Production Control Manager

Production Control Manager

Location South Los Angeles or Orange County, California; facility to be finalized

Work Arrangement On-site, full-time

Hiring Priority Second priority hire following the initial technician team

Target Base Pay $150,000 to $170,000 subject to final level and approval

Role Summary

Kela is hiring a Production Control Manager to own work order execution, manufacturing schedules, and material flow for its growing United States operation. This role turns program demand and material status into an executable floor plan, keeps shortages and constraints visible, and coordinates daily priorities across production, supply chain, quality, engineering, and contract manufacturers. The right candidate is an experienced operator who can build the production control system while using it to deliver near-term hardware.

Job Duties

Create and maintain the production plan and detailed build schedule based on program priorities, capacity, material availability, and engineering readiness.

Release, sequence, and manage work orders from kit readiness through completion, inspection, and inventory or shipment.

Control material flow to the production floor, including kitting, staging, shortage tracking, WIP visibility, and return of unused material.

Lead regular production status reviews and provide clear recovery plans for shortages, quality holds, engineering blockers, and schedule risk.

Coordinate priorities across production, supply chain, quality, manufacturing engineering, design engineering, and program teams.

Establish practical ERP or MRP discipline, transaction accuracy, planning parameters, and production control procedures.

Required Qualifications

Five or more years of production control, manufacturing planning, materials management, or master scheduling experience, including responsibility for complex hardware builds.

Experience managing work orders, production schedules, material flow, shortages, WIP, and inventory transactions in an ERP or MRP system.

Demonstrated ability to create execution discipline in a growing or changing manufacturing environment.

Strong cross-functional communication and the judgment to reconcile competing program, engineering, and material priorities.

Experience using production data to identify schedule risk, drive recovery actions, and provide credible delivery status.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience in aerospace, defense, unmanned systems, electronics, or another regulated low-volume manufacturing environment.

Experience standing up production control processes for a new facility, startup, or rapid production ramp.

Familiarity with contract manufacturer planning, supplier schedules, configuration control, and quality hold processes.