Production Planner

We’ve built our first ever innocent-owned factory, called ‘the blender’. We are on a really exciting mission. We want to build ‘the Earth’s Favourite Little Healthy Drinks Factory”. We have ambitious and inspirational goals which will be setting us apart from many typical factories. To us this means doing the right thing by our people, the planet and the community. We want to foster a community & team that are truly proud of the products that they make and the impact we can have whilst we do it. The whole team will want to connect to the wider community, doing our bit and being a true B Corp while working in a zero harm culture. The blender will produce more than 400 million bottles a year and has over 220 employees working in a 24/7 operations

In this role, you’ll be creating the blending and filling production plans to ensure that we have enough smoothies and juices for all our drinkers in Europe. The operations team will be working off your plan so it’s crucial that you’re a super strong communicator and able to stay calm under pressure when you find out that things aren’t going to plan – that’s also your moment to shine: to find a solution as quickly as possible, to minimise the impact on service and cost. This role is the central point for many processes, so excellent collaboration with many teams is important to ensure the latest inputs and insight are fed into an optimised plan.

Production planning & scheduling:

• Create the exact production plan for blending and filling as per our planning cycle, adhering to innocent recipe criteria and capacity restrictions
• Create the bulk and blend delivery schedules in line with the production needs & tank storage requirements
• Resolve any potential issues as quickly as possible to minimise disruptions and keep the target service level
• Communicate production plan as well as any changes in a clear manner and on a regular basis
• Collaborate with maintenance and quality to get necessary inputs impacting the production schedule
• Partner with raw materials planners, blending team and operations to ensure a fully optimised plan is in place
• Find improvements and optimisations of plans to maximise performance and minimise cost
• Investigate supply and production variances

System usage & improvements:

• Be the APS super user, ensuring the system delivers what is required for production & enables optimum running
• Carry out ongoing new release testing of systems (D365, APS) and provide clear feedback to Business Operations
• Input into the ongoing development and improvement of APS
• Train others on planning systems to ensure adequate cover is there when needed

Reporting and improvements:

• Collect & report production actuals within week (E.g. actual cases produced vs. plan, % of defects)
• Prepare performance reports and communicate to team and management
• Initiate & support continuous improvement of the planning processes and other SC development projects
• Plan and prepare for NPD work
• Create operations handbooks for your area and keep up to date

Knowledge and experience:

• Experience in detailed planning / scheduling role and using ERP/APS systems
• Willing to work flexibly when needed to ensure the plan is delivered (e.g. we have an on-call rota to support weekend working for exceptional issues);
• An understanding of tools & systems supporting production planning;
• Experience in operational environments requiring collaborative & reactive problem solving;
• Proficient in Dutch and good level of English (verbal and written).

Competences:

• Creative problem solver with excellent partnering & collaboration skills, to find a way even if it seems impossible;
• Analytical with high attention to detail;
• Manage a demanding workload and stakeholder group;
• Great verbal and written communication skills – both clear and engaging with gravitas and confidence;
• Focus and attention to detail to work accurately across a number of priorities and to strict deadlines;
• Staying calm when there is a lot on your plate or not what you’re used to.