The Materials Manager leads the Materials Department, with direct responsibility for inventory control, purchasing, warehouse operations, and shipping. This role executes against the sales and operations plans for all projects (sales, service, parts, and LA) ensuring materials are aligned to meet production and shipping commitments. The Materials Manager is accountable for maintaining efficient inventory levels in support of the company's goals, while ensuring accurate, timely transactions within the system.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities include the following:
Inventory Control
- Establish and maintain min/max levels and reorder points for raw materials, components, and finished goods.
- Oversee cycle counting and periodic physical inventories; maintain inventory accuracy in ERP.
- Identify and manage slow-moving and obsolete inventory, recommending disposition or write-off.
- Monitor inventory turns and carries costs and drives improvement initiatives to reduce excess inventory.
Purchasing & Supplier Management
- Oversee purchasing staff and the issuance of purchase orders to support production and customer commitments.
- Select, qualify, and negotiate with suppliers on price, terms, and lead times.
- Track and manage supplier performance (quality, on-time delivery, responsiveness); resolve escalations.
Materials Planning & Execution
- Execute the materials plan against the S&OP set by Sales and the Project Manager (this role does not own S&OP).
- Translate confirmed sales orders and production schedules into material requirements, ensuring on-time availability.
- Coordinate with Production/Project Management to resolve material shortages or scheduling conflicts.
Warehouse Operations
- Supervise warehouse and inventory staff; oversee receiving, put-away, storage, and organization.
- Ensure warehouse processes support accuracy, safety, and efficient material flow.
- Verify, processes, and records of incoming shipments and deliveries.
Shipping
- Supervise shipping staff and oversee outbound shipment coordination with carriers.
- Finalize and process shipments within the Syteline ERP system, ensuring accurate and timely close-out of sales orders.
Syteline ERP Administration
- Create and maintain assembled parts (BOMs/item records) in Syteline for the Parts Department.
- Maintain data integrity across item masters, inventory transactions, and purchasing/shipping records.
Leadership & Reporting
- Hire, train, schedule, and manage the performance of warehouse/inventory, purchasing, and shipping staff.
- Report key metrics to the CFO, including inventory turns, fill rate, on-time-in-full (OTIF) shipping, carrying cost percentage, and obsolescence write-offs.
- Partner with Sales, Project Management, and Finance to align materials execution with business needs.
- Support Span Tech's Quality Systems, Continuous Improvement and Safety initiatives.
- Other responsibilities as assigned.
Supervisory Responsibilities - This job does have supervisory responsibilities. Direct reports include Warehouse/Inventory Staff, Purchasing Staff, and Shipping Staff.
Qualifications - Perform this job successfully; an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
- Education and/or Experience - Bachelor's degree from four-year college or university; or four years related experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience.
- Mathematical Skills - Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions. Ability to interpret an extensive variety of technical instructions in mathematical or diagram form and deal with several abstract and concrete variables.
- Computer Skills - To perform this job successfully, an individual should have knowledge of ERP/Syteline Manufacturing software; Payroll systems; MS Teams; Project Management software and MS Office.
- Certificates, Licenses, Registrations - Driver's license, forklift license.
- Physical Demands - The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this Job, the employee is regularly required to stand; walk; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms and talk or hear. The employee is frequently required to climb or balance and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The employee must regularly lift and/or move up to 10 pounds, frequently lift and/or move up to 25 pounds, and occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.
- Work Environment - The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this Job, the employee is occasionally exposed to moving mechanical parts. Manufacturing plant environments may be noisy, dusty, cold, hot, and humid at times. Noise level in the office work environment is usually low to moderate, and the manufacturing environment is usually moderate to loud.
