Description & Requirements
Background
No restraints. No limitations. We don’t simply push boundaries. We completely rethink them. McLaren Automotive exists to create breath-taking performance road cars.
With innovation at the core of all we do, every challenge starts with the same question. How can we do it better? This restless spirit runs right through McLaren Automotive. And the search for perfection is evident in everything we do.
Purpose of Role
Working in the Variant Configuration Team (VC), you will perform a vital function to ensure SAP Business Critical master data, Bills of Materials, and Variant Configuration models build accurate vehicle specifications.
This allows our customers to visualize their cars through our online configurator, provides our dealer network with the ability to order cars to the correct specification, supports Engineers to accurately release materials and underpins operations' ability to validate and complete vehicle builds.
The role will collaborate with a wide spectrum of business users who interact with Product Data including Project Managers, Engineers, Commercial Sales Teams, Buyers, Supply planners, Manufacturing, Marketing and Quality Assurance teams.
The role is responsible for conducting data validation, testing and management activities that support the product lifecycle management (PLM) of our products to ensure product data integrity.
As the team exists within the Operational Excellence department all work must be carried out to the highest of standards (time, quality and cost).
Principal Accountabilities
In SAP, the design and creation of product configuration rules and data models that will ensure the final vehicle build matches the product specification ordered and conforms to regional and compliance requirements.
- Creation of specific vehicle program Product Data Definition (PDD) files. These are used internally to design the data models in excel, before programming in SAP.
- Creation and implementation of the data models from the PDD into the SAP system.
- Creating SAP characteristics, values and interdependencies for each of the rules.
- Data model and rules testing, as well as sales order regression testing, to ensure product configuration rules and dependencies are working correctly.
- Deliver product data models (knowledge bases) to the marketing team.
- Managing any changes to the data models via change requests.
- Provide a central source of knowledge on option and feature content of the product data model to a range of stakeholders including Engineering, Manufacturing, PDM, Sales, Project Management, Design Studio and Central Planning.
- As part of Operational Excellence, we work collaboratively as a central source of knowledge to the wider business in the best practice and correct use of SAP. Typical stakeholders include Engineering, Purchasing, Logistics, Supply Planning, Manufacturing, Supply Quality Audit, Service, Sales & Finance.
- Analyse Engineering Bill of Materials using SAP Product Structure management tools to ensure the structure layout supports the accurate ordering / scheduling of materials, and builds the correct customer specification
- Validation of material master data (SAP MM) including purchasing, supply planning, and engineering data. This is to ensure accurate business reporting and ordering / scheduling of materials
- Engage & communicate with business stake holders, Project managers, Engineers, Buyers, Supply planners to ensure accurate, and timely release of materials to support vehicle programme milestones
- Create the structure of the Manufacturing Bill of Materials using SAP product structure synchronisation tools and running simulations of the BoM to ensure the materials are selecting correctly
- Create and configure data to support materials that come in multiple colours / finishes using SAP Material Master transactions. This allows our customers to order a wide range of options that have been specified by the Product Team.
Knowledge, Skills and Experience
- Ability to interrogate, analyse SAP to be able to provide resolutions and data screening
- Qualified use of SAP PLM, Product Structures, Material Master (MM)
- Understanding of workflow principles and execution
- Experience of managing and maintaining system-based rules and logic
- Methodical evaluation of results and apply corrections
- SAP variant configuration experience
- Microsoft Office literate with experience of advanced Excel features such as Functions, Formulas, Lookups and Pivots
- Any experience of Microsoft Power Platform will be advantageous
- Any experience of Computer Programming will be advantageous
Personal Attributes
- Ability to deliver under pressure with an appetite for success
- Be able to communicate clearly at all levels of the business
- Self-motivated with a positive and proactive attitude
- Has an engaging mind, open to unfamiliar problems outside their normal comfort zone
- Good analytical skills
- Appreciation of data quality and good data behaviour and practices
- Be flexible to support dynamic ways of working to deliver world class products
- Ability to follow operating procedures to ensure consistency in service
- Problem solving attitude
- Always looking for opportunities to improve, learn and expand capabilities