Senior Purchasing Planner

The Senior Purchasing Planner will manage procurement planning, material scheduling, supplier coordination, and inventory optimization activities in a fast-paced manufacturing environment. The role is responsible for ensuring uninterrupted material availability to support production requirements while driving inventory efficiency, supplier performance, cost savings, and continuous process improvement initiatives.

The ideal candidate must come from a discrete industrial / engineering / manufacturing setup and possess strong expertise in MRP planning, blanket purchase orders, inventory management, supplier negotiations, and production support.

Key Responsibilities:

• Manage and maintain blanket purchase orders (BPOs) and long-term supplier agreements, including determining appropriate total contract quantities, release schedules, and replenishment strategies based on production forecasts, demand variability, lead times, and inventory targets.
• Execute purchase order releases and coordinate directly with suppliers regarding shipment schedules, acknowledgments, delivery confirmations, and supply continuity.
• Source and procure direct and indirect materials while ensuring competitive pricing, quality, delivery reliability, and compliance with operational requirements.
• Negotiate pricing, commercial terms, lead times, and supplier performance improvement initiatives to support continuous year-over-year improvements in cost, quality, and delivery.

• Execute MRP order actions, rescheduling activities, and planning recommendations for assigned commodities and production areas.
• Analyze production schedules, forecasts, usage trends, and customer demand patterns to ensure uninterrupted material flow to manufacturing operations.
• Support planning activities related to Min/Max inventory planning, reorder point/reorder quantity methodologies, Kanban replenishment systems, and inventory optimization strategies.

• Support manufacturing operations within a discrete manufacturing environment involving machined components, assemblies, and engineered products.
• Read and interpret blueprints, machined part drawings, Gerber files, engineering specifications, and technical documentation to support purchasing decisions and material planning activities.
• Collaborate closely with engineering, production, operations, warehouse, and customer service teams to ensure material requirements align with manufacturing specifications and customer demand.

• Execute inventory optimization initiatives using inventory planning and optimization tools to maintain balanced inventory levels while minimizing excess, obsolete, and slow-moving stock.
• Monitor inventory health, stock availability, usage trends, and supplier performance metrics to identify supply risks and opportunities for improvement.
• Drive inventory reduction and working capital improvement initiatives through strategic procurement planning and supplier collaboration.

• Communicate delivery schedules, material availability, inventory risks, and supply concerns with operations, production, planning, and customer service teams.
• Participate actively in daily operational huddles and cross-functional planning meetings.
• Build and maintain strong supplier and stakeholder relationships to support business continuity and customer satisfaction.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Supply Chain Management, Industrial Engineering, Business Administration, Logistics, or related field.
• Minimum of 5–10 years of solid experience in purchasing, supply chain, material planning, or production planning within a discrete manufacturing environment.
• Candidates must have experience supporting manufacturing operations involving machined parts, assemblies, engineered products, or industrial manufacturing processes.
• Must be capable of reading and interpreting: Blueprints, Machined part drawings, Gerber files, Engineering specifications.
• Strong understanding of inventory planning logic, including how Min/Max levels, reorder points, safety stock, and replenishment quantities are established and adjusted.
• Experience handling local and regional sourcing strategies and supplier management initiatives.
• Strong understanding of international commercial terms (Incoterms) and global supply chain operations.
• Basic working knowledge of PEZA regulations and compliance requirements.
• Familiarity with ERP/MRP systems and inventory planning tools.

Work Schedule: Midshift (1 PM PHT onwards)