Materials Planning Director
Pennsylvania Machine Works, aston township, pa, United States
The Opportunity
The right candidate will be crucial in creating the materials management function. Three specific pain points define the near-term agenda:
- Excess & Obsolete Inventory: Inventory segmentation is underdeveloped. A large portion of on-hand inventory is slow-moving or non-moving, tying up working capital and obscuring true availability. The Materials Manager will take ownership of a rigorous ABC/XYZ segmentation framework, establish reserve governance, and drive systematic disposition of E&O, while providing valuable insights to drive consumptions that prevent aging of materials.
- Inventory Accuracy & Warehouse Managemnt: Inventory accuracy is core to our business; it enables customer responsiveness and provides financial assurance to our stakeholders. The Materials Manager will cross-functionally lead cycle counting procedures that results in highest standards of accuracy and continuous improvement.
- Demand Planning & Forecasting: Current forecasting is largely ad hoc and reactive. The incoming leader will partner with Sales and Operations leadership to stand up a credible S&OP process, introduce statistical baseline forecasting, and reduce demand signal bias — ultimately improving material readiness without building unnecessary stock.
- Cross-Functional Discipline: Materials decisions are too often made in isolation from commercial commitments and financial constraints. The Materials Manager will serve as the connective tissue between Sales, Operations, Finance, and Procurement — building shared KPIs, escalation protocols, and a culture of materials accountability, while also overseeing Procurement of materials that meet or exceed on time delivery needs of our customers.
Key Responsibilities
Inventory Planning & Optimization
- Own and execute MRP/ERP-driven materials planning across all product lines and sites
- Implement multi-dimensional inventory segmentation (ABC by value, XYZ by velocity) to right-size safety stock and reorder parameters leading to purchasing decisions within budgets.
- Lead quarterly E&O reviews with Finance; develop and execute disposition plans (liquidation, return, repurpose, write-off)
- Establish and monitor Inventory Reserve % targets in partnership with the Controller
- Drive DIO reduction as a primary working capital KPI
Demand Planning & S&OP
- Stand up or formalize a Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) process, including a consensus demand review cadence
- Translate demand signals into actionable purchase plans and production schedules
- Manage supplier lead time variability; build buffer strategies that are data-driven, not gut-driven
- Partner with Finance on monthly inventory roll-forward reporting (receipts, usage, write-downs, absorption variances)
- Provide forward-looking inventory projections tied to production plans and customer commitments
- Identify opportunities to reduce working capital through VMI, consignment arrangements, or supplier payment term optimization
- Support annual budgeting and periodic reforecasting for raw material and WIP inventory levels
Cross-Functional Leadership
- Lead a weekly materials review meeting with Sales, Operations, and Procurement to align on constraint, priority, and demand changes
- Establish escalation protocols for material shortages that threaten OTD commitments
- Build accountability frameworks — scorecards, visual management, and KPI ownership — across the materials team
- Coach and develop a team of Materials Planners, Buyers, and Warehouse Leads
Qualifications
Required
- 3-5 years or more, of progressive materials management experience in a discrete manufacturing environment
- Demonstrated track record of reducing E&O inventory and improving DIO in a measurable, quantifiable way
- Strong ERP proficiency (Epicor, SAP, Oracle, or equivalent); must be capable of extracting and analyzing data independently
- Experience facilitating or participating in a formal S&OP process
- APICS CPIM or CSCP certification, or equivalent demonstrated expertise
- Proven ability to lead cross-functional initiatives without direct authority
Preferred
- Bachelors Degree from an accredited college is preferred
- Background in industrial, energy, or defense-adjacent manufacturing (fittings, forgings, or machined components)
- Experience in a PE-backed or high-accountability operating environment
- Familiarity with VMI / consignment structures and supplier development
- Exposure to ABC-XYZ inventory segmentation and reserve governance frameworks
- Proficiency with Excel-based analytics and/or BI tools (Data Rails, Power BI, Tableau, etc.)