Summary
The University of Birmingham’s High Temperature Research Centre (HTRC) is a new, purpose-built £40 million, 5,800m2 facility enabling production scale research and experimentation to deliver rapid high-quality product and process innovation in casting.
The Centre undertakes research and development projects supported by a number of funding bodies, both academic and industrial. Projects’ use of the Centre facilities is costed on a time and materials basis, controlled and monitored by a suite of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Manufacturing Execution System (MES) software.
Reporting to the HTRC Operations Director, the post holder will facilitate use of the HTRC Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Manufacturing Execution system (MES), to support setup and tracking of projects both with and for project teams, reporting required information to the University finance team for invoicing and support project teams in tracking resource usage against budget. They will use the information to support the Centre Management Team in preparation and tracking of the annual operating budget. Additionally, the successful candidate will assist users in operating and administering the ERP and MES systems, prepare manufacturing plans, and maintain operational reports, to aid the HTRC operations team to transact processes optimally.
The post holder will facilitate use of the ERP system, support setup and tracking of projects both with and for project teams, report required information to the University finance team for invoicing and support project teams in tracking resource usage against budget. They will use the information to support the Centre Management Team in preparation and tracking of the annual operating budget.
Main Duties
The post holder will:
Provide key user operation and front-line administration of the HTRC Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system to set up, record and report on research and development project use of the Centre’s Process Hall facilities and resources. Prepare and provide reports of research project usage of facilities and materials to the university financial teams and to check correct apportionment of costs within the HTRC accounts. Assist other users in the operation and administration of the ERP and MES system. Prepare manufacturing plans using the Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRP) within the ERP system. Ensure that the materials required to fulfil the manufacturing plan are available for operations. Prepare and maintain operational reports from the data derived from the MES system. This role will involve:
Setting up projects within ERP, launching into MRP plans and tracking and reporting against milestones in support of Operations: Inputting bills of materials, routes and resources in to the ERP system for new projects Updating and amending bills of materials, routes and resources in to the ERP system for active projects Ensuring all project costs are captured and allocated correctly Closing out of projects in the ERP system Providing day-to-day support to ERP system users. Use MRP tools within the ERP system to develop a Manufacturing Plan and work with centre operations to optimise the plans to support production. Use MRP/ERP systems to advise Operations on material ordering requirement in order to fulfil the Manufacturing Plan. Maintaining and updating WIP and material stock records to ensure alignment of ERP data to actuals and reporting of variances. Undertaking routine system administrative upkeep tasks including : ERP WO closure Updating Rapid Value tool Stock Checking and update Cleansing of MES data and archiving of records Updating error messages Capture of problems arising with MES and ERP systems Dealing with internal and external queries independently and proposing solutions, some of which would need further consideration by the Centre Leadership Team. Contribution to improving and developing systems and procedures to enhance service and outputs, liaising with system suppliers. Raising tickets with systems suppliers to troubleshoot issues and seek resolutions to problems Preparation of costing reports for research projects and research opportunities. Reporting to, and liaising with, the University Finance teams to ensure correct invoicing of facility and material usage to individual projects. Liaising with research partner finance teams to obtain costings for materials required to support projects Ad-hoc jobs for the HTRC Management Team including assistance with budget preparation, production of reports and management information, re-organisation of paper and computer records. The post holder will be expected to develop a detailed knowledge of the HTRC MES/ERP systems, HTRC Launch Preparation and Manufacture Execution procedures and the university financial policies.
Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience
Educated to A level or equivalent, GCSE passes in English and Mathematics A further qualification in accounting is desirable Experience of Enterprise Resource Planning and Manufacturing Resource Planning software or financial control and reporting, preferably in a manufacturing environment. Experience in the use of Microsoft Dynamics (AX 2012). Knowledge of python and SQL is desirable. Highly proficient use of Microsoft packages particularly spreadsheets (. sound understanding of formula use). General Ledger accounting practices DBS required
Pre-employment DBS
The University is committed to safeguarding and we promote safe recruitment practice, therefore all associated pre-employment checks will be undertaken before any appointment is confirmed. Due to the nature of the work undertaken in this role all successful applicants will be subject to a satisfactory DBS clearance prior to appointment.
BPSS Required
Due to the nature of the work undertaken in this role, all successful applicants will be subject to a BPSS check prior to appointment.