Production Planner

Benefits
:
As a contract employee of Sterling, you are eligible to receive a Full Employee Benefits Package that includes paid time off, paid holidays, 3 medical plans to choose from, dental & vision plans, 401(k), and an Employee Stock Ownership (ESOP) plan.

Sterling Engineering is looking for a Production Sequencing & Material Availability Analyst in Romeoville, IL with a leading manufacturing company. This person will own the daily Clear To Build sequencing process for the Viper switch line and serve as a key point of contact for identifying material shortages, validating inventory accuracy, and protecting the daily production schedule.

Job Duties:

• Execute the daily Clear To Build sequence for Viper switches, releasing only units with confirmed material availability.
• Review part-availability status and apply sequencing rules to support the required daily production rate.
• Communicate the daily production sequence to Production and Supervision.
• Identify units held from the sequence due to material shortages and track them through resolution.
• Investigate material shortages and determine root causes, including inventory accuracy, supplier delays, PO status, timing, and data issues.
• Escalate shortages that could impact production, providing details on part, quantity, unit impact, and expected recovery.
• Partner with Planning, Purchasing, and Warehouse to resolve shortages and ensure materials reach the production floor.
• Perform recurring physical inventory validation in the warehouse to confirm system quantities match actual inventory.
• Identify misplaced, mislocated, or missing parts and work through the appropriate inventory adjustment process.
• Identify recurring inventory discrepancies, BOM/routing issues, and other systemic data problems.
• Track shortage and inventory-accuracy trends and recommend corrective actions and continuous improvement opportunities.
• Support improvements to Clear To Build logic, BOM accuracy, and inventory integrity.
• Spend significant time on the shop floor and in the warehouse verifying material availability and inventory.

Qualifications:

• 2+ years of experience in production control, materials management, inventory management, production planning, or a related manufacturing operations role.
• Working knowledge of BOMs, inventory transactions, and shop-floor material flow.
• Experience with an ERP/MRP system; JD Edwards experience strongly preferred.
• Comfortable working with data, including availability reports, demand vs. supply, and inventory discrepancies.
• Strong problem-solving skills with the ability to investigate issues and drive them through resolution.
• Strong communication and follow-through when coordinating across multiple departments.
• Ability and willingness to work regularly on the manufacturing floor and in warehouse environments, including walking, standing, and physically verifying inventory.
• Familiarity with Lean, daily management, visual management, standard work, or tiered escalation preferred.

Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or genetic information.