Manufacturing planner vs production planner

The differences between manufacturing planners and production 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 a production planner. Additionally, a manufacturing planner has an average salary of $65,109, which is higher than the $60,390 average annual salary of a production planner.

The top three skills for a manufacturing planner include BOM, shop floor and engineering drawings. The most important skills for a production planner are customer service, MRP, and ERP.

Manufacturing planner vs production planner overview

	Manufacturing Planner	Production Planner
Yearly salary	$65,109	$60,390
Hourly rate	$31.30	$29.03
Growth rate	-3%	-3%
Number of jobs	46,577	68,717
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
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 a production planner do?

Production planners or schedulers are employees who take charge of the timeliness and accuracy of the production process. The planners develop production schedules which detail the tasks that need to be done to meet the set completion date. They emphasize the goods and materials necessary in the production phase. It is their job to make sure that the working space is well-maintained for optimal performance. They also manage the flow of information during production.

Manufacturing planner vs production planner salary

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

	Manufacturing Planner	Production Planner
Average salary	$65,109	$60,390
Salary range	Between $47,000 And $89,000	Between $44,000 And $81,000
Highest paying City	Fremont, CA	Newark, CA
Highest paying state	California	Washington
Best paying company	Micron Technology	Intuitive Surgical
Best paying industry	Technology	Energy

Differences between manufacturing planner and production planner education

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

	Manufacturing Planner	Production Planner
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Western Carolina University	Western Carolina University

Manufacturing planner vs production planner demographics

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

	Manufacturing Planner	Production Planner
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 69.4% Female, 30.6%	Male, 60.0% Female, 40.0%
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, 9.7% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 17.0% Asian, 7.1% White, 60.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between manufacturing planner and production 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.

Production planner example responsibilities.

Manage large supply base consolidations for both production parts and MRO items.
Manage customer accounts from small first time customers to large OEM's.
Manage and update inventory plan base on ABC and MTO statistic data.
Provide leadership and manage production JCL analyst team supporting and recovering of production job streams.
Track managed backlog dollars, OEM, finish product, and make to order specialty products.
Supervise NPI chip fulfillment process - manage wafer starts to meet internal qualification and board level build plan.

Manufacturing planner vs production planner skills

Common manufacturing planner skills

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

Common production planner skills

Customer Service, 11%
MRP, 9%
ERP, 5%
Logistics, 4%
Continuous Improvement, 4%
On-Time Delivery, 4%

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Manufacturing Planner vs Production Planner

Updated January 8, 2025

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