Materials Manager

Materials Manager

The Materials Manager will provide strategic leadership and day-to-day operational oversight for the end-to-end flow of all input materials at our high-volume applesauce processing plant. You will directly manage the Inventory Control and Warehouse Receiving teams, ensuring operational excellence from dock to stock. A critical component of this role is the management of fresh fruit ingredients-specifically fresh apples and fruit concentrates. You will be responsible for balancing on-site and off-site warehouse footprints, managing temperature-controlled cold storage, and optimizing inbound transportation schedules to support continuous plant operations, especially during high-volume seasonal harvest peaks.

Bowman Andros is committed to maintaining a strong safety culture focused on preventing injuries and providing all employees with a safe, healthy, and productive work environment.

Every employee at Bowman Andros is expected to demonstrate a personal commitment to safety by following established procedures, identifying and reporting hazards, and actively participating in safety initiatives. Safety is a shared responsibility, and we believe that all incidents are preventable through awareness, accountability, and continuous improvement.

We strive to empower our teammates to take ownership of safety, look out for one another, and contribute to a workplace where safety is always the top priority.

Key Responsibilities

• Team Leadership & Development: Directly manage, mentor, and schedule the plant's Inventory Control specialists and Warehouse Receiving teams (including hourly associates), fostering a culture of safety, accuracy, and accountability.
• Fresh Fruit & Harvest Management: Oversee the intake, staging, and rotation of fresh apples and other perishable fruit ingredients. Coordinate closely with agricultural procurement to handle intense seasonal harvest surges, prioritizing fruit quality and shelf-life constraints (FIFO/FEFO).
• Inventory Control & System Accuracy: Maintain ultimate accountability for plant-wide inventory accuracy. Direct cycle counting programs, physical inventory audits, and optimize Material Requirements Planning (MRP) for packaging (pouch film, cups, PET jars) and processing ingredients.
• On &Off-Site Footprint Management: Architect and manage space allocation across the plant's on-site warehouses and external third-party logistics (3PL} off-site storage locations, maximizing capacity and minimizing double-handling.
• Cold Storage & Food Safety Compliance: Supervise the logistics and strict temperature-monitoring protocols for cold storage environments holding fruit concentrates and sensitive ingredients. Ensure 100% compliance with FDA, SQF, and allergen segregation standards.
• Inbound Logistics & Dock Optimization: Direct inbound transportation scheduling and carrier gate-control. Optimize dock utilization to minimize demurrage charges and ensure a steady, predictable stream of packaging and raw ingredients to the production floor.

Qualifications & Requirements

• Education: Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Logistics, Agribusiness, or Operations Management.
• Experience: 5+ years of experience in materials management, warehouse leadership, or inventory control within a food manufacturing plant. Experience in agribusiness or a highly seasonal processing environment is required.
• Fresh Produce/Fruit Expertise: Direct experience managing the receipt, storage, and handling of perishable agricultural commodities (specifically fresh apples) and temperature-controlled bulk ingredients.
• People Management: Minimum of 3 years of experience directly managing salary supervisors and/or hourly warehouse, receiving, and inventory personnel.
• Technical Proficiency: Deep working knowledge of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Warehouse Management Systems (WMS). Familiarity with how material availability feeds into long-range planning software like FutureMaster is highly valued.
• Certifications: APICS certification is highly preferred

Working Environment

This position operates in both office and production environments. The role requires frequent exposure to varying environmental conditions, including outdoor weather, temperature extremes, wet or humid settings, and production floor hazards. The incumbent may work near moving mechanical equipment, at elevated heights, and around fumes, airborne particles, and chemicals. Exposure to loud noise levels is common, and proper personal protective equipment (PPE) must be worn at all times.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described are representative of those required to successfully perform the essential functions of this role:

• Frequent standing, walking, climbing, balancing, and use of hands to handle equipment.
• Regular bending, kneeling, crouching, crawling, and reaching.
• Ability to navigate stairs and uneven surfaces.
• Capability to lift, carry, push, and/or pull up to 50 pounds.
• Occasional sensory duties such as tasting, touching, or smelling when required.