Purchasing Agent

Job Description

Job Description

The Purchasing Agent is responsible for purchasing raw materials, manufacturing supplies, outside processing services, and other production-related requirements for the company’s Lafayette, Louisiana and Los Angeles, California manufacturing facilities. This position manages centralized purchasing activities to ensure materials and services are available when required to support production schedules, while maintaining competitive pricing, supplier performance, purchasing accuracy, and compliance with customer, regulatory, and AS9100 quality requirements. The Purchasing Agent works closely with Production, Planning, Engineering, Quality Assurance, Accounting, and Management to coordinate purchasing requirements and resolve material and supplier issues. Essential Duties and Responsibilities

1. Purchasing – Lafayette & Los Angeles

• Manage purchasing requirements for both manufacturing facilities.

• Serve as the primary purchasing contact for raw materials, production supplies, and outside services.

• Review production requirements and coordinate purchasing priorities with both locations.

• Monitor open purchase orders, material requirements, shortages, and supplier delivery schedules.

• Coordinate material transfers between Lafayette and Los Angeles when necessary.

• Establish consistent purchasing practices and documentation across both facilities.

• Consolidate purchases when practical to obtain volume pricing and reduce procurement costs.

2. Raw Material Purchasing

• Purchase aerospace-grade aluminum, stainless steel, titanium, specialty alloys, and other manufacturing materials.

• Review purchase requirements, bills of material, engineering drawings, and material specifications.

• Obtain and evaluate supplier quotations based on price, availability, quality, lead time, and delivery performance.

• Negotiate pricing, delivery schedules, payment terms, and other purchasing conditions.

• Ensure purchase orders accurately identify material specifications, quantities, dimensions, certifications, and applicable requirements.

• Monitor material availability and market conditions to identify purchasing opportunities and potential supply risks.

3. Aerospace Quality and Compliance

• Perform purchasing activities in accordance with applicable AS9100 requirements and company procedures.

• Purchase materials and services from approved suppliers.

• Ensure purchase orders include applicable quality requirements, certifications, specifications, and customer flow-down requirements.

• Coordinate with Quality Assurance to obtain required material certifications, test reports, and traceability documentation.

• Support compliance with applicable DFARS, domestic sourcing, and contractual requirements.

• Assist with supplier evaluations and corrective actions when required.

• Maintain purchasing records necessary for internal, customer, and third-party audits.

• Coordinate with Quality Assurance regarding nonconforming materials and supplier discrepancies.

4. Supplier Management

• Develop and maintain professional relationships with material suppliers, distributors, outside processors, and manufacturing service providers.

• Obtain quotations and evaluate potential new suppliers.

• Monitor supplier delivery and quality performance.

• Proactively communicate and resolve supplier delays that may affect production.

• Maintain accurate supplier information, pricing, quotations, and purchasing records.

• Work with Quality Assurance to address supplier performance issues.

5. ERP and Purchasing Administration

• Create, issue, maintain, and monitor purchase orders using Epicor Kinetic ERP.

• Review material requirements generated through production planning and inventory requirements.

• Maintain accurate supplier, pricing, purchasing, and delivery information.

• Monitor expected delivery dates and follow up on outstanding purchase orders.

• Coordinate with Receiving regarding quantity discrepancies, damaged materials, and missing documentation.

• Assist Accounting with purchase order and invoice discrepancies.

• Prepare purchasing reports and material status updates for management. 6. Inventory and Cost Management

• Coordinate with both facilities to maintain appropriate raw material inventory levels.

• Monitor material usage and purchasing trends.

• Identify opportunities to reduce excess inventory and unnecessary expenditures.

• Assist with establishing appropriate reorder points and safety stock levels.

• Consolidate purchases when practical to improve pricing and reduce procurement costs.

• Support company cost-reduction initiatives while maintaining quality and customer requirements.

Work Experience

Required Qualifications

• Minimum 3 years of purchasing experience in a manufacturing environment.

• Experience purchasing raw materials, production supplies, or manufacturing-related services.

• Working knowledge of purchase orders, supplier quotations, purchasing negotiations, and inventory management.

• Ability to read and interpret engineering drawings, material specifications, and bills of material.

• Experience working with ERP/MRP systems.

• Proficiency with Microsoft Office, particularly Excel.

• Strong organizational, communication, and problem-solving skills.

• Ability to manage multiple priorities and support production requirements.

• Strong attention to detail and purchasing accuracy.

Preferred Qualifications

• Aerospace or defense manufacturing purchasing experience.

• Experience purchasing aluminum, stainless steel, and specialty alloys.

• Familiarity with AS9100 requirements.

• Knowledge of material certifications and traceability requirements.

• Familiarity with DFARS requirements.

• Experience using Epicor Kinetic ERP.

• Experience supporting multiple manufacturing locations.

• Familiarity with outside processing, including heat treatment, plating, anodizing, coating, and other special processes.

• Experience in precision machining or CNC manufacturing environments.