What Is a Production Planner?

Production planners maintain the flow of work and materials for organizations. Other job titles include master scheduler and production scheduler. Production planners work with various departments including quality control, operations and sales.

Function

Under the direction of a production manager, production planners perform functions essential to the overall management of an organization. These functions often relate to materials management and inventory control.

Duties

Production planners are responsible for coordinating product delivery dates, monitoring purchase orders and negotiating prices. Submitting progress reports to production managers is an additional duty.

Qualifications

The minimum qualifications for a production planner position are a bachelor's degree in operations management or finance with work experience as a production assistant. Some employers may prefer a degree in engineering or manufacturing.

Work Environment

The work environment is a clean and well-ventilated office or production area. Some production planners may be required to work flexible hours including nights, holidays and weekends.

Compensation and Benefits

As of 2010, Indeed.com reports that the average salary for a production planner is $57,000 per year. Benefits packages include medical, dental, retirement and paid days off.

References

• The Bureau of Labor Statistics: Production, Planning and Expediting Clerks
• ONET Online: Summary Report for Production, Planning and Expediating Clerks
• Indeed: Production Planner Salaries

Resources

• Manufacturing Workers: Production Planner