Production Planner
Fareham, Hampshire | Permanent | Monday–Friday, On-Site | Up to £45,000
We are currently supporting a well-established manufacturing business in Fareham, Hampshire, with the appointment of an experienced Production Planner.
This is an excellent opportunity for a planning professional with a strong background in long-range resource planning, MRP and finite production scheduling, who is looking to take ownership
of production requirements and play a key role in supporting operational and customer delivery performance.
The Opportunity
As Production Planner, you will be responsible for developing and maintaining effective production plans, ensuring that materials, capacity, resources and customer demand remain aligned.
Working closely with Production, Purchasing, Customer Services and Finance, you will provide forward visibility of production requirements, identify potential constraints and take proactive action to minimise disruption to manufacturing schedules and customer delivery.
You will be expected to interrogate and challenge ERP/MRP information rather than simply rely on system recommendations, using your planning expertise and analytical skills to make informed decisions.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead long-range production and resource planning
- Balance supply, demand, materials and manufacturing capacity
- Develop and maintain the Master Production Schedule
- Review MRP action messages and job creation recommendations
- Create and manage works orders in line with production requirements
- Monitor forward production loading and identify capacity constraints
- Identify material, resource and supply risks at an early stage
- Support finite production scheduling
- Work closely with Production to achieve manufacturing schedules and OTD targets
- Liaise with Purchasing regarding material availability and supply constraints
- Coordinate with Customer Services to ensure planning remains aligned with the customer order book
- Support inventory management, including excess and obsolete stock reviews
- Work with Finance to investigate WIP variances
- Support New Product Introduction (NPI) activity
- Contribute to continuous improvement, 5S and process development initiatives
- Support customer, BSI and regulatory audits when required
The Ideal Candidate
We are particularly interested in speaking with candidates who have:
- A minimum of 3 years' experience in Production, Resource or Manufacturing Planning
- Strong working knowledge of MRP and ERP systems
- Proven experience in long-range resource planning
- Experience with finite production scheduling or Advanced Planning & Scheduling
- Strong Microsoft Excel skills
- Experience balancing production demand, capacity and material availability
- Excellent analytical and problem-solving abilities
- Strong attention to detail and data accuracy
- The confidence to challenge planning assumptions and identify potential risks
- Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills
- The ability to work effectively in a fast-paced manufacturing environment
Experience within an engineering or manufacturing environment would be highly advantageous, as would knowledge of Master Production Scheduling, VAPS or similar planning systems, NPI, Lean Manufacturing or 5S.
What We're Looking For
This role would suit a proactive and commercially aware planner who naturally looks ahead, anticipates potential issues and takes ownership of finding solutions.
You will need to be analytical, organised and resilient, with the ability to manage changing priorities and communicate effectively across multiple departments.
Most importantly, you will understand that successful production planning is about more than maintaining a schedule — it is about anticipating risk, optimising resources and ensuring the business is positioned to deliver for its customers.
The Package
Salary: Up to £45,000
Location: Fareham, Hampshire
Working Hours: Monday–Friday- 7am - 4.30pm Monday - Thursday - Friday 7am - 11am
Working Arrangement: Fully site-based
Employment: Permanent
If you are an experienced Production Planner, Resource Planner, Manufacturing Planner, Supply Chain Planner or MRP Planner with a strong background in long-range planning and finite scheduling, we would be very interested in hearing from you.
Apply today for a confidential discussion about this opportunity.