Cost Accountant

Brief Description:

Are you a seasoned Cost Accountant who thrives on uncovering efficiencies, improving profitability, and turning complex manufacturing data into meaningful business decisions? Our client is a well-established manufacturer serving demanding industrial sectors and is looking for a commercially minded Cost Accountant to take ownership of product costing, inventory valuation, manufacturing analysis, and financial controls across the operation. This is an opportunity for someone who enjoys getting into the detail, partnering with operational teams, and making a tangible impact on business performance. If you're passionate about manufacturing, cost optimisation, and continuous improvement, this role will challenge and reward you in equal measure.

Job Description:

Product Costing & Cost Control

• Maintain and enhance standard costing structures for raw materials, labour, overheads, and purchased components.
• Review and update Bills of Materials (BOMs), routings, and costing master data to ensure accuracy and integrity within the ERP system.
• Support new product costing, pricing decisions, and profitability analysis.

Manufacturing Analysis

• Prepare monthly cost accounting reports, including standard versus actual variance analysis and gross margin reporting.
• Analyse material usage, labour recovery, scrap, rework, and overhead variances to identify improvement opportunities.
• Partner with production and operational teams to drive efficiency and reduce waste.

Inventory & Financial Control

• Ensure the accuracy and completeness of inventory valuation, work-in-progress reporting, and stock reconciliations.
• Coordinate cycle counts, annual stock takes, and obsolete stock reviews.
• Support month-end processes, including inventory journals, provisions, accruals, and reconciliations.

Business Partnering & Continuous Improvement

• Work closely with Procurement, Production, Engineering, and Finance to support sound commercial decision-making.
• Monitor input costs and ensure costing assumptions remain current and accurate.
• Identify cost-saving initiatives, margin improvement opportunities, and process enhancements throughout the manufacturing environment.
• Support budgeting, forecasting, audits, and ongoing improvement of costing and ERP processes.

Skills & Experience:

Minimum 5 years' Cost Accounting experience within a manufacturing environment .

Strong experience with:

• Standard costing
• BOM management
• Inventory control and valuation
• Manufacturing variance analysis
• ERP systems
• Advanced Excel modelling and reporting.

Demonstrated ability to influence business decisions through data-driven insights.

Strong analytical, problem-solving, and commercial acumen.

Ability to engage confidently with both finance and operational stakeholders.

Detail-oriented with a proactive, continuous improvement mindset.

Qualification:

CIMA qualified

BCom Accounting, Cost & Management Accounting, Finance, or a related qualification preferred.

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