Material Support Manager in Farnborough

At AALTO, we take pride in building and offering an exceptional work environment that values your well-being and rewards your dedication. We believe in recognising your hard work and commitment, which is why we provide a fantastic bonus scheme that rewards your contributions. Additionally, we understand the importance of financial security and support your future with a competitive pension plan. When you join us, you become part of a workplace that not only encourages your professional growth but also cares about your personal fulfilment and financial stability.

AALTO is an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, religion or belief, marital status or pregnancy and maternity. Welcome to AALTO, a global leader in Stratospace. Based in Farnborough, AALTO is an Airbus subsidiary that manufactures, operates, and delivers services with its solar-powered, stratospheric platform: Zephyr. Zephyr’s persistence enables continuous flight for months at a time. Its current flight-time record of over 67 days in the stratosphere. From above 60,000+ft, or 20km above ground, AALTO can deliver several applications including direct-to-device connectivity and high-resolution Earth observation. AALTO operates in a new operational layer between most of air traffic and low-Earth orbit, Stratospace. This is where high-altitude platforms led by Zephyr deliver services to commercial and government partners. We can help monitor environments, observe borders, track natural disasters and connect unconnected communities. Join us as we create a new domain of aerospace: Stratospace. You’ll be part of a highly-skilled, innovative and passionate group of people – Team AALTO. Together, we can Unlock Stratospace.

Job Purpose

The Material Support Manager oversees all functions related to parts, tooling and equipment availability to ensure safe, compliant and efficient maintenance and ground handling operations. This role is responsible for forecasting material needs, managing deployed inventories and coordinating material demands, with Production, Procurement and Logistics teams, to ensure that company Material Planning & Logistics (MP&L) processes are executed on-time, on-quality and on-cost.

Responsibilities

• Material Planning and Deployed Inventory Management: Develop and execute material support strategies to meet operational demands. Oversee inventory planning, stock levels and replenishment of rotable, expendable and consumable parts. Ensure correct classification, storage and handling of aircraft materials in accordance with regulatory requirements and company processes. Monitor usage trends, maintenance schedules and planned change embodiment to forecast material and tooling requirements.
• Demand Management: Serve as the primary liaison between Maintenance, CAMO, Production and Procurement functions for all material-related support. Ensure material availability for scheduled maintenance tasks and respond to Aircraft on Ground (AOG) situations with the appropriate urgency. Track material demands to ensure that estimated delivery dates are compliant with required delivery dates and expedite critical demands to reduce aircraft downtime.
• Coordination and Stakeholder Management: Ensure that all material-related data is accurate and correct including feedback on material forecasts and delivery estimates to relevant stakeholders. Ensure that all materials meet relevant regulatory requirements and traceability standards including documentation, release certification and recordkeeping. Ensure that deployed storage facilities meet company standards, and that local teams are appropriately trained and knowledgeable in relevant processes and procedures. Support internal and external audits related to materials, inventory control and maintenance activities including occurrence investigations and the identification of corrective actions. Establish performance metrics, workflows and standard operating procedures associated to material-related topics to improve quality and efficiency.

Experience and Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in procurement, supply chain, aviation management or material management (or equivalent experience).
• Extensive experience in aviation supply chain, material management or maintenance support.
• Strong understanding of aircraft parts provisioning, logistics and regulatory requirements.
• Proficiency with ERP and MRO information management systems (e.g. Microsoft Dynamics, SAP).
• Excellent communication, problem solving and decision making skills with the ability to work transversely across multiple functions.