Production Planning and Logistics Manager

This role serves as the liaison between operations, supply chain, sales, intra-plant tolling, and procurement, with direct ownership over production planning and all plant inbound and outbound logistics. The position ensures production plans, material availability, and inventory movements are accurately aligned to support safe, reliable, and efficient plant operations. Located at the MPP Plant Operations Building, this is a hands-on individual contributor role with broad ownership of production planning and plant logistics and does not have direct reports.

Responsibilities

• Prepare and facilitate daily production meetings with key production, engineering, and maintenance personnel.
• Assist production personnel in creating operator and bulk unloader work instructions.
• Attend shift supervisor meetings to ensure work instructions match production and order requirements.
• Review and maintain the production plan within the planning/ERP system to ensure material availability aligns with production schedules and demand requirements.
• Coordinate daily with intra-plant tolling resources.
• Verify that raw material and component purchase orders are placed at appropriate lead times and maintained to support production without shortages or excess inventory.
• Facilitate weekly refinery demand reviews to ensure production rates align with demand and storage capacity constraints, with a focus on by-products requiring continuous monitoring.
• Ensure subcontracting components are issued in a timely manner to support accurate purchase order receipt and completion of subcontracted production.
• Submit and manage railcar switch requests as needed throughout the week to support on-time order fulfillment.
• Coordinate railcar availability and storage locations to ensure by-products always have an appropriate disposition and do not constrain plant operations.
• Collaborate with logistics and operations teams to resolve rail, truck, and storage conflicts impacting production or shipments.
• Serve as the MPP point of contact for the short-line carrier (Palmetto Rail) and manage all operational aspects of the partnership.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain, Operations Management, Engineering, Business, or equivalent experience.
• 2-5 years of experience in production planning, scheduling, or logistics, preferably within a chemical or continuous-process manufacturing environment.
• Experience in production planning, scheduling, or supply chain roles within manufacturing, chemical, or refinery environments.
• Strong working knowledge of planning and execution systems; ERP system experience preferred (Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is a plus).
• High level of system acumen with the ability to interpret, maintain, and troubleshoot planning and inventory data.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with refinery operations, by-product management, or constrained storage environments.
• Familiarity with railcar logistics, switching processes, and bulk material handling.
• Understanding of planning, scheduling, and subcontracting processes and inventory ownership concepts in ERP systems.
• APICS CPIM (Certified in Planning and Inventory Management) certification, or demonstrated progress toward CPIM certification, is a plus.

Skills

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with a focus on supply chain management and inventory planning.
• Excellent cross-functional communication and stakeholder management.
• Attention to detail and commitment to data accuracy.
• Ability to manage competing priorities in a dynamic operating environment.
• Proactive mindset with a focus on preventing disruptions rather than reacting to them.

Schedule

• Full-time position.
• Primarily day shift – typical hours 7:00 AM – 4:00 PM; must be flexible to work outside of these hours.

Physical Requirements & Work Environment

• Work performed in office, laboratory, and plant production areas.
• Ability to access and inspect production equipment, including climbing ladders and working in elevated areas.
• Must be able to wear required PPE and safely work around chemicals and industrial equipment.
• Exposure to industrial conditions including noise, heat, and chemical odors.