Production control planner vs production control clerk

The differences between production control planners and production control clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a production control planner and a production control clerk. Additionally, a production control planner has an average salary of $68,783, which is higher than the $36,983 average annual salary of a production control clerk.

The top three skills for a production control planner include MRP, production control and on-time delivery. The most important skills for a production control clerk are data entry, production reports, and customer orders.

Production control planner vs production control clerk overview

	Production Control Planner	Production Control Clerk
Yearly salary	$68,783	$36,983
Hourly rate	$33.07	$17.78
Growth rate	-3%	-3%
Number of jobs	98,958	150,965
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Associate Degree, 33%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	2	2

What does a production control planner do?

Production control planners have the ability to work well with others, analytical thinking, verbal communication, persistence, determination, ambition, and, of course, business management skills. Those who choose this career path will plan production control activities in order to improve runtime while maintaining high quality, cost-effectiveness, and timely delivery. Also, they will work on material planning and analysis for the purposes of reducing the inventory level.

What does a production control clerk do?

Production control clerks will need to possess skills in data, entry, drafting customer supports and orders, dealing with production workers, and handling material inventory records. Also, clerical skills are a plus. This career calls for the reviewing and distribution of production work and shipment schedules, conferring with department supervisors on work progress and dates of completion, as well as the compilation of work progress reports, inventory levels, costs, and any issues in production.

Production control planner vs production control clerk salary

Production control planners and production control clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Production Control Planner	Production Control Clerk
Average salary	$68,783	$36,983
Salary range	Between $52,000 And $90,000	Between $26,000 And $51,000
Highest paying City	Fremont, CA	Harrisburg, PA
Highest paying state	Washington	New Hampshire
Best paying company	NVIDIA	Fortive
Best paying industry	Automotive	Manufacturing

Differences between production control planner and production control clerk education

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

	Production Control Planner	Production Control Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Associate Degree, 33%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Western Carolina University	Western Carolina University

Production control planner vs production control clerk demographics

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

	Production Control Planner	Production Control Clerk
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 63.0% Female, 37.0%	Male, 32.7% Female, 67.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 17.7% Asian, 7.2% White, 61.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 10.1% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.7% Asian, 7.0% White, 60.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between production control planner and production control clerk duties and responsibilities

Production control planner example responsibilities.

Coordinate daily materials supply concerns and recommend continuous improvement in the logistics system to achieve optimum materials support to aircraft maintenance.
Plan inventory management techniques (KANBAN) to avoid any shortages and excesses.
Maintain MRP, establish production schedules and staffing base on material availability and analysis of capacity.
Issue KANBAN cards: for the reorder of materials.
Prepare work orders for production and follow work in progress (WIP) through to completion.
Train users on new ERP system, documenting new procedures for users as applicable to their jobs.

Production control clerk example responsibilities.

Manage warehouse and shipping departments, responsible for outsourcing secondary machining of materials, purchasing MRO supplies and logistics.
Create shippers and labels, manually or electronically in EDI.
Operate CNC Router/Engraver to produce ADA compliant signs, plaques.
Receive and process order information from customers via e-mail and EDI.
Assist in the setup & programming of CNC machines for production.
Research, recommend, set up and maintain the company's new ERP system.

Production control planner vs production control clerk skills

Common production control planner skills

MRP, 10%
Production Control, 9%
On-Time Delivery, 5%
Logistics, 5%
Production Planning, 5%
ERP, 4%

Common production control clerk skills

Data Entry, 11%
Production Reports, 11%
Customer Orders, 10%
Production Sheets, 9%
Product Specifications, 8%
Logistics, 7%

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Production Control Planner
Production Control Planner vs Production Control Clerk

Updated January 8, 2025

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