Cost Accountant (Within Factory Environment) at West Coast Personnel

• To provide costing and financial support to the Factory Finance function by assisting with product costing, inventory control, cost reporting, ERP data maintenance and month-end activities, ensuring accurate financial information, effective internal controls, and compliance with company policies and financial reporting requirements.

Requirements:

• BCom Accounting or Cost & Management Accounting (NQF 6).
• BCom Accounting / Cost & Management Accounting (NQF7).
• Studying towards CIMA will be advantageous.
• 3–7 years' experience in a manufacturing / factory finance environment.
• Proven experience in cost accounting, inventory valuation and variance analysis.
• Experience working with ERP systems, preferably SAP, within a manufacturing environment.
• Strong knowledge of cost accounting principles.
• Sound understanding of IFRS, specifically IAS 2 (Inventories).
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills.
• Good understanding of manufacturing processes.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent attention to detail and accuracy.
• Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines.
• Strong communication and reporting skills.
• Ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams.
• High ethical standards and professional integrity.

Responsibilities:

• Maintain standard costing for raw materials, labour and overheads.
• Prepare costing schedules and monthly costing reports.
• Assist with inventory valuation and quarterly cost roll-ups.
• Coordinate and participate in annual and interim stock counts.
• Investigate stock variances and reconcile inventory discrepancies.
• Verify Bills of Material (BOMs) and routing accuracy within SAP.
• Prepare import cost files for SAP updates.
• Prepare and analyse material, labour and overhead variance reports.
• Monitor scrap, rework and production yield losses.
• Compile daily scrap reports and monthly lead balancing reports.
• Identify and communicate cost-saving opportunities.
• Assist with the preparation of manufacturing budgets and forecasts.
• Analyse budget versus actual results and explain variances.
• Update costing assumptions based on operational changes.
• Maintain costing master data, BOMs, routings and overhead rates within SAP.
• Validate production and inventory transactions to ensure data accuracy.
• Identify and resolve ERP and costing data discrepancies.
• Support ERP enhancements, testing and costing documentation.
• Provide first-line support for costing and SAP-related queries.
• Prepare cost impact analyses for operational improvements.
• Produce costing and operational reports to support decision-making.
• Participate in continuous improvement initiatives.
• Support finance, production and engineering teams with costing information.
• Assist with finance and factory-related projects as required.
• Support APDP and other audit requirements.
• Ensure compliance with company policies, procedures and financial reporting standards.