surendra Nagar, Ahmedabad

Summary: 

The role is to ensure the accurate, timely availability of all required Raw & Packaging material,  manage to support uninterrupted production. This involves forecasting of RMPM, reconciling manual and system-generated data, issuing and tracking purchase orders, managing supplier relationships, and optimizing inventory levels. The roles supports Production scheduling, addresses defective materials, coordinates the introduction of new ingredients, ensures compliance with quality and regulatory standards, Materials Management (ensure no writeoff materials), maintaining efficient communication with cross-functional teams; Manage vendor selection and relationships and bring in efficiencies while ensuring maximum cost savings within limits of organizational and statutory policies & procedures.

Major Duties/Responsibilities: 

Material Requirement Planning

• Review and reconcile forecasts with system-generated forecasts from SAP MRP systems to ensure accuracy and alignment in material planning. Review MRP; analyze for quantity, delivery requirements. 
• Manually verify data by cross-checking and validating forecasts from manual sources against automated system proposals, identifying discrepancies and resolving inconsistencies to ensure accurate material requirements.
• Utilize MRP to estimate the amount of packaging materials needed based on production schedules, historical data, and consolidated future forecasts.
• Efficient closure of pending PO & PR. Close collaboration with user / allied functions on ensuring right inventory levels.
• Develop strategies to ensure uninterrupted materials supply on a timely basis.
• Facilitate new and current cost reduction projects and achievement of profitability/growth objectives, operational improvements and change management initiatives

Order Placement and Follow-up

• Issue purchase orders and schedule releases for packaging materials using SAP.
• Monitor production schedules, inventory levels, and lead times to adjust delivery dates using SAP.
• Manage relationships with suppliers to ensure timely deliveries, negotiate purchase quantities below MOQ, and handle issues such as delivery arrangements and shortage delivery quantities. 

Production Scheduling Support

• Collaborate with supply planners to align material availability with production schedules, avoiding delays due to material shortages on a weekly basis.
• Effectively manage and integrate data from different formats and communication channels, ensuring that all relevant information is considered in material planning decisions.

Manage Defective Packaging Materials

• Handle the return process for defective packaging materials by communicating with vendors, processing rejection notes from the quality team, arranging reject material returns with the warehouse and logistics team, and ensuring proper credit is received.
• Investigate inventory discrepancies and analyze waste percentages to recommend improvements, collaborating with the operations team to align on recommended changes where appropriate to Plant Accounting.

Phasing in / out Packaging Materials

• Maintain the SAP material master records for MRP tab for all packaging materials related to the plant, including minimum order quantities, safety stock, lead times, and shelf-life requirements if applicable.
• Follow up closely on the readiness of bills of material for new packaging materials with product specialists and the plant finance team.
• Communicate with the plant operations and quality team on the new packaging material delivery to the plant, ensuring all pre-production materials are prepared before production starts.
• Manage the phasing out process by coordinating with the product development team and ensuring timely submission of provisions to the market.

Inventory Management

• Establish goals and monitor progress on appropriate inventory management measures such as inventory turns, total inventory investment, inventory shortages, and packaging materials write-off to identify trends like slow-moving or fast-depleting items without overstocking.
• Manage the warehouse utilization and optimum level, defining the right stock level based on analysis of the monthly forecast provided considering the material lead time and MOQ.
• Prepare bi-weekly aging reports for packaging materials and manage the shelf-life extension request with suppliers and the quality team in parallel with checking on potential depletion plans with the supply planner.
• Escalate packaging material write-off risk and provision to finance on a monthly basis.

Vendor Management

• Sourcing new potential vendor to support new projects and request
• Identify and establish key vendor relationships/partnerships to achieve win- win deal without compromising quality or service at the right price.
• Review and evaluate suppliers' performance to ensure uninterrupted quality and competitive supplies that will meet operational needs.
• Responsible for evaluation and selection of new suppliers and maintaining competitive alternatives.
• Evaluate and analyze overall spend data for cost reduction efforts and develop process flow to improve overall of supplier performance
• Establish long-term, stable relationships with reputable, high quality vendors to assure competitive pricing, reliability of supply, high quality materials while maintaining on-hand inventory.

Process Improvements and Special Projects

• Support cross functional teams like Project Oxygen in order to generate cost savings and synergies for the organization

Others:

• Review and close issue pertaining to GRIR / PR / PO / SOX audits.
• Review and streamline work processes to decrease turnaround times and improve on time delivery performance, work cooperatively and jointly to provide quality & seamless customer service.
• Responsible for setting benchmark, driving and achieving departmental Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
• P2P - Liase with internal stakeholders, for goods receipt & supplier for invoice receipt, to ensure timely payments / issue resolutions / avoid payment delays.
• Support Internal & External Audit, provide documents and clarifications as required  to ensure compliance.

Data Reporting, Compliance and Safety

• Weekly update of open purchase order tracking and collaborate with finance on the Account Payable dispute for the open purchase orders.
• Maintain good and effective inventory and delivery tracking reports to the warehouse receiving team to ensure daily incoming capacity is managed without impacting the production schedule.
• Ensure that the delivery, procurement, storage, and handling of packaging materials comply with Hershey Incoming Material Standard and adhere to the Free Trade Zone rules and regulations.

Collaboration and Communication:

• Work closely with other departments such as production, quality assurance, finance, and logistics to ensure alignment and smooth operations.
• Facilitate effective communication across teams to ensure everyone is informed about material availability and any potential issues.

Key KPIs:

• Ontime & in full delivery of Material, serices & projects.
• Savings in procuring Engineering, Capex & Service

Knowledge:

• Strong SAP user in areas of MRP/Scheduling, Inventory Management, Master Data, Warehouse Management and Production Control
• Strong knowledge and experience in working with Suppliers Freight / transporters, Purchasing personnel, as well as a strong understanding of Purchasing concepts and corporate directed goals.
• Basic knowledge of plant operations and production scheduling
• Strong organizational skills and attention to details.
• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills
• Ability to prioritize and to work effectively under time constraints
• Flexibility to adapt to changing conditions
• Fluent in English (oral and written)
• Should be conversant with latest best practices in the industry.
• Excellent communication, multi-tasking and time management skills.
• Deep understanding of internal & external stakeholder.
• Ability to work in a collaborative manner with various functions across the organization.
• Demonstrated change management abilities, including conflict resolution skills.

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements: 

Education:       Bachelor’s Degree in Supply Chain Management, Logistics, Business Administration, Industrial Engineering, or a related field. Proficiency in ERP systems (such as SAP) and additional certifications in supply chain or inventory management

Experience:    5-7  Years

Software skill SAP R/3 (MM Module), Windows, MS Office.