MRP Planner - Packaging

Minimum Requirements    

• Relevant 3-year degree or Supply Chain Diploma (e.g. MCIPS) advantage.
• 3 - 5 years of packaging ordering and/or coordination experience, preferably within an FMCG environment, but will also consider candidates with strong operations processing experience and/or who have worked closely with the supply planning team in other roles.
• Knowledge of ERP systems such as SAP or Syspro, Flowcentric, and Barton skills are prerequisites.
• Advanced computer skills such as MS Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint).
• Strong Interpersonal Relationship management.
• Must have Production Planning Skills with strong knowledge of supply chain.
• Must have MRP planning processes and key master data.

Knowledge:

• MRP Skills with strong knowledge of supply chain.
• An appreciation of Demand Planning principles
• Syspro skills and knowledge of supply chain planning tools.
• MRP system knowledge will be advantageous.
• Planning and logistics execution processes.
• Supply chain principles and practices.
• BOM explosion processes.
• order lead times.
• Supplier production processes.
• In-house supply chain processes.

Duties & Responsibilities    
Material Requirements Planning (Packaging):

• Manage the MRP plan to ensure that the production plan can be met timeously by having sufficient quantities of packaging on site in advance to meet the processing schedule
• Expedite and/or postpone Purchase Orders where shortages or oversupply become evident.
• Re-plan requirements weekly and make adjustments as ad hoc changes get made to the processing schedule.
• Ensure that stock holding levels are maintained appropriately to ensure working capital targets are met.
• Use appropriate tools to determine safety stock levels.
• Provide suppliers with a 12-week forward view of anticipated requirements to be used to secure time on the supplier's production facility as well as enable them time to procure their input materials.
• Sourcing team to be provided with anticipated annual volumes to be used for contract negotiations.
• Work with the sourcing team and site teams to ensure inbound service, driving on time, in full, and correct quality requirements. Ensure appropriate.
• safety stock levels are maintained by all suppliers (both on-site and at supplier premises).
• Liaise closely with the site planning teams to ensure that their requirements are appropriately met.

Packaging Material Stock Management:

• Manage planned stock levels of materials, both on-site and at a supplier, in line with agreed target levels/days cover requirements.
• Work closely with the sourcing team to manage supplier relationships.
• Identify possible stock inaccuracies internally and at suppliers, and work with site teams (stores and MRP coordinator) and suppliers to correct and maintain stock accuracy levels.
• In conjunction with stores, ensure obsolete and quality-compromised stocks are written off promptly.
• Responsible for communicating overstock or shortages to the business and making recommendations to resolve situations.

Innovation / Discontinuation Project Coordination:

• Work closely with Supply Planning, Marketing, and R&D teams to ensure packaging requirements for new product launches are received to meet launch deadlines.
• Challenge the business when MOQ requirements with suppliers far exceed the production requirement. If possible, this needs to be re-negotiated with suppliers or through the sourcing team. If this is not possible, the potential write-off costs due to shelf life expiry must be built into the product costs.
• Calculate estimated bleed outs of packaging at the beginning of a project and where applicable provide timeous provisions for write-offs to the project team.
• Work closely with supply planners and site team to ensure innovation is successfully delivered within the timelines.
• Actively manage down stock being discontinued, including working with production planners and distribution to exit an SKU. Write-offs are to be kept to a minimum or entirely avoided if possible.
• Manage master data for MRP appropriately to ensure the best possible changeover from old to new materials.
• Advise Master Data and MACS teams of when to switch the system to the new BOM as the MRP planner is responsible for this decision based on the stock holding of the old materials at each site.

Supplier and Stock Holding Management:

• Monthly, provide suppliers with a 6-month forecast requirement based on end item requirements as per the forward production plan.
• Establish and maintain lead time & safety stock requirements for individual packaging requirements.
• Monitor stock at supplier numbers closely about call-off to ensure stock holding numbers are accurate at all times.
• Establish stock holding/safety stock for new suppliers based on their lead time requirements.
• Identify opportunities to reduce stock holding either on-site or at suppliers based on improved order management and reliability of demand/supply.

Sales and Operations Planning:

• Provide input into the Supply Planning Meetings and Supply Chain Review on where the risks are for shortages, excess stocks, and potential write-offs for Packaging.
• Make recommendations on how these changes be avoided and/or costs prevented.

Imports Planning and Coordination (Further Processing):

• Determine the import requirements for packaging to ensure appropriate stock cover based on forecasted requirements.
• Use the agreed import purchasing process to procure stock based on the forecasted requirements.
• Create workflows and purchase orders to get authorization for agreed volumes.

Outbound Supply Chain Project Coordination:

• Be involved in projects that drive cost savings or system improvements (e.g. Syspro and other system tools).

Information and Data Management:

• Ensure plants & packaging warehouse staff accurately and regularly capture data into the information system to enable access to reliable data and reporting for trend analysis and decision-making.
• Ensure all planning master data is 100% accurate in planning tools.