PRODUCTION PLANNER 2
Production Planner 2
Department: Operations Division: Planning
At Daniel Defense, Only the Best Build the Best…
Daniel Defense engineers and manufactures the world’s finest weapon systems and accessories. Our mission, Honor God. Defend Freedom®, is accomplished by serving customers and providing top-quality solutions to our military, law enforcement, and civilian customers seeking premium firearms for home defense, hunting, and sport shooting.
The Production Planner 2 owns execution of Daniel Defense's Master Production Schedule by translating the production build plan into executable manufacturing schedules that maximize factory productivity, material flow, and customer delivery performance.
This role partners closely with Operations, Procurement, Manufacturing, Quality, Engineering, and the Planning & SIOP Manager to develop production schedules that balance manufacturing capacity, material availability, customer demand, and New Product Development priorities. The Production Planner serves as the operational steward of schedule stability, production readiness, and factory flow while providing realistic production commitments that support both customer expectations and operational excellence.
Essential Functions:
- Execute the Master Production Schedule (MPS) established by the Planning & SIOP Manager through detailed production and interval scheduling.
- Develop production schedules that maximize equipment utilization, minimize changeovers, improve throughput, and support manufacturing productivity.
- Firm planned orders in accordance with the approved production build plan and release work orders to Manufacturing.
- Monitor schedule execution and adjust production priorities to address operational constraints while protecting schedule stability.
- Manage late work orders and recovery plans to maintain customer commitments and production objectives.
- Partner with Procurement to monitor material shortags, supplier constraints, and production readiness.
- Consolidate production constraints and material shortages into actionable recovery plans while communicating risks to the Planning & SIOP Manager.
- Ensure production schedules reflect material availability, engineering changes, quality holds, tooling readiness, and manufacturing constraints.
- Coordinate production readiness activities across Operations, Manufacturing Engineering, Procurement, and Quality.
- Partner with Operations to align production schedules with demonstrated manufacturing capacity, labor availability, and equipment utilization.
- Lead routine production planning cadences that review schedule execution, manufacturing constraints, shortages, and recovery actions.
- Monitor work-in-process (WIP), production queues, and interval scheduling to improve manufacturing flow and reduce bottlenecks.
- Balance production priorities to optimize throughput while minimizing unnecessary schedule disruption.
- Evaluate requested customer delivery dates against available manufacturing capacity and provide realistic production commitments that protect existing customer schedules.
- Support Customer Service and Sales by providing achievable production completion dates based on manufacturing capacity and material readiness.
- Reserve and coordinate manufacturing capacity supporting prototype builds, pilot production, engineering validation, and New Product Development activities.
- Balance customer expedites, production priorities, and New Product Development requirements while maintaining schedule integrity.
- Monitor production schedule adherence, manufacturing productivity, work order aging, and planning performance.
- Identify opportunities to improve planning processes, ERP utilization, interval scheduling, and manufacturing flow.
- Support planning parameter accuracy, reporting, and continuous improvement initiatives.
- Partner with the Planning & SIOP Manager to improve planning discipline, schedule stability, and production execution across the organization.
- Conform to and operate within the framework of all applicable operator work instructions, SOPs, quality, safety procedures, and any items deemed necessary by your supervisor or leadership
- Participates in the company’s efforts to continuously improve in Safety, 6S, Quality, Delivery and Productivity.
- Expected to be a contributor to the company standards on high integrity, safety, fair and equitable treatment and a positive work environment
- Other responsibilities as deemed appropriate or necessary by management.
Knowledge Skills and Abilities
- Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Business Administration, Industrial Engineering with 2-4 years of experience or equivalent combination of education and experience necessary to fulfill the requirements of the position.
- Demonstrated ability to recognize and work within our Company Values.
Success Measures
- Schedule adherence and interval schedule execution.
- Manufacturing productivity and capacity utilization.
- Work order aging and late work order reduction.
- Material readiness and shortage visibility.
- Schedule stability and minimized production disruption.
- Manufacturing lead time performance.
- On-time production completion.
- New Product Development schedule support.
- ERP planning discipline and work order accuracy.
- Cross-functional communication and production readiness.
Physical Requirements:
- Must be able to lift and carry items weighing up to 50 pounds.
- Requires intermittent standing, walking, sitting and bending throughout the work day.
- Must be able to work in a manufacturing environment, to include working in and around machinery, exposure to noise and chemicals, lights/lasers, etc.
- Must be able to wear appropriate Personal Protection Equipment as required by your position and/or Company policy.
Daniel Defense is an Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability and protected veteran status, and promotes a Drug-Free Workplace.
Note: The statements above are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by those assigned to the job. This list is not intended to be an exhaustive list of responsibilities, duties and skills required of personnel in this job. Responsibilities are subject to change at the discretion of the employer and do not establish a contract of employment – Daniel Defense is an at will employer
Equal employment opportunity, including veterans and individuals with disabilities.
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