Job detail

Company Description

John Crane, a business of Smiths Group, is a global leader in mission-critical flow control solutions for energy and process industries that enable efficient and sustainable operations. Our products include mechanical seals and systems, couplings, bearings, filtration systems, and predictive digital monitoring technologies. 

We have a global network of more than 200 sites in over 50 countries and employ more than 6,000 people worldwide. We partner with our customers to help them keep their operations safe, reduce downtime, improve efficiency, and meet the latest environmental standards. 

John Crane is part of Smiths Group. For over 170 years, Smiths has been pioneering progress by engineering for a better future. We serve millions of people every year, helping to create a safer, more efficient, productive, and better-connected world across four global markets: energy, security & defence, space & aerospace, and general industrial. Listed on the London Stock Exchange, Smiths employs approximately 16,000 colleagues in over 50 countries. 

Job Description

Production Planner plans and prepares manufacturing production schedules and departmental workflows; in addition to, initiating, developing and maintaining supply plans for components and finished products necessary to establish sequence and lead time of each production operation and satisfy the demand, inventory and service levels of the customers while complying with and executing company policies and procedures. The Production Planner acts as the primary contact for all communication between customer service and the production area impacting customer deliveries, product costs, shop schedules, inventory and efficiency.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Responsible for order due date management of the assigned area.
• Meets and exceeds area goals and objectives (accountable for area performance in Materials Management) – On Time Performance and Inventory goals.
• Initiates work orders with appropriate lot sizes to ensure efficient and low-cost production, timely delivery, and maintenance of adequate inventory levels. Works with MRP messages to assure continuous flow.
• Monitors currently planned order execution via daily review of appropriate data printouts, and support established ship dates on all customer orders. Coordinates contingency plans to achieve delivery promises when important deviations occur or properly adjusts due dates in the system and informs Customer Service of the changes.
• Coordinates the supply of materials and subcontract operations to meet production schedules.
• Analyzes current inventory for excess and obsolete items and maintain proper inventory levels and quality per policies and procedures.
• Reviews cell capacities and develops both short- and long-term capacity plans, establishing and adjusting schedule dates and relative priorities on work orders, adjusting lot sizes when necessary to meet manufacturing requirements and constraints, customer service and inventory requirements.
• Determines, recommends and provides for alternatives when demands exceed capacities.
• Recommends, implements, and documents new procedures and policies to improve the effectiveness of the operation.
• Gains familiarity with the other Planning functions and act as a backup as needed.
• Processes paperwork and maintain records as required.
• Initiates continuous and effective communications between Customer Service and the production area

• Assist with order conversion (quotes with purchase orders to repair orders)

• Manage inventory: stock checks, cycle counts, and parts tracking

• Coordinate with the repair and manufacturing team to ensure accurate and timely order completion

• Support customer service inquiries (phone/email) regarding order status and availability

• Collaborate with Quality, Sales, and other departments to resolve issues

• Maintain accurate records and documentation

• Assist with special projects and other departmental duties as assigned

Qualifications

• High School Diploma or equivalent required. Prefer at minimum an associate's degree in Materials Management or related discipline, or equivalent work experience.
• Minimum 3 years of planning, production, and materials management experience.
• Experience in a MRP environment is highly preferred.
• APICS certification preferred.
• Must be proficient in Microsoft Excel, Word and Outlook.
• Comfortable working in a manufacturing environment.
• Ability to work effectively with a diverse group of people to include various levels and disciplines. Salary will be commensurate with experience.

• 2 years related experience in customer service 

• ERP system experience required

• Strong verbal, written, problem-solving, and organizational skills

• Proficient in Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, Outlook)

• Detail-oriented and able to work independently

• Comfortable working in a warehouse environment

• Ability to lift and move materials as required

• Familiarity with rotating equipment and pumps a plus

• Bilingual English–Spanish a plus

Additional Information

With colleagues stretching across the globe, we are proud of our diversity. To foster inclusivity, we run employee resource groups (ERGs) to provide a safe space for employees to connect and support each other. Our cross-business ERGs include Veterans, Pride Network, Black Employee Network, Women@Work Network, and Neurodiversity. 

Across our company, we recognize excellence, culminating in the Smiths Excellence Awards, our annual celebration of the most extraordinary activities, people, and projects that best showcase our strengths and help drive our business forward. We announce these on our annual Smiths Day, a global celebration of Smiths around our network. 

Join us for a great career with competitive compensation and benefits, while helping engineer a better future. 

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We believe that different perspectives and backgrounds are what make a company flourish. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment regardless of color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, economic status, disability, age, or any other legally protected characteristics. We are proud to be an inclusive company with values grounded in equality and ethics, where we celebrate, support, and embrace diversity.

At no time during the hiring process will Smiths Group, nor any of our recruitment partners ever request payment to enable participation – including, but not limited to, interviews or testing. Avoid fraudulent requests by applying jobs directly through our career’s website (Careers - Smiths Group plc)