Laars Heating Systems is seeking a Shipping Supervisor who is responsible for leading daily shipping, spare parts fulfillment, and distribution coordination activities to ensure customer orders, spare parts, and outbound shipments are processed accurately, efficiently, safely, and on time. This role provides direct supervision and day-to-day direction to the Distribution Coordinators, the Spare Parts Fulfillment department, and the Shipping department.
The Shipping Supervisor coordinates workflow, assigns priorities, monitors performance, resolves shipping and fulfillment issues, maintains documentation accuracy, supports inventory control, and drives continuous improvement across outbound logistics, spare parts operations, finished goods inventory, and warehouse layout. This position serves as a hands-on leader who partners with production, purchasing, planning, customer service, quality, finance, carriers, and internal stakeholders to meet delivery commitments, service expectations, parts availability, and finished goods stocking level requirements.
Key Responsibilities
- Supervise, coach, and direct the daily activities of the Distribution Coordinators, Spare Parts Fulfillment department, and Shipping department.
- Plan, assign, and prioritize daily work to ensure customer orders, spare parts orders, transfer shipments, and outbound freight are processed accurately and on schedule.
- Oversee order picking, packing, labeling, staging, documentation, loading, and shipment release activities.
- Ensure outbound shipments are complete, properly packaged, accurately documented, and compliant with customer, carrier, company, and regulatory requirements.
- Assist with prioritizing carrier pickups, freight schedules, dock activity, shipping priorities, and delivery requirements with internal teams and external transportation providers.
- Oversee the reviewing and verifying bills of lading, packing slips, shipping labels, freight documentation, delivery confirmations, and related transaction records.
- Monitor fulfillment and shipping performance metrics, including order accuracy, on-time shipment, backlog, productivity, freight issues, and service levels.
- Investigate and resolve shipping discrepancies, fulfillment delays, inventory issues, damaged shipments, missed pickups, and customer delivery concerns.
- Support spare parts fulfillment by ensuring timely order processing, accurate inventory movement, appropriate packaging, and effective communication of order status.
- Partner with production, purchasing, planning, customer service, quality, finance, and warehouse teams to support material availability, order fulfillment, and customer commitments.
- Maintain accurate records in ERP, MRP, warehouse management, shipping, inventory, or carrier systems.
- Monitor inventory control activities for spare parts, finished goods, and shipping-related materials to ensure system accuracy, physical inventory accuracy, and material availability.
- Review stocking levels, min/max quantities, reorder points, usage trends, and demand changes for spare parts and finished goods; recommend adjustments to support customer requirements, service levels, and operational efficiency.
- Coordinate cycle counts, inventory reconciliations, stock audits, location audits, and variance investigations for spare parts, finished goods, and shipping supplies.
- Work with planning, production, purchasing, customer service, and warehouse teams to address shortages, excess inventory, obsolete parts, backorders, and replenishment priorities.
- Ensure finished goods and spare parts are properly identified, stored, rotated, staged, and transacted to maintain inventory integrity and reduce fulfillment delays.
- Ensure team members follow safety procedures, housekeeping standards, equipment requirements, and company policies.
- Train new employees and provide ongoing guidance to improve accuracy, productivity, safety, and customer service.
- Identify opportunities to improve shipping processes, spare parts fulfillment flow, documentation accuracy, freight cost control, and department efficiency.
- Lead or participate in continuous improvement initiatives, corrective actions, audits, problem-solving activities, and special projects as assigned.
Required Qualifications
- Associates degree or coursework in supply chain, logistics, business, operations, or a related field preferred.
- Typically requires 5 or more years of experience in shipping, distribution, warehouse operations, order fulfillment, inventory control, logistics, or a related field.
- Prior lead, supervisory, or team coordination experience in a shipping, warehouse, fulfillment, manufacturing, or distribution environment preferred.
- Working knowledge of shipping processes, carrier coordination, freight documentation, order fulfillment, inventory transactions, and warehouse workflow.
- Working knowledge of inventory control practices, including cycle counting, stock reconciliation, stocking level review, min/max planning, inventory transactions, and finished goods control.
- Experience using ERP, MRP, warehouse management, shipping, inventory control, or carrier systems, Epicor preferred.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, including Outlook, Teams, Excel, and Word.
- Ability to read, interpret, and verify work orders, customer orders, purchase orders, packing slips, bills of lading, freight instructions, and inventory reports.
- Strong communication, leadership, organization, documentation, and problem-solving skills.
- Ability to prioritize work, manage multiple deadlines, respond to changing operational needs, and maintain accuracy in a fast-paced environment.
Equal Opportunity Employer
This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights (https://www.eeoc.gov/poster) notice from the Department of Labor.
