Production Planning & Scheduling Manager (AI & Analytics Focus)

An established and growing custom manufacturing and heavy industrial fabrication company is seeking a Production Planning & Scheduling Manager to lead production planning through data analytics, forecasting, and AI-assisted scheduling tools. This is an exciting opportunity for someone who enjoys solving complex operational challenges using statistics, data, and technology.

Salary: $85,000 - $100,000 (DOE)
Location: Houston, TX 77073
Schedule: Monday – Friday | 7:00 AM – 4:00 PM

What You'll Do

• Develop and maintain an integrated production schedule across multiple active projects.
• Analyze production capacity, labor availability, machine utilization, and project priorities.
• Use AI-assisted scheduling tools to improve forecasting and production planning.
• Monitor planned vs. actual production hours and identify schedule risks.
• Build dashboards, reports, and performance metrics for leadership.
• Identify bottlenecks and recommend improvements to maximize productivity.
• Collaborate with Production, Engineering, Purchasing, Quality, and Project Management teams.
• Continuously improve forecasting accuracy and scheduling processes.

Required Qualifications

· Bachelor's degree in Statistics, Industrial Engineering, Operations Research, Data Analytics, Supply Chain, Manufacturing Analytics, or a related field

· Strong analytical and critical thinking skills

· Experience with production planning, forecasting, scheduling, operations analysis, or manufacturing analytics

· Experience using data to support operational decision-making

· Ability to interpret AI-generated recommendations while applying sound professional judgment

· Experience creating dashboards and management reports (Power BI, Excel, SQL, Python, or similar tools is highly preferred)

· Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration skills

Knowledge of:

• Capacity analysis & workload forecasting
• Comparing planned, earned, actual, and remaining hours
• Identifying trends, bottlenecks, and schedule risks
• Measuring forecast accuracy
• Labor and machine utilization analysis
• Historical production data analysis
• Building dashboards and management reports
• Understanding AI-generated recommendations and recognizing unreliable results
• Using probability and uncertainty when estimating completion dates
• Experience with AI-assisted planning or scheduling tools
• Experience outside of steel fabrication is preferred, as we are looking for someone who can bring fresh analytical thinking and innovative approaches to production scheduling.

Benefits

· Health, Dental & Vision Insurance

· 401(k) with 3% company contribution

· 2 Weeks Accrued Vacation

· 8 Paid Holidays

If you're passionate about using AI, analytics, and data to improve manufacturing operations, we'd love to hear from you!