Production Systems Administrator in Manchester

Alloy Bodies Ltd is a leading manufacturer in the rigid commercial vehicle body building industry, established in 1969 and widely recognized for innovative body design.

The company produces more than 50 vehicle bodies per week for many of the UK’s major fleets, contract hire, and rental companies, reflecting a strong reputation built on quality and reliability.

Alloy Bodies Ltd manufactures on rigid chassis ranging from 3.5 tonne to 26 tonne GVW, and its products are commonly seen on UK roads with an instantly recognizable badge on the rear.

With over 40 years of experience, the business combines bespoke one-off builds with volume contracts, maintaining a consistent commitment that every body matters to the customer.

About the Role

Alloy Bodies is seeking a proactive and commercially astute Production Systems Administrator to support the accurate creation and management of production jobs, Bills of Materials (BOMs), and purchasing activity within our manufacturing operation.

This role is critical to ensuring the smooth flow of information between Sales, Engineering, Purchasing, Stores, Planning, and Production.

The successful candidate will be responsible for creating jobs within our ERP system, maintaining BOM accuracy, supporting material ordering activities, and helping drive improvements in data quality and operational control.

This is not a general administration role.

We are looking for an individual who understands manufacturing environments, enjoys working with systems and data, and can proactively identify and resolve issues before they impact production.

Key Responsibilities

• Job Creation & ERP Administration
• Create and maintain production jobs within the ERP system.
• Input customer orders, specifications, and build requirements accurately.
• Ensure all job records are complete, accurate, and maintained throughout the build process.
• Process engineering changes, customer amendments, and specification updates.
• Verify data before jobs are released to production.
• Maintain system discipline and data integrity.
• Bill of Materials (BOM) Management
• Create and maintain Bills of Materials.
• Ensure BOMs accurately reflect engineering requirements and manufacturing standards.
• Identify missing, duplicated, obsolete, or incorrect parts.
• Support the ongoing improvement and standardisation of BOM structures.
• Work closely with Engineering, Purchasing, Stores, and Production to maintain BOM accuracy.
• Assist in reducing manufacturing issues caused by inaccurate system data.
• Raise purchase orders and supplier requests as required.
• Support material planning by identifying shortages and upcoming requirements.
• Monitor open purchase orders and assist with supplier follow-up.
• Support purchasing activities to ensure materials are available when required.
• Maintain accurate supplier and purchasing records.
• Assist with expediting critical parts where required.
• Data & Process Improvement
• Monitor data quality across jobs, BOMs, and purchasing records.
• Identify opportunities to improve system utilisation and process efficiency.
• Support the creation and maintenance of standard operating procedures.
• Assist with KPI reporting and operational performance tracking.
• Actively contribute ideas that improve accuracy, efficiency, and operational control.

Essential Experience & Skills

• Previous experience within a manufacturing, engineering, automotive, vehicle conversion, or production environment.
• Experience working with ERP/MRP systems.
• Experience creating, maintaining, or administering production jobs.
• Experience working with Bills of Materials (BOMs).
• Strong understanding of the relationship between purchasing, materials, planning, and production.
• High level of computer literacy and confidence working with business systems.
• Competent user of Microsoft Excel and Microsoft 365.
• Excellent attention to detail.
• Strong organisational and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities simultaneously.
• Strong communication skills and confidence working across departments.
• Experience within commercial vehicle bodybuilding, coachbuilding, automotive manufacturing, vehicle conversion, or specialist engineering.
• Experience using Factory Master or a similar ERP/MRP system.
• Experience raising purchase orders and managing supplier communications.
• Understanding of stock control and material planning processes.
• Experience supporting engineering change control and job amendments.
• Personal Attributes

The successful candidate will be

• Commercially astute and able to understand the wider impact of their decisions.
• Proactive in identifying and resolving issues.
• Naturally curious and eager to understand how the business operates.
• Systems-minded and comfortable working with large volumes of data.
• Process-driven with a strong attention to detail.
• Confident challenging inconsistencies and asking the right questions.
• Reliable, organised, and capable of working independently.
• Committed to continuous improvement and operational excellence.
• What Success Looks Like

Within the first 12 months, the successful candidate will

• Take ownership of production job creation and administration.
• Improve BOM accuracy and consistency across the business.
• Reduce dependency on key individuals for job and system administration.
• Improve material availability through stronger purchasing support.
• Increase confidence in operational data and reporting.
• Become a trusted systems and process resource within the operations team.

This role offers the opportunity to develop into wider responsibilities across planning, purchasing, ERP administration, master data management, and operational systems as the business continues to grow.

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