Production Scheduler Job Description

Department: Operations / Manufacturing
Reports To: Operations Manager or Plant Manager
FLSA Status: Exempt or Non-Exempt (depending on company policy)

Position Summary

The Production Scheduler is responsible for planning, scheduling, and coordinating manufacturing activities to ensure customer orders are completed on time while maximizing production efficiency. This position works closely with Sales, Customer Service, Purchasing, Warehouse, Quality, and Production Supervisors to balance customer priorities, machine capacity, labor availability, and raw material requirements.

The scheduler serves as the central coordinator for daily production activities and continuously adjusts schedules to respond to changing customer demands, equipment issues, and material availability.

Essential Responsibilities

Production Planning

·         Develop and maintain daily, weekly, and monthly production schedules.

·         Prioritize manufacturing orders based on customer due dates and business priorities.

·         Balance workloads across production departments and work centers.

·         Schedule production to maximize machine utilization and labor efficiency.

·         Ensure schedules support on-time delivery goals.

Order Management

·         Review incoming customer orders for production requirements.

·         Release work orders to manufacturing.

·         Monitor order progress throughout production.

·         Identify and resolve scheduling conflicts before they impact delivery.

·         Coordinate expedited orders when necessary.

Capacity Planning

·         Analyze production capacity versus customer demand.

·         Recommend overtime, additional shifts, or schedule adjustments when required.

·         Monitor machine availability and production bottlenecks.

·         Coordinate with supervisors regarding equipment maintenance that may affect schedules.

Material Coordination

·         Verify raw materials and components are available before releasing jobs.

·         Coordinate with Purchasing regarding material shortages.

·         Work with Warehouse personnel to ensure materials are staged for production.

·         Identify potential supply chain issues affecting delivery schedules.

Communication

·         Communicate daily production schedules to supervisors and department leaders.

·         Provide updated completion dates to Customer Service and Sales.

·         Participate in production meetings.

·         Notify management of potential delivery risks.

·         Coordinate schedule changes across all departments.

Production Monitoring

·         Track production performance against schedule.

·         Monitor work-in-process (WIP).

·         Update schedules based on actual production performance.

·         Analyze schedule adherence and identify improvement opportunities.

Inventory Management

·         Help maintain appropriate inventory levels of finished goods where applicable.

·         Minimize excess inventory while ensuring customer requirements are met.

·         Coordinate production to optimize inventory turnover.

Continuous Improvement

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