About Us:
NLX Beverage Solutions, now integrated into Finlays Solutions, brings together specialized beverage manufacturing expertise with the scale of a global industry leader.
Finlays Solutions is a leading partner to the B2B beverage manufacturing industry, recognized for its deep expertise, strong industry relationships, and commitment to innovation. The company plays a central role in supporting beverage brands, flavor houses, private label partners, and manufacturers through high-quality products, technical capabilities, and collaborative problem-solving. With a strong presence in the ready-to-drink beverage market, Finlays Solutions focuses on identifying emerging opportunities, expanding into new market spaces, and delivering solutions that meet evolving customer and consumer needs.
Finlays Solutions operates with a strong commitment to its mission, values, ethics, and long‑term goals, ensuring that every initiative reflects the company’s dedication to integrity, partnership, and sustainable success.
Job Summary:
We are seeking a Manufacturing Cost Analyst to support the financial and operational performance of a multi-site beverage manufacturing organization. This role will be responsible for product costing, manufacturing cost analysis, inventory valuation, variance analysis, and financial support for our manufacturing operations. This is an excellent opportunity for someone who enjoys going beyond traditional accounting and wants to understand why costs change, how manufacturing performance impacts profitability, and how financial analysis can help improve operations.
This position is onsite, based out of the New Lenox location.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities:
Product Costing and Analysis
- Maintain and analyze manufacturing costs across multiple production facilities
- Support the Company's costing methodology utilizing actual costs for raw materials and standard costs for finished goods
- Develop, maintain, and analyze standard costs for finished products, including ingredients, packaging, direct labor, and manufacturing overhead
- Review and maintain product bills of materials, formulas/recipes, routings, and other manufacturing cost inputs
- Analyze changes in ingredient, commodity, packaging, labor, and manufacturing overhead costs and evaluate their impact on product costs and margins
- Support standard cost updates and ensure costing assumptions appropriately reflect current manufacturing economics
- Analyze the financial impact of new products, formula changes, packaging changes, production process changes, and sourcing decisions
- Partner with Operations and Supply Chain to understand the operational drivers behind changes in product costs
- Analyze ingredient and raw material usage and yield compared with standards and expected production requirements
- Review production volumes, product mix, run rates, and manufacturing efficiency to understand their impact on unit costs
- Partner with plant personnel to identify root causes of significant manufacturing variances and develop appropriate corrective actions
- Support analysis of co-manufacturing, third-party production, or other external manufacturing costs as applicable
Variance Analysis
- Prepare and analyze monthly purchase price, material usage, yield, production efficiency, labor, overhead, volume, and other manufacturing variances
- Investigate significant variances and distinguish between pricing, volume, mix, efficiency, yield, and operational factors
- Develop clear explanations of manufacturing performance for Finance and Operations leadership
- Track recurring cost variances and identify trends that may require operational or sourcing action
- Partner with Plant and Operations leadership to identify opportunities to reduce waste, improve yields, and increase manufacturing efficiency
- Investigate production yield variances, including losses associated with batching, blending, filling, processing, and other manufacturing activities
- Evaluate the impact of ingredient and commodity price changes on product costs and profitability
- Analyze production efficiency and identify drivers of unfavorable labor and overhead performance
Financial Planning & Business Analysis
- Support manufacturing-related budgets, forecasts, and financial models
- Provide cost and profitability analysis to support operational and commercial decisions
- Analyze the impact of changes in raw material pricing, packaging costs, production volumes, product mix, and manufacturing efficiency on gross margin
- Support profitability analysis at the product, customer, plant, or other appropriate level
- Identify opportunities to improve cost structures, manufacturing efficiency, and profitability
- Develop recurring reporting and analysis that provides management with better visibility into manufacturing performance
Cross-Functional Partnership
- Build strong working relationships with Plant Managers, Operations, Supply Chain, Procurement, Quality, and Commercial teams
- Serve as a financial resource to manufacturing locations and help operational leaders understand the financial impact of production decisions
- Translate financial and cost information into clear, actionable business insights
- Participate in manufacturing and continuous improvement initiatives where financial analysis is needed to quantify opportunities and results
- Develop an understanding of the Company's products, manufacturing processes, and key cost drivers
The salary range for this role is $75,000 - $90,000 annually. Within this range, individual pay is determined by the work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. The total compensation package for this position also includes a choice of health care plan (medical, vision, and dental insurance), a quarterly incentive bonus, paid time off, parental leave, bereavement leave and a 401(K) for all eligible employees.
Qualifications & Requirements:
- Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field
- 3–7 years of accounting, finance, cost accounting, or financial analysis experience within a manufacturing environment
- Strong understanding of manufacturing cost accounting
- Experience with standard costing, product costing, and manufacturing variance analysis
- Strong Excel skills and the ability to analyze large datasets
- Experience with an ERP system; manufacturing ERP experience strongly preferred
- Strong analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills
- Ability to work effectively with both Finance and non-Finance personnel
- Ability to manage multiple priorities across multiple manufacturing locations
- Experience in beverage, food, consumer packaged goods, or other process manufacturing
- Experience with Microsoft D365 ERP system
- Experience with Power BI, Power Query, or other data analytics tools
Physical Demands
- Ability to work beyond regularly scheduled hours during peak periods or critical operations
- Must possess adequate vision, hearing, and verbal communication skills to meet essential job performance and safety standards.
- Ability to stand and walk for extended periods and regularly perform physical tasks such as pushing, pulling, lifting, climbing, bending, stooping, squatting, and using hands for detailed tasks
- Physically capable of performing tasks such as lifting, climbing, and using hand and power tools, including pallet jacks, scales, ladders, and standard material handling and cleaning equipment
Work Environment
- Employees must be able to work in a dynamic manufacturing environment that may include exposure to odors, dust, moderate noise levels, and fluctuations in temperature and ventilation
- Appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) must be worn at all times, which may include but is not limited to: safety glasses, steel-toed shoes, gloves, hairnets, uniforms, and face shields, as required by specific job duties and safety protocols
- Ability to work in elevated positions, at up to 50 feet and using proper safety precautions
- Must be able to work in limited or cramped spaces and extend arms into machinery for inspection, cleaning, or maintenance tasks, while following all established safety protocols
Quality Statement:
- Our Quality and Food Safety Management strategy is anchored by our food safety and quality culture and a two-pronged approach to “be the best” as we produce “only the best”. Every employee has a role to play in this strategy as outlined by the following:
- Follow Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP’s), allergen control, food defense, HACCP, SQF, and regulatory requirements so that we make consistently safe, quality products.
- Ensure the presence of visitors, contractors, and customers are documented on each visit in and out of the facility to maintain good manufacturing practices, allergen controls, food defense/food security and HACCP controls.
- Report all food safety and quality issues to management immediately.
- Partner with colleagues across all functions to share knowledge, skills, and information regarding quality and food safety.
- Adhere to all health and safety work practices.
- Exhibit an understanding of quality and food safety standards and be able to speak about the Finlays quality and food safety system and your role in it.
- Handle customer complaints in a timely and professional manner so that the customer is put first, always.
- Participate fully in Finlays programs that drive continuous improvement methodologies.
Any employee in doubt as to the role they play in the Finlays quality and food safety management system must reach out to the site Quality Manager or VP of Quality.
Equal Opportunity Statement:
Finlays Solutions is an equal employment opportunity employer seeking diversity in qualified applicants for employment. All applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, gender, gender identity, age, religion, national origin, ancestry, disability, perceived disability, medical condition, genetic information, veteran status, sexual orientation, or any other protected status, as defined by applicable law. Finlays employs individuals that are 18 years of age or older.
This position is not eligible for Visa Sponsorship. .
