Materials planner vs production control supervisor

The differences between materials planners and production control supervisors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a materials planner and a production control supervisor. Additionally, a production control supervisor has an average salary of $75,132, which is higher than the $58,467 average annual salary of a materials planner.

The top three skills for a materials planner include supply chain, MRP and purchase orders. The most important skills for a production control supervisor are production schedules, continuous improvement, and lean manufacturing.

Materials planner vs production control supervisor overview

	Materials Planner	Production Control Supervisor
Yearly salary	$58,467	$75,132
Hourly rate	$28.11	$36.12
Growth rate	-3%	3%
Number of jobs	23,019	107,723
Job satisfaction	4	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 65%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Average age	45	46
Years of experience	2	2

What does a materials planner do?

Usually working in a manufacturing setting, a materials planner's role is to manage the supply flow and inventory of materials. Their responsibilities revolve around liaising with vendors and other external agencies, processing purchase orders, monitoring the quality of supplies to ensure it is according to the standards, and coordinating with various teams to learn their needs. Furthermore, as a planner, it is essential to devise strategies to resolve any issues, all while adhering to the company's policies and standards.

What does a production control supervisor do?

Production control supervisors assist with production and workflow scheduling procedures. They recognize quantitative indicators for effective measurements and possess a penchant for the planning, directing, supervising, and evaluating employee work. Additional tasks of this position include completion of production plans, accomplishing work results, establishing priorities, monitoring of progress, revising schedules, resolving issues, and reporting results of that processing flow on shift production summaries.

Materials planner vs production control supervisor salary

Materials planners and production control supervisors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Materials Planner	Production Control Supervisor
Average salary	$58,467	$75,132
Salary range	Between $45,000 And $74,000	Between $54,000 And $103,000
Highest paying City	Oakland, CA	-
Highest paying state	California	-
Best paying company	Apple	-
Best paying industry	Automotive	-

Differences between materials planner and production control supervisor education

There are a few differences between a materials planner and a production control supervisor in terms of educational background:

	Materials Planner	Production Control Supervisor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 65%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Western Carolina University	Stanford University

Materials planner vs production control supervisor demographics

Here are the differences between materials planners' and production control supervisors' demographics:

	Materials Planner	Production Control Supervisor
Average age	45	46
Gender ratio	Male, 52.7% Female, 47.3%	Male, 78.5% Female, 21.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.8% Asian, 7.0% White, 60.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 4.6% White, 60.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	11%	6%

Differences between materials planner and production control supervisor duties and responsibilities

Materials planner example responsibilities.

Develop and implement purchasing and contract management, policies and procedures and manage ISO documents and improvements.
Determine material and component requirements base on the MRP system and ensure availability to support production schedules.
Monitor MRP forecasts, inventory, customer demand, production requirements, inventory transactions and reject material.
Create and maintain MRP classification codes in addition to reviewing BOM accuracy to ensure correct component identification, ordering and release.
Maintain and setup supplier pull systems (KANBAN).
Key team member in planning, training, implementation, and support of a new ERP system.

Production control supervisor example responsibilities.

Establish production plan to satisfy customer requirements and set priorities to achieve plan JIT shipping dates.
Manage material inventory JIT deliveries.
Manage site operational support functions including scheduling, vendor certification, purchasing, materials planning, inventory management and logistics.
Maintain KANBAN system throughout the facility.
Plan and schedule production activities, create and maintain BOM's, job costing.
Participate in writing work instructions and procedures when company begin initial ISO and QS9000 certification.

Materials planner vs production control supervisor skills

Common materials planner skills

Supply Chain, 12%
MRP, 8%
Purchase Orders, 5%
Logistics, 5%
Customer Service, 5%
Material Planning, 5%

Common production control supervisor skills

Production Schedules, 7%
Continuous Improvement, 7%
Lean Manufacturing, 7%
Safety Procedures, 6%
Production Planning, 6%
MRP, 5%

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Materials Planner vs Production Control Supervisor

Updated January 8, 2025

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