Senior Buyer
Posted
Description
Employment Type: Full-Time
Work Environment: In-Person
Reports To: General Manager
Location: Orange, NJ
Work Environment: In-Person
Reports To: General Manager
Location: Orange, NJ
Senior Buyer
Position Summary
The Senior Buyer is responsible for supporting day-to-day procurement, supplier coordination, purchasing transactions, and material availability for T&E Industries, Inc. The role partners with Operations, production planning, Engineering, Quality, Finance, receiving, and customer-facing personnel to help ensure materials, components, supplies, and services are procured accurately, timely, cost-effectively, and in accordance with applicable requirements.
The Senior Buyer exercises sound judgment in supplier communication, purchasing decisions within assigned authority, purchase-order follow-up, and issue resolution. The role supports manufacturing schedules, inventory objectives, customer commitments, and operational continuity, including the transfer and standardization of purchasing activities currently concentrated within site leadership.
Essential Job Functions
- Review approved purchase requisitions, material requirements, production schedules, inventory positions, and demand information to identify and prioritize procurement needs for manufacturing operations.
- Prepare, enter, review, issue, and manage purchase orders in accordance with established purchasing procedures, delegated approval limits, supplier terms, and business requirements.
- Communicate regularly with suppliers regarding quotations, pricing, product specifications, availability, lead times, order acknowledgments, shipment status, expediting, shortages, and delivery commitments.
- Obtain and evaluate supplier quotations and support sourcing recommendations based on total cost, quality, delivery, responsiveness, technical requirements, and applicable approved-supplier criteria.
- Maintain active oversight of open purchase orders; identify and escalate late deliveries, supply constraints, pricing discrepancies, and risks that could affect production schedules or customer commitments.
- Coordinate with Operations and production planning to understand near-term priorities, material shortages, order changes, and required delivery dates; support timely purchasing responses without independently assuming ownership of the master production schedule.
- Maintain accurate purchasing, supplier, material, order-status, and related transaction records within Global Shop and other applicable ERP/MRP or business systems, consistent with assigned access and approval authority.
- Work with receiving, Quality, and Finance to help resolve discrepancies involving quantities, specifications, supplier documentation, receipt of goods, invoices, and purchase-order records.
- Support inventory control through material availability reviews, follow-up on shortages, cycle-count or inventory discrepancy resolution, and identification of excess or obsolete purchasing exposure.
- Provide supplier cost, availability, and lead-time information to Engineering, Sales, and site leadership in support of product costing and customer quotation processes, with customer pricing and commercial approval retained by designated personnel.
- Support supplier performance tracking and corrective follow-up related to on-time delivery, quality issues, service responsiveness, and recurring supply disruptions.
- Identify opportunities to improve supplier terms, purchasing efficiency, cost controls, documentation, and continuity of material supply; participate in related continuous-improvement efforts.
- Maintain purchasing documentation and records in accordance with applicable company policies, ethical standards, customer and contractual requirements, and export-control or other regulatory obligations when applicable.
- Assist in documenting standardized purchasing workflows, recurring supplier requirements, and critical purchasing knowledge to support reliable coverage, cross-training, and business continuity.
Additional Duties
- Employees may be required to perform other related duties as assigned to meet business needs.
Minimum Qualifications
- High school diploma or equivalent required.
- Minimum of three years of experience in purchasing, procurement, production planning, supply chain, materials management, or a related manufacturing support function.
- Experience in a manufacturing, engineered-products, industrial, or comparable technical production environment.
- Experience using ERP/MRP systems to enter and manage purchase orders, review demand and material information, and maintain purchasing or inventory transactions.
- Working knowledge of purchasing procedures, supplier follow-up, inventory control, and material-planning concepts.
- Ability to organize competing priorities and communicate effectively with internal stakeholders and external suppliers.
Preferred Qualifications
- Associate's or bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Business Administration, Operations Management, or a related discipline.
- Experience using Global Shop or a comparable manufacturing ERP/MRP platform.
- Experience with engineered-to-order or customer-specific manufacturing, technical components, or contract-driven purchasing environments.
- Experience with supplier negotiations, sourcing comparisons, purchasing cost improvements, and supplier performance monitoring.
- Experience supporting coordination between purchasing and production planning in a smaller, hands-on manufacturing operation.
- Experience with export-controlled, customer-controlled, or contractually regulated purchasing requirements, when relevant to site activities.
- APICS, CPSM, CSCP, CPIM, or comparable procurement/supply chain certification.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
- Knowledge of procurement practices, supplier coordination, purchasing controls, and material availability planning.
- Ability to evaluate material requirements, inventory levels, supplier quotations, lead times, delivery risks, and production priorities.
- Strong attention to detail and accuracy in purchase orders, supplier records, ERP/MRP transactions, and supporting documentation.
- Ability to prioritize multiple open orders, vendor issues, and deadlines in a time-sensitive manufacturing environment.
- Sound judgment in resolving routine purchasing issues and escalating matters outside assigned authority or involving significant business risk.
- Effective written and verbal communication and the ability to work collaboratively with Operations, Engineering, Quality, Finance, and customer-facing teams.
- Proficiency with ERP/MRP systems, Microsoft Office, and related purchasing or business applications.
- Professionalism, discretion, and adherence to ethical standards in supplier and business interactions.
Physical Requirements
- Ability to work in office areas and periodically move through manufacturing, warehouse, and shipping/receiving areas as required.
- Ability to operate a computer, keyboard, telephone, and standard office equipment and review purchasing documents and system information.
- Ability to access operational work areas in accordance with applicable safety and personal protective equipment requirements.
Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.
Work Environment
Work is primarily performed in an office environment with periodic exposure to manufacturing, warehouse, shipping/receiving, and related operational areas. Manufacturing conditions may include noise, moving equipment, production materials, and required personal protective equipment.
The work environment characteristics described are representative of those encountered while performing essential job functions. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these functions.
Equal Employment Opportunity Statement
T&E Industries, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected status under applicable law.
This job description is intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, or skills required. Employees may be required to perform other related duties as assigned, consistent with business needs.