Manufacturing planner vs inventory planner

The differences between manufacturing planners and inventory planners can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a manufacturing planner and an inventory planner. Additionally, an inventory planner has an average salary of $65,504, which is higher than the $65,109 average annual salary of a manufacturing planner.

The top three skills for a manufacturing planner include BOM, shop floor and engineering drawings. The most important skills for an inventory planner are supply chain, purchase orders, and logistics.

Manufacturing planner vs inventory planner overview

	Manufacturing Planner	Inventory Planner
Yearly salary	$65,109	$65,504
Hourly rate	$31.30	$31.49
Growth rate	-3%	-3%
Number of jobs	46,577	37,034
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	2	2

What does a manufacturing planner do?

It is the responsibility of a manufacturing planner to keep track of the production schedule. The duties of manufacturing planners involve the development of a master schedule with management consultation. They oversee the workflow of the production hub or facility. Their job includes the coordination of the production of one or more products. They ensure the promptness and accuracy of the production process. Also, they plan and prioritize the overall process for efficiency.

What does an inventory planner do?

An inventory planner is an individual who is responsible for creating effective inventory plans and strategies to maximize profitability for an organization. Inventory planners are required to produce documents that detail the quantity specifications of the organization's product or equipment. They must maintain their files updated about the inventory by recording them into the organization's databases to avoid possible discrepancies. Inventory planners must also predict future inventory needs and producing plans for buying based on forecasts and sales data.

Manufacturing planner vs inventory planner salary

Manufacturing planners and inventory planners have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Manufacturing Planner	Inventory Planner
Average salary	$65,109	$65,504
Salary range	Between $47,000 And $89,000	Between $45,000 And $93,000
Highest paying City	Fremont, CA	San Bruno, CA
Highest paying state	California	California
Best paying company	Micron Technology	Entegris
Best paying industry	Technology	Technology

Differences between manufacturing planner and inventory planner education

There are a few differences between a manufacturing planner and an inventory planner in terms of educational background:

	Manufacturing Planner	Inventory Planner
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Western Carolina University	Western Carolina University

Manufacturing planner vs inventory planner demographics

Here are the differences between manufacturing planners' and inventory planners' demographics:

	Manufacturing Planner	Inventory Planner
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 69.4% Female, 30.6%	Male, 53.0% Female, 47.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 17.7% Asian, 7.2% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 17.3% Asian, 7.1% White, 60.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between manufacturing planner and inventory planner duties and responsibilities

Manufacturing planner example responsibilities.

Manage the kanban system for the entire plant, consisting of rubber, nylon, and metal compounds.
Manage inventory levels for commodities of raw materials.
Monitor WIP ensuring products are complete in order to meet require customer due dates.
Reduce WIP costs and negative inventory by eliminating errors in BOMs and material transactions.
Update BOM for existing test plans, and create and populate BOM for new (production) planning.
Document all BOM requirements such as raw material, hardware and any other supplies necessary to produce the product.

Inventory planner example responsibilities.

Develop process to manage import orders to manage time and inventory more effectively JDA E3 certify.
Participate in SIOP meeting and coordinate with all function teams and regional/global team to achieve corporate KPI.
Develop and implement purchasing and contract management, policies and procedures and manage ISO documents and improvements.
Review stock levels, imbalances and data integrity in JDA to ensure the supply plan is generating accurate information.
Handle complex monthly reconciliations and daily/weekly journal entries to ensure AR balance accuracy.
Facilitate communication channels between the sales groups and corporate logistics to drive improve demand forecast.

Manufacturing planner vs inventory planner skills

Common manufacturing planner skills

BOM, 10%
Shop Floor, 8%
Engineering Drawings, 7%
Lean Manufacturing, 7%
Production Schedules, 6%
Production Planning, 5%

Common inventory planner skills

Supply Chain, 12%
Purchase Orders, 9%
Logistics, 8%
Manage Inventory, 8%
Inventory Planning, 7%
Historical Data, 4%

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Manufacturing Planner vs Inventory Planner

Updated January 8, 2025

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