Principal Research Engineer I, Supply & Inventory and Planning (FAB)

Responsibilities

S&I Functions:

• Oversee material supply and demand, lifecycle management, and forecasting through digital tools and data analytics, leveraging AI to identify bottlenecks, streamline material workflows, reduce lead times and waste, and improve overall inventory effectiveness.
• Drive continuous improvement and establish business continuity and risk-mitigation strategies for critical and single-source semiconductor materials.
• Establish and monitor inventory performance and accuracy, including controls for shelf-life-sensitive materials such as photoresists and specialty chemicals to minimize obsolescence and scrap.
• Ensure inventory and material management practices comply with applicable EHS, hazardous material, licensing, and export-control requirements.
• Oversee material movement and shipment requirements across A*STAR sites and external industry partners, including international shipments.
• Partner with Engineering Ops, Equipment Engineering and other cross-functional teams on new parts, raw materials, and equipment qualification.

Planning Functions:

• Own end-to-end fab planning, including space and capacity planning, WIP management, resource planning, and delivery performance.
• Translate research, project, and customer requirements into executable fab plans, balancing capacity, equipment availability, cycle time, resource constraints, and operational priorities.
• Develop and drive planning strategies to optimize fab capacity utilization, WIP flow, cycle time, delivery performance, and overall operational efficiency.
• Partner with Fab Ops, Equipment, Engineering Ops, Facilities, Project and Program teams to align requirements, capacity, priorities, and execution plans to proactively identify constraints and drive cross-functional mitigation.
• Establish planning governance, KPIs, and performance reporting to provide visibility of fab loading, capacity, WIP, inventory, cycle time, and delivery performance.

Leadership:

• Provide leadership, coaching, and development to the S&I and Planning teams while building organizational capabilities, processes, systems, and a collaborative continuous-improvement culture.
• Develop and drive the strategic roadmap for S&I and Planning digitalization and automation, including the adoption of data analytics, AI and emerging technologies to improve visibility, predictability, and operational control.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Supply Chain, Operations Management, Industrial Engineering, or a related discipline.
• Minimum 10 years of relevant experience in semiconductor manufacturing, fab operations, production planning, supply chain, or related functions, with demonstrated leadership experience.
• Strong understanding of semiconductor fab operations, including capacity planning, production scheduling, WIP management, cycle time, equipment utilization, and supply-demand management.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities, with the ability to translate complex operational data into clear priorities and actionable plans.
• In-depth knowledge of the semiconductor supply ecosystem, including materials such as silicon wafers, photoresists, specialty chemicals, and target metals, as well as applicable chemical and gas handling requirements, is preferred.
• Experience leading and developing teams across planning, warehouse operations, procurement, supply chain, or analytics functions is preferred.
• Experience with manufacturing planning systems, MES, data analytics, automation, or planning digitalization will be an advantage.
• Strong leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to operate effectively in a dynamic R&D environment with diverse and changing priorities.
• Self-motivated, adaptable, and results-oriented, with a strong focus on operational excellence, collaboration, and continuous improvement.