Supply Chain Manager in Preston

Location: BB18 6DX, UK

About BUOYANCY TECHNOLOGIES: Enabling the free world’s leading aerospace, space, and defense institutions. BUOYANCY TECHNOLOGIES was founded in 2022 to meet the rising demand for solutions in aerospace, space, and defense—markets underserved by a dysfunctional supply chain. We attract the most capable talent with integrity and build and leverage generative AI for digital and physical solutions. We are proud to contribute significantly to the most prestigious and complex aerospace, space, and defense platforms—some under confidential mandates.

We are not a company of promises. With active production facilities in the UK and Germany and a growing workforce of currently >150 employees, we are scaling rapidly, but already delivering to our customers. Our culture is highly purpose-driven, constantly delivering innovation, exceptional standards, execution. This is a high-performance environment. If you seek meaningful work at the intersection of technology and defense, this is the place for you. Those looking for the comfort of a standard role are discouraged from applying.

We are seeking a Supply Chain Manager for the structural airframe components section of BUOYANCY TECHNOLOGIES. The successful candidate will service the subsidiaries of BUOYANCY AEROSPACE V1 Ltd in the UK and BUOYANCY AEROSPACE DE GmbH in Germany. This role is pivotal in effectively managing customers and suppliers. A strong background in production planning, supply chain management, and operational excellence to manage the end-to-end supply chain across programs.

Key Responsibilities include the following dimensions:

• Customer Relationship Management: Act as the primary operational point of contact for key customer accounts. Build and maintain strong long-term customer relationships through regular engagement and communication. Manage customer expectations regarding delivery performance, schedule updates and operational priorities. Provide clear and proactive communication around risks, delays or changes impacting programme delivery. Lead customer review meetings and performance discussions. Coordinate internally with Production, Quality, Engineering and Commercial teams to resolve issues and support customer requirements. Manage escalations effectively and ensure rapid resolution through structured action ownership. Capture customer feedback and requirements and ensure they are translated into internal actions. Support the development and strengthening of long-term strategic customer partnerships. Partner with customers to understand upcoming demand, new program requirements, and business growth opportunities, feeding this intelligence back into quoting, capacity planning, and production strategies. Communicate regularly with customers regarding order status updates, delivery schedules, and any changes or delays in production timelines, ensuring high levels of customer satisfaction and retention. Manage the customer order book, ensuring accurate order entry, order confirmation, and timely delivery of customer orders in accordance with agreed-upon lead times and delivery commitments. Commercial responsibilities including contract reviews, negotiation and working on long term agreements.
• Supplier Relationship Management: Manage strategic suppliers, building long-term relationships and ensuring delivery performance is in line with KPIs and production plan. Act as the primary relationship owner for strategic suppliers and external partners. Build strong supplier relationships and establish clear accountability around commitments and expectations. Monitor supplier performance against key metrics including On-time delivery, Lead time adherence, Quality performance, Responsiveness and Escalation closure. Conduct regular supplier performance reviews and drive continuous improvement initiatives. Identify supply chain risks and proactively coordinate mitigation actions. Manage supplier escalations and recovery activities where required. Ensure supplier priorities remain aligned with programme and operational requirements. Work collaboratively with suppliers to improve reliability, communication and delivery performance.
• Operational Coordination & Delivery Management: Act as the interface between customers, suppliers and internal operational teams. Coordinate activities across Manufacturing, Quality, Engineering, Commercial and Planning functions. Coordinate with Production Planner to ensure timely updates are provided to customers while feeding back supplier updates to internal customers. Ensure external requirements and internal priorities remain aligned. Facilitate communication and action tracking across departments. Escalate operational risks early and drive mitigation actions. Support daily and weekly operational reviews where required. Ensure customer priorities and supplier constraints are visible and understood internally.
• Escalation & Performance Management: Monitor operational performance and identify risks before they impact customer commitments. Coordinate resolution activities relating to supply disruption, quality concerns or delivery risks. Lead structured recovery plans when performance issues arise. Support root cause investigations and corrective actions. Drive a proactive culture focused on issue prevention and accountability.

Required Skills and Qualifications:

• First and foremost, you must bring outstanding problem solving skills, strong work ethics, and integrity to the table.
• Minimum 3 years’ experience in customer-facing, supplier-facing, programme delivery or supply chain coordination roles, ideally within manufacturing, aerospace or defence environments.
• Experience managing both customer and supplier relationships.
• Commercial, negotiation and contract experience.
• Proven experience handling escalations and coordinating cross-functional teams.
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills.
• Commercial awareness and ability to manage expectations across multiple parties.
• Experience working with ERP systems desirable.
• Strong organisational skills with the ability to prioritise competing demands.
• Ability to operate effectively within a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
• Degree in Logistics, Supply Chain Management, Business and Management or related area or Equivalent Proven Experience.
• Proficiency in ERP/MRP systems, production planning software, and Microsoft Excel for data analysis and reporting.
• Strong analytical skills, with the ability to interpret production data, identify trends, and make data-driven decisions to optimize production processes and resource utilization.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams, suppliers, and customers to achieve common goals.
• Proven ability to multitask, prioritize workload, and meet tight deadlines in a fast-paced production environment.

What We Offer:

• Strategic Impact: Shape critical operational processes and establish a legacy of excellence in a rapidly scaling organisation.
• Prestige and Innovation: Work on high-stakes projects that define the future of aerospace, space, and defense.
• Meritocratic Culture: Join an organisation where excellence, integrity, and results are the foundation of everything we do. We are proud of our unique team ethos, enabling and supporting each other and going the extra mile together.

At BUOYANCY TECHNOLOGIES, we are committed to a purely merit-based environment where performance, capability, and integrity are all that matter. We do not hire based on race, skin colour, gender, religion, or any other personal characteristic protected by the law; we believe in rewarding talent, dedication, integrity, and results.

To be considered for this role, please submit a complete application (motivational letter, CV, and all references).