Job Overview
We are seeking an experienced and highly organized Procurement Manager to support our fabrication, CNC machining, and waterjet cutting operations.
This position is responsible for taking awarded jobs from the estimating stage and ensuring they are correctly set up for production. The Procurement Manager will review estimates and job requirements, enter new jobs into our ERP system, establish the proper production routing, identify and source required materials, coordinate outside processing and testing, and ensure everything needed for the job is available before production begins.
This role serves as a critical link between Estimating, Design, Purchasing, Quality, and Production. The ideal candidate understands manufacturing processes and can interpret estimates, drawings, material specifications, testing requirements, and production needs to ensure jobs move through the shop efficiently and accurately.
Experience in a job shop manufacturing environment, particularly involving fabrication, CNC machining, waterjet cutting, specialty metals, and customer-specific requirements, is highly preferred.
Key Responsibilities
- Review awarded estimates, purchase orders, drawings, specifications, and job requirements before releasing work to production.
- Enter new jobs into JobBOSS² or the company's ERP system accurately and completely.
- Build and verify the appropriate production routing for each job, including fabrication, waterjet cutting, CNC machining, welding, inspection, outside processing, testing, and other required operations.
- Ensure job routing accurately reflects the work quoted during the estimating process.
- Review estimates to identify required raw materials, purchased components, outside services, testing, certifications, and special processes.
- Source and purchase materials required for fabrication, machining, and waterjet projects.
- Obtain competitive pricing and lead times while ensuring purchased material meets job specifications.
- Source and coordinate required outside testing, including material testing, NDE/NDT, heat treatment, coating, plating, inspection, certification, or other third-party services as required by the job.
- Verify material specifications, grades, sizes, quantities, certifications, and customer requirements before issuing purchase orders.
- Ensure materials and outside services are ordered early enough to support production schedules.
- Maintain visibility of all incoming materials and purchased services and communicate potential delays before they affect production.
- Work closely with Estimating to identify discrepancies between quoted requirements and actual job requirements.
- Coordinate with Production to ensure jobs are routed to the correct departments and work centers.
- Coordinate with Quality to ensure required certifications, inspection points, testing, documentation, and customer requirements are properly identified.
- Issue and manage purchase orders through JobBOSS² or similar ERP/MRP software.
- Maintain accurate vendor, pricing, purchasing, and material information within the ERP system.
- Monitor open purchase orders and follow up with suppliers to maintain required delivery dates.
- Develop and maintain strong relationships with material suppliers, testing laboratories, outside processors, and other vendors.
- Negotiate pricing, lead times, freight, and purchasing terms while maintaining required quality standards.
- Evaluate supplier performance based on quality, pricing, responsiveness, and on-time delivery.
- Identify purchasing and job-planning issues and perform root cause analysis when problems occur.
- Help improve the company's process from estimating → job entry → purchasing → routing → production → quality → delivery.
- Maintain organized purchasing records, material certifications, vendor documentation, and job-related procurement information.
- Manage multiple active jobs simultaneously while prioritizing requirements based on production schedules and customer deadlines.
Qualifications
- Previous experience in procurement, purchasing, production planning, estimating support, or supply chain management within a manufacturing environment.
- Experience in a job shop environment involving fabrication, CNC machining, welding, or waterjet cutting is strongly preferred.
- Working knowledge of manufacturing routings, work centers, bills of material, purchase orders, and production workflows.
- Ability to review estimates and translate quoted requirements into purchasing and production requirements.
- Ability to read and understand engineering drawings, material specifications, purchase orders, and manufacturing documentation.
- Familiarity with metals commonly used in industrial manufacturing and fabrication.
- Understanding of material certifications and traceability requirements is highly desirable.
- Familiarity with outside testing and special processes such as NDE/NDT, heat treatment, coatings, plating, and third-party inspection is preferred.
- Experience with JobBOSS² or similar ERP/MRP software is highly desirable.
- Strong organizational and analytical skills.
- Strong attention to detail and ability to identify potential problems before a job reaches production.
- Ability to manage multiple jobs, vendors, purchase orders, and deadlines simultaneously.
- Strong vendor negotiation and relationship-management skills.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to work closely with Estimating, Engineering, Quality, Production, and Management.
Education and Experience
- Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Business Administration, Manufacturing, or a related field is preferred.
- Relevant manufacturing and procurement experience may be considered in place of a degree.
- Experience purchasing metals, manufactured components, outside processing, and testing services is strongly preferred.
What Success Looks Like
The Procurement Manager should ensure that when a job reaches the production floor:
- The job has been entered correctly into the ERP system.
- The routing sends the job through the correct departments and operations.
- Required materials have been identified and ordered.
- Materials meet the specifications established during estimating.
- Required testing and outside processes have been identified and scheduled.
- Certifications and documentation requirements are understood.
- Production is not waiting because purchasing or job setup was overlooked.
- Differences between the estimate and actual job requirements are identified before they become production problems or unexpected costs.
Job Type: Full-time
Benefits:
- Paid parental leave
- Paid time off
Work Location: In person
Lafayette, LA 70508
Ability to Commute: Lafayette, LA 70508 preferred
Ability to Relocate: Relocate to Lafayette, LA 70508 before starting work preferred
Job Type: Full-time
Pay: $24.00 - $30.00 per hour
Expected hours: 40.0 per week
Benefits:
- Paid parental leave
- Paid time off
Ability to Commute:
- Lafayette, LA 70508 (Preferred)
Ability to Relocate:
- Lafayette, LA 70508: Relocate before starting work (Preferred)
Work Location: In person
