Production Planner

Role Overview

The Production Planner owns the translation of engineering and production demand into executable, cost-accurate work orders. This role uses the M1 ERP system to create, structure, maintain, and report on work orders and work order trees that accurately reflect released engineering, real manufacturing processes, and current production priorities.

The Production Planner ensures that work entering production is correctly defined, costed, sequenced, and measurable, enabling leadership to rely on M1 for operational, financial, and capacity-related decision-making.

Core Responsibilities

Work Order Creation & Control

• Create, structure, and maintain discrete and phantom work orders and multi-level work order trees in M1.
• Ensure work orders reflect correct BOMs, revisions, routings, quantities, effectivity, and parent–child relationships.
• Own the logic governing when phantom versus discrete work orders are used, applying each intentionally to support scheduling, inventory control, and system clarity.
• Perform manufacturing cost analysis and data entry for detail parts, assemblies, and installation travelers.
• Release and revise work orders in alignment with production priorities while minimizing disruption to work in process.

Outcome: Production receives clear, executable work orders that match engineering intent and manufacturing reality.

Engineering Change Integration (DRNs)

• Own implementation of Drawing Release Notices (DRNs) within M1.
• Update BOMs, routings, revisions, effectivity dates, and work order structures to reflect released engineering changes.
• Ensure revision transitions are controlled, traceable, and do not introduce ambiguity or orphaned work.
• Translate engineering documentation into executable work orders, including process flows, material definitions, BOM cost, outsourced operations, and Quality inspection requirements.

Outcome: M1 remains a faithful, current representation of released engineering.

Labor Standards & Routing Accuracy

• Maintain and update labor standards and machine cycle times in M1 routings.
• Adjust data to reflect actual methods, tooling changes, and process improvements.
• Ensure routing data supports accurate costing, margin analysis, and capacity planning.

Outcome: Product costing and capacity assumptions are grounded in real, current manufacturing data.

Material Requirements Planning (MRP)

• Execute and maintain MRP logic in M1 using BOMs, routings, lead times, and released work orders.
• Generate material demand signals, identify shortages and long-lead risks, and establish clear priorities based on production impact.
• Adjust planning parameters when system assumptions diverge from reality.

Outcome: material demand is visible, time-phased, and aligned to production execution.

Reporting Ownership

• Own production-planning and work-order reporting from M1.
• Produce and maintain reports covering work order status, schedule adherence, WIP aging, lead times, capacity utilization, and forecast versus actual performance.
• Ensure reports are accurate, consistent, and suitable for leadership decision-making.

Outcome: leadership has reliable visibility into production readiness and performance.

Cross-Functional Coordination

• Work closely with Engineering, Purchasing, Receiving/Kitting, and Production to keep planning intent, system data, and shop-floor execution aligned.
• Respond to execution feedback by correcting system structure rather than bypassing controls.

Outcome: system discipline is maintained while supporting real production needs.