Plant Logistics Coordinator

James Hardie Building Products Inc. is the North American leader in fiber cement home siding and exterior design solutions. Hardie® products offer long lasting beauty and endless design possibilities with trusted protection and low maintenance. The company pioneered modern fiber cement building products and continues to invest in innovation to transform the industry. James Hardie is a high-performance organization, with an unwavering commitment to Zero Harm. The company proudly employs a diverse workforce of over 3,000 employees across operations in North America.

Position Summary:

The Production Planner is accountable for daily detailed scheduling and production plans for one of James Hardie’s manufacturing facilities using SAP’s Advanced Planning Optimization (APO) system. The Production Planner delivers a high level of outbound order service for their production plant while also creating a schedule that maximizes uptime and minimizes cost. The incumbent plays a key role between customer service, manufacturing, and logistics by ensuring an effective flow of communication regarding product availability, execution of optimized planning and minimization of inefficient freight.

Position Responsibilities:

Provides detailed scheduling production plans for multiple production lines using an APO planning platform to maximize customer service: (50%)

• Providing timely delivery of daily production plans while adhering to planning best practice methodology.
• Providing proactive communication with key plant personnel to ensure adherence to schedule and processes.
• Collaborating with plant personnel to develop plan of action for shortages including scheduled and unscheduled downtime to ensure high customer service.
• Manages all planning tools including master data to execute effective planning resulting in timely service and reduce/avoid excess and obsolete inventory.

Optimize production plans to provide the least amount of downtime and lowest cost for the manufacturing facility while maintaining key business priorities and service: (30%)

• Understanding and incorporating manufacturing constraints in scheduling rules to maximize resource efficiency and minimize inventory stock-outs.
• Work with plant personnel during upset conditions to determine best possible course of action for continued operations.

Provides adhoc analytical and project support to the manufacturing operations team to help drive continuous improvement around machine performance and/or plant costs. (20%)

• Helps support plant and department managers with data pulls and analytics to help plant performance improvement projects
• Coordinates between central planning, plant personnel, and R&D around trials to make sure that service/performance are protected

Quantitative Dimensions:

• Decision Making:
  • The Production Planner possesses strong decision-making ability to address day-to-day operational challenges and address deviation from results with defined action plans and collaboration. Decision making initiative is expected to be independent in a high accountability team environment.
• Supervisory/Lead Responsibilities:
  • The Production Planner has no direct reports, but requires a high level of collaboration with transportation, customer service, and manufacturing.
• Scope of Position:
  • The Production Planner spends the majority of their time executing and implementing planning best practices for facilities planned to ensure high service and lowest landed cost. Other responsibilities include support for a medium/long-term extension of managing the demand supply balance for those facilities planned in alignment with the overall network strategy through analysis and communication.

Position Requirements:

• Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (Required):
  • Demonstrated ability to identify and understand issues or problems using data and use effective approaches for choosing a course of action or developing an appropriate solution.
  • Demonstrated advanced analytical skills with the various features of spreadsheet and basic software (Microsoft Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, Internet, and other proprietary software).
  • Knowledge of production planning best practice methodologies.
  • Ability to collaborate effectively with plant personnel to develop action plans in reaction to product/production issues while still ensuring a high-level of customer service.
  • Knowledge of supply chain, manufacturing, and logistics.
  • Ability to drive adherence to planning best practices and procedures.
  • Superior interpersonal and written/oral communication skills with the ability to relate well and cooperate with others to effectively.
  • Demonstrated ability to build strategic working relationships while holding others and self-accountable for deliverables.
  • Demonstrated ability to act independently upon information and make decisions that achieve optimal results.
  • Ability to successfully manage multiple tasks and prioritize workload while paying attention to detail.
  • Demonstrated ability to function as a strong team player.

• Education/Experience:
  • Bachelor’s Degree in Supply Chain, Operations, Engineering, or related field.
  • 1 or more years of experience in an analytical position or 1 or more years of planning experience (preferred).
  • Direct supply chain experience.
  • SAP/APO planning experience (preferred).
  • Material Replenishment Program (MRP), deployment, Constrained Production Planning (CPP) and/or replenishment solutions experience (preferred).

• Competencies:
  • Applied Learning: Assimilating and applying new job-related information in a timely manner.
  • Building Strategic Working Relationships: Developing and using collaborative relationships to facilitate the accomplishment of work goals.
  • Decision Making: Identifying and understanding issues, problems, and opportunities; comparing data from different sources to draw conclusions; using effective approaches for choosing a course of action or developing appropriate solutions; taking action that is consistent with available facts, constraints, and probable consequences.
  • Initiating Action: Taking prompt action to accomplish objectives; taking action to achieve goals beyond what is required; being proactive.
  • Innovation: Generating innovative solutions in work situations; trying different and novel ways to deal with work problems and opportunities.
  • Managing Work (includes time management): Effectively managing one’s time and resources to ensure that work is completed efficiently.
  • Stress Tolerance: Maintaining stable performance under pressure or opposition (such as time pressure or job ambiguity); handling stress in a manner that is acceptable to others and to the organization.
  • Tenacity: Staying with a position or plan of action until the desired objective is obtained or is no longer reasonably attainable.
  • Work Standards: Setting high standards of performance for self and others; assuming responsibility and accountability for successfully completing assignments or tasks; self-imposing standards of excellence rather than having standards imposed.

James Hardie Building Products Inc. is an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, gender, sex, age, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, genetic information, veteran's status, marital status, pregnancy, disability, or any other basis protected by law.