Procurement and Inventory Specialist

Job Title: Raw Material Procurement Buyer / Inventory Specialist
Department: Supply Chain / Procurement
Reports To: Procurement or Supply Chain Manager
Location: Hartsville, SC
Employment Type: Full Time

Position Summary

The Raw Material Procurement Buyer / Inventory Specialist is responsible for ensuring the timely and cost-effective procurement, availability, and control of raw materials needed to support production. This position manages supplier relationships, purchase orders, inventory levels, material requirements, and delivery schedules while helping maintain accurate inventory records and minimize shortages, excess inventory, and production disruptions.

Key Responsibilities

Procurement & Purchasing

• Purchase raw materials, components, packaging, and other production-related materials based on demand and production requirements.
• Review MRP, ERP, inventory reports, production schedules, and material requirements to determine purchasing needs.
• Create, issue, and maintain purchase orders and ensure accuracy of quantities, pricing, specifications, and delivery dates.
• Monitor open purchase orders and follow up with suppliers regarding confirmations, delays, shortages, and changes.
• Obtain quotes and negotiate pricing, lead times, minimum order quantities, and other commercial terms within company guidelines.
• Develop and maintain effective relationships with suppliers.
• Identify opportunities to reduce material costs, lead times, freight expenses, and excess inventory.
• Coordinate with Quality, Production, Engineering, Finance, and Planning to resolve material and supplier issues.
• Supporting MRO Procurement.

Inventory Management

• Monitor raw material inventory levels and maintain appropriate safety stock and reorder points.
• Analyze inventory usage, demand trends, lead times, and production requirements.
• Identify and address shortages, excess inventory, obsolete materials, and slow-moving inventory.
• Maintain accurate inventory records in the ERP/MRP system.
• Support cycle counts, physical inventories, and reconciliation of inventory discrepancies.
• Investigate inventory variances and coordinate corrective actions.
• Ensure materials are available when needed without unnecessarily increasing working capital.

Supply Chain Coordination

• Track supplier performance, including on-time delivery, quality, responsiveness, and adherence to purchase orders.
• Communicate material availability and potential supply risks to Planning and Production.
• Expedite critical or late materials when necessary.
• Coordinate incoming deliveries with receiving and warehouse personnel.
• Support supply-chain contingency planning and identify potential risks to production.
• Maintain appropriate documentation related to purchasing, inventory, and supplier performance.

Qualifications

• Associate or bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Logistics, Operations, or a related field preferred.
• 2–5 years of experience in purchasing, procurement, inventory control, materials management, or supply chain operations.
• Experience purchasing raw materials or manufacturing components preferred.
• Experience working with an ERP/MRP system such as SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics, Epicor, Infor, or similar.
• Strong Microsoft Office Skills
• Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities.
• Excellent organizational and follow-up skills.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and work effectively in a deadline-driven manufacturing environment.

Preferred Skills

• MRP/ERP purchasing experience
• Inventory forecasting and planning
• Supplier negotiations
• Cost analysis and price comparison
• Cycle counting and inventory reconciliation
• Manufacturing or production environment experience
• Understanding of lead times, safety stock, reorder points, MOQ, and economic order quantities
• Lean Manufacturing or Six Sigma experience is a plus

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Success in this position may be measured by:

• Raw material availability and production support
• Supplier on-time delivery
• Purchase price variance / material cost savings
• Inventory accuracy
• Inventory turns
• Raw material shortages and stockouts
• Excess and obsolete inventory
• Purchase order accuracy
• Supplier performance
• MRP exception resolution
• Reduction of expedited freight and emergency purchases

Physical & Work Requirements

• Primarily office/administrative work with regular interaction with warehouse and manufacturing operations.
• Ability to occasionally walk through production and warehouse areas.
• Ability to lift or move materials as required by the facility's safety requirements, if applicable.
• Must follow all company safety, quality, and environmental procedures.

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate is a detail-oriented, analytical, and proactive procurement professional who can balance production requirements with inventory investment. They should be comfortable working with suppliers, ERP/MRP data, purchasing transactions, and cross-functional teams while quickly identifying potential material shortages and taking action before they affect production.