Senior Buyer

Job Title Senior Buyer

Department Office

Position Type Salary/Full Time/Exempt

Reports To Plant Manager

Working Hours Monday-Friday 7:00am – 4:30pm

Job Summary

The Senior Buyer is responsible for managing day-to-day purchasing activities and ensuring a consistent flow of raw materials, tooling, and supplies to support production schedules. This role focuses on vendor communication, price negotiation, purchase order management, and coordination with internal departments to ensure timely delivery and cost efficiency. The Senior Buyer plays a key role in maintaining strong supplier relationships, supporting continuous improvement, and ensuring materials are purchased in alignment with company goals and manufacturing requirements.

Roles and Responsibilities

• Execute daily purchasing activities, including preparing and issuing purchase orders, confirming deliveries, and expediting as needed.
• Source and maintain relationships with qualified suppliers of raw materials, components, and indirect goods.
• Negotiate pricing, terms, and delivery schedules to achieve cost savings and ensure reliability of supply.
• Evaluate supplier performance related to quality, delivery, cost, and service; work with vendors to resolve issues.
• Collaborate closely with Production, Engineering, and Quality teams to ensure materials meet technical and scheduling requirements.
• Monitor inventory levels and coordinate with warehouse and production personnel to maintain proper stock levels.
• Track and manage open purchase orders, update delivery schedules, and maintain accuracy within the ERP system.
• Review and reconcile vendor invoices with purchase orders; resolve discrepancies in coordination with accounting.
• Support the development of preferred supplier lists and maintain vendor master data, pricing records, and purchasing history.
• Identify opportunities to improve lead times, reduce costs, and consolidate suppliers where beneficial.
• Analyze market conditions and material cost trends to support purchasing decisions.
• Provide material quote support to Sales as needed for customer quotations.
• Support ISO 9001 or AS9100 documentation requirements related to vendor management and purchasing.
• Update Work Instructions and SOP’s so they are reflective of currently used procedures.
• Identify and communicate opportunities for improvement, to achieve best practices.
• Report any safety/company policy violations immediately.
• May be required to follow other job-related instructions and to perform other job-related duties as requested, subject to all applicable state and federal laws.

Education Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in Supply Chain Management, Logistics or Business Administration preferred.

Qualification Requirements

• Speak, read, and write English.
• Successfully pass drug screen.
• Successfully pass background check.
• 5+ years’ of Senior Buyer level experience in a manufacturing environment required.
• Maintain valid driver’s license.
• Purchasing steel experience highly preferred.
• Experience in a continuous improvement environment.
• Maintain a professional image for Customers, Vendors, potential Employees, and visitors.
• Ability to collect data, define problems, establish facts, and draw a valid conclusion.
• Precise attention to detail with good organizational skills.
• Demonstrated ability to perform basic math functions.
• Ability to demonstrate computer literacy and advanced ability with Microsoft Office Suite, specifically Microsoft Excel. Excellent spreadsheet skills-able to recognize when to use a spreadsheet, know how to effectively organize data to leverage analysis tools including pivot tables, graphs, charts, etc.
• Have solid written and verbal communication skills that can be practiced at all levels of the organization.
• Understand company Quality Policy and ISO 9001 fundamentals.
• Ability to adhere to all OSHA safety rules and regulations.
• Ability to take on multiple projects at once that vary in nature while prioritizing according to Company needs.
• Demonstrated ability to establish and maintain effective relationships by, including but not limited to, exhibiting tact and consideration, offering assistance and support to co-workers, working cooperatively in group situations, and working actively to resolve conflict, building a positive team spirit.
• Demonstrated attendance and punctuality by, including but not limited to, ensuring consistency in being at work on time, ensuring work responsibilities are covered when absent, and arriving to meetings on time.
• Demonstrated dependability by, including but not limited to, following instructions, responding to management direction, taking responsibility for own action, committing to long hours of work when necessary to reach goals, and completing tasks on time within a fast-paced environment.
• Demonstrated quality by, including but not limited to, proving accuracy and thoroughness, looking for ways to improve and promote quality, applying feedback to improve performance, and monitoring own work to ensure quality.
• Physical Demands:
  • Stand, walk, push, pull, climb stairs and ladders, reach overhead and bend to the floor.
  • Exert/lift to 50 pounds of force occasionally and/or exert up to 10 pounds of force frequently.
  • Basic color perception, peripheral and depth perception, close vision of 20 inches or less, distance vision of more than 20 feet are required for reading reports and working on computers, etc.
  • Ability to hear, understand and communicate effectively with co-workers.
  • Extended period of sitting – stationary position
  • Hand and finger dexterity – keyboard use, fine motor skills and repetitive movements of fingers, hand, and wrists from entering data.
• Working Environment/Conditions:
  • Low noise levels within the office environment.
  • Moderate to high noise levels within the shop environment.
  • Physical hazard being exposed to moving equipment and machine parts within the shop environment.
  • Skin exposure to oils and cutting fluid within the shop environment.
  • Temperature controlled conditions within the office environment.
  • Head/humid/cold weather conditions within the shop environment.
• Travel <10%
  • Occasional travel to Suppliers and Customers may be required.

Core Values:

• Fanatical About Precision - We build correct and efficient processes, and we execute them with relentless accuracy. We avoid shortcuts because quality is on the line. Our customers and our teammates can expect precision-made products every single day.
• Accountable to Each Other - We take responsibility for our actions, owning both successes and mistakes. We hold ourselves and our colleagues accountable to our standards of excellence. We all play for the same team, and every win is shared.
• Challenge Accepted - We’re not afraid to try something new, to solve a problem, or to think of new ideas. We like to figure things out. We meet new tasks with enthusiasm and curiosity. Our default is YES.
• Truth Tellers, Always - We are honest and ethical in all our actions. Our communications with our clients and each other are clear, timely, frank, and fair. We are empowered and obligated to voice concerns. We honor our commitments because our word is our bond.
• Service With Humility - We leave our egos at the door. No task is too small to be done well; no person is too experienced to learn something new.

C & S Machine and Manufacturing Corporation is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We provide equal employment opportunities to all individuals regardless of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics.