Job Descriptions:
GENERAL JOB SUMMARY:
The Material Planning & Logistics Lead is responsible for leading material planning, kitting, inventory coordination, and shop-floor material flow to support Engineering, Assembly, Test, and Program delivery at Technical Directions Inc. (TDI). This position translates build schedules, work orders, and released bills of material into executable material priorities and ensures the right material, in the right configuration and quantity, is available at the right time.
Reporting to the Supply Chain Manager, the Lead directly supervises the Kitting & Material Specialist, provides daily work direction and development, and serves as the primary execution link between Planning, Purchasing, Engineering, Configuration Management, Quality, Production, Test, and Program Management. The role owns material readiness, shortage visibility, inventory and ERP/MRP transaction discipline, traceability, and standardized kitting practices. The Lead also serves as the designated backup for the Shipping & Receiving Lead to maintain continuity of inbound and outbound material flow, documentation, and customer delivery support.
ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS:
Team Leadership and Daily Execution
Leads, assigns, and prioritizes the daily work of the Material Planning & Logistics team member and other assigned Material Planning & Logistics personnel.
Establishes clear daily and weekly priorities based on the production schedule, engineering needs, material availability, and customer commitments.
Provides onboarding, training, cross-training, coaching, and performance feedback; reinforces standard work, accountability, safety, and 6S expectations.
Participates in staffing, interviewing, performance reviews, and corrective-action recommendations in partnership with the Supply Chain Manager and Human Resources.
Material Planning and Production Readiness
Translates build schedules, work orders, released BOMs, and engineering priorities into a short-term material plan for Assembly, Subassembly, Test, rework, and special builds.
Conducts routine material-readiness reviews to confirm kit status, shortages, inspection holds, supplier constraints, and recovery actions before scheduled build dates.
Maintains a clear and current shortage list, including responsible owner, required date, recovery plan, and escalation status.
Coordinates with Buyers and Supply Chain leadership to expedite critical material and align supplier delivery priorities with the build schedule.
Identifies material risks early and communicates impacts, options, and recommended actions to Production, Engineering, Quality, Test, and Program stakeholders.
Kitting, Staging, and Shop-Floor Material Flow
Oversees preparation, staging, verification, release, and replenishment of material kits based on work orders, released BOMs, build schedules, and approved engineering direction.
Ensures kits are complete, accurate, configuration-controlled, clearly identified, and delivered to the correct production or test location in priority sequence.
Controls partial kits, shortage bins, returns, unused material, rework material, and material substitutions to prevent loss of traceability or unauthorized use.
Responds to missing-part, urgent-material, and shop-floor support requests while protecting established priorities and documenting changes to the material plan.
Inventory, Configuration, and Traceability Control
Verifies part numbers, revisions, quantities, units of measure, lot or batch information, serial numbers, shelf-life status, and quality status before material is issued or staged.
Supports implementation of ECR/ECO/ECN changes and ensures kits reflect the latest released and approved configuration.
Prevents use of incorrect, obsolete, expired, unapproved, or nonconforming material and coordinates disposition through Quality, MRB, Engineering, or Configuration Management.
Maintains required segregation and control of company-owned, customer-owned, and Government-owned material in accordance with applicable FAR/DFARS and internal requirements.
Leads cycle-count support, inventory reconciliation, root-cause investigation, and corrective actions for inventory discrepancies and transaction errors.
ERP/MRP Systems and Data Integrity
Executes and reviews ERP/MRP transactions for inventory movement, work-order material issue and return, kit status, transfers, reservations, consumption, and other assigned material-control activities; Costpoint experience is preferred.
Maintains accurate system status so that inventory, kitting, purchasing, production planning, quality traceability, and program reporting reflect the physical condition of material.
Supports validation and improvement of BOMs, inventory master data, planning parameters, lead times, order policies, safety stock, and other ERP/MRP settings that affect material readiness.
Develops and maintains visual controls, reports, and key performance indicators such as kit completion, shortage aging, inventory accuracy, transaction timeliness, and schedule readiness.
Uses Microsoft Excel and system reporting tools to analyze shortages, priorities, usage, inventory status, and material-flow performance.
Shipping and Receiving Backup Responsibilities
Serves as the designated backup to the Shipping & Receiving Lead and coordinates daily inbound and outbound material activities when coverage is required.
When serving as backup, verifies incoming material against purchase orders, packing lists, certifications, test reports, and quality requirements; routes material to Quality Inspection, MRB, or the appropriate internal owner.
Performs or validates ERP/MRP receiving and shipping transactions, receiving logs, proof-of-delivery records, and chain-of-custody documentation to maintain accurate material status and traceability.
Supports preparation and verification of outbound packing lists, labels, bills of lading, certificates of conformance, carrier documentation, and customer-specific packaging or labeling requirements.
Coordinates carriers, couriers, and internal stakeholders as needed and ensures shipping and receiving activities comply with ITAR/EAR, DFARS, AS9100D, and TDI procedures.
Cross-Functional Coordination, Compliance, and Improvement
Partners with Production, Test, Engineering, Configuration Management, Quality, Buyers, Program Management, and Shipping & Receiving to resolve material constraints and maintain schedule alignment.
Maintains documented standard work, desk procedures, training materials, and visual controls for material planning, kitting, inventory handling, and logistics activities.
Leads root-cause analysis and continuous-improvement actions related to material flow, kit accuracy, inventory accuracy, shortage management, system transactions, and workspace layout.
Maintains clean, safe, organized, and audit-ready material planning and kitting areas in accordance with 6S, FOD-prevention, ESD, and material-handling requirements.
Complies with TDI's Quality Management System, AS9100D requirements, export-control obligations, and all applicable safety, security, and supply chain procedures.
Other duties may be assigned.
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY:
Directly supervises the Material Planning & Logistics team member and any additional assigned personnel. Responsibilities include daily work assignment, prioritization, training, coaching, cross-training, performance feedback, attendance and workflow coordination, and recommendations regarding staffing and performance actions. Provides temporary workflow leadership to Shipping & Receiving personnel when serving as backup to the Shipping & Receiving Lead.
Required Experience:
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES:
Required
- Strong working knowledge of material planning, kitting, inventory control, production support, warehouse operations, and material flow in a manufacturing en
