MRO Inventory Manager

THE ROLE

The MRO Inventory Manager serves as the strategic owner of maintenance inventory, materials planning, CMMS/EAM data management, and maintenance support processes. This role ensures critical spare parts, consumables, tools, and maintenance resources are available to support equipment reliability, planned maintenance execution, and operational uptime.

This role combines inventory management, procurement coordination, maintenance planning support, vendor management, cost analysis, and systems administration responsibilities. The position partners closely with Maintenance, Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain, and Finance to optimize maintenance effectiveness while controlling inventory investment and maintenance spending. The MRO Inventory Manager acts as the primary site subject matter expert for maintenance materials management and serves as a key contributor to asset reliability and continuous improvement initiatives.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Maintenance Materials & Inventory Strategy

• Own the site-wide MRO inventory management program, including inventory control processes, reorder strategies, and cycle count programs.

• Analyze inventory usage trends, recommend stocking levels for critical spare parts, and lead initiatives to reduce discrepancies, stockouts, and obsolete inventory. 

• Maintain equipment bills of materials (BOMs) and critical spare parts lists, and partner with Reliability, Engineering, and Maintenance to identify critical spares and optimization opportunities. 

• Ensure spare parts storage areas maintain strong 5S and visual management standards. 

Maintenance Planning & Scheduling Support 

• Identify material requirements for planned work, and coordinate materials readiness for preventive, predictive, and corrective maintenance. 

• Develop and maintain maintenance kits for scheduled work. 

• Partner with supervisors and planners to align labor and materials before scheduled work begins, and participate in weekly planning and scheduling meetings. 

• Support shutdowns, outages, and capital projects through material planning and coordination. 

CMMS/EAM Ownership 

• Serve as site administrator for maintenance inventory and material-related functions within the CMMS/EAM. 

• Maintain spare parts master data, including descriptions, vendor information, costs, inventory levels, and equipment associations, and audit system data for accuracy and completeness. 

• Develop reports and dashboards supporting maintenance performance and inventory management. 

• Train maintenance personnel on proper inventory and materials transactions. 

Procurement & Vendor Management 

• Manage procurement activities for maintenance-related materials and services, and develop and maintain supplier relationships. 

• Evaluate supplier performance related to cost, quality, responsiveness, and delivery, and obtain quotations to identify cost-saving opportunities. 

• Support contract negotiations and supply agreements. 

• Escalate supply risks and develop contingency plans for critical equipment components. 

Financial & Cost Management 

• Monitor maintenance inventory investment and working capital utilization, and track maintenance materials spending with monthly reporting. 

• Identify opportunities for inventory reduction and spend optimization, and support annual budgeting and forecasting. 

• Develop business cases supporting strategic inventory investments and reliability initiatives. 

Reliability & Continuous Improvement 

• Analyze failure trends and spare parts consumption patterns, and participate in root cause analysis activities. 

• Support preventive maintenance optimization, and lead continuous improvement projects focused on inventory accuracy, procurement efficiency, and maintenance execution. 

• Develop standard work and procedures related to materials management. 

• Drive compliance with maintenance processes and best practices. 

Cross-Functional Leadership 

• Serve as the primary liaison between Maintenance, Operations, Engineering, Purchasing, and Finance regarding maintenance materials and inventory. 

• Provide recommendations on repair-versus-replace decisions, and support new equipment installations, commissioning, and capital projects. 

• Assist leadership with developing long-term maintenance materials strategies. 

• Influence site-wide improvements through data-driven recommendations and analysis. 

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE 

• Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain, Business, Operations, Maintenance Technology, Engineering Technology, or a related field; equivalent experience considered. 

• 5+ years of experience in maintenance inventory, supply chain, planning, manufacturing, maintenance operations, or a related discipline. 

• Experience with CMMS/EAM systems (such as SAP PM, Maximo, Maintenance Connection, Limble, or Fiix). 

• Strong inventory management and procurement experience. 

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with advanced Microsoft Excel capabilities. 

• Knowledge of MRO inventory management, maintenance planning, spare parts management, procurement processes, and manufacturing maintenance operations. 

• Ability to optimize inventory levels while maintaining parts availability and supporting equipment reliability, and to maintain accurate inventory, purchasing, and asset data. 

• Ability to build working relationships across Maintenance, Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain, and Finance, and to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced manufacturing environment. 

• Preferred: experience supporting manufacturing, heavy industrial, metals, mining, chemical, or process operations; APICS/ASCM, CPM, CPIM, CPSM, or reliability-focused certification; experience supporting maintenance planning and scheduling; Lean or continuous improvement experience. 

CORE COMPETENCIES & KEY ATTRIBUTES 

Courage & Pioneering Spirit 

Challenges established stocking and purchasing habits when the usage data points to a better approach, and builds new inventory controls as the site grows. 

Integrity & Transparency 

Reports inventory accuracy, discrepancies, obsolete stock, and spend honestly, including results that miss target. 

Personal Responsibility & Zero Harm 

Keeps spare parts storage, material handling, and maintenance kits safe and organized, and follows safety procedures in every storage and receiving task. 

Excellence & Innovation 

Uses usage trends, failure data, and CMMS reports to reduce stockouts, cut waste, and improve maintenance execution. 

Agility & Entrepreneurial Drive 

Reprioritizes material readiness quickly when breakdowns, shutdowns, or capital projects change the schedule, and takes ownership of the MRO program end to end. 

Partnership & Shared Value