Buyer TN

Description

ABOUT THE COMPANY: For more than 70 years, JOST has been shaping the future of transportation with innovation, safety, and customer focus at its core. Founded in 1952 in Germany with the development of the first cast-steel fifth wheel, JOST has grown into a global leader supplying the commercial vehicle and agricultural industries with trusted, high-quality solutions.

With its portfolio of leading brands — JOST, ROCKINGER, TRIDEC, Quicke, and Hyva — the company today is a Tier 1 supplier recognized worldwide for excellence in fifth wheels, landing gear, towing hitches, steering systems, front loaders, and hydraulic solutions. The 2025 acquisition of Hyva marked a significant milestone, expanding JOST’s reach into hydraulic cylinders, tippers and components for transport and waste handling, and strengthening its position across both On-Highway and Off-Highway applications.

Headquartered in Germany with operations on five continents, JOST continues to drive industry standards through engineering expertise, a commitment to quality, and strong partnerships with OEMs and fleets around the world.

POSITION OVERVIEW: The Buyer will; analyze MRP requirements, schedule, and plan raw materials to support production to meet customer requirements; Create and maintain JOST International ERP support processes; assists in the development of raw material planning forecast, supplier source selection, supplier requests for information and request for quotation and manage assigned commodities.

This position reports to the Senior Buyer/Planner. It is solely accountable for the fulfillment of all assigned duties and has authority delegated commensurate with assigned responsibilities.

AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY: Include, but are not limited to:

Supplier Management

• Manage assigned suppliers, including supplier approval activities, performance reviews, audits, and relationship management.
• Support supplier negotiations involving pricing, contract terms, lead times, and service expectations using a total cost of ownership approach and JOST's supplier development processes.
• Manage JSDM activities including supplier onboarding, supplier master maintenance, supplier change requests, data validation, and coordination of approval workflows; prepare, document, and present supplier-related requests and business justifications to the Germany Approval Board as required.
• Maintain positive supplier relationships and drive continuous improvement in quality, delivery, and performance.
• Assist in the development and review of supplier scorecards.
• Manage supplier contracts, quotations, and related documentation assigned.

Procurement and Material Planning

• Analyze MRP requirements and ensure timely procurement of materials.
• Place purchase orders and maintain purchasing documents to support production schedules and customer requirements.
• Create, maintain, and issue: 
• Purchase Orders
• Scheduling Agreements
• Scheduling Agreement Releases
• Purchasing Info Records (PIRs)
• Source Lists
• Other purchasing master data within SAP
• Monitor SAP MRP controller mailboxes for assigned commodities.
• Forecast raw material requirements using SAP forecasting tools, budget information, and sales forecasts.
• Coordinate with Sales, Engineering, Production, and Planning teams to support new product launches, expedited orders, and supplier lead-time management.
• Plan, procure, and manage production materials to ensure uninterrupted manufacturing operations.

SAP and Master Data Maintenance

• Assist with SAP material master maintenance, including: 
• Standardized descriptions
• Min/Max inventory settings
• Planned delivery times
• MRP controller assignments
• Purchasing group assignments
• Weights and dimensions
• Lot sizes and related planning parameters
• Coordinate with Document Control to establish and maintain accurate part numbers and specifications.

Inventory and Production Support

• Support inventory control activities, including cycle counting and annual physical inventory.
• Manage excess, obsolete, and slow-moving inventory for assigned commodities.
• Review production schedules and ensure material availability to support manufacturing requirements.
• Maintain and report monthly production forecasts.
• Participate in daily production and scheduling meetings.
• Coordinate scrap steel pickups and pricing activities.
• Work with the Planning team to review and disposition outdated open orders to maintain inventory accuracy.

Supplier and Subcontractor Coordination

• Manage subcontracted components by ensuring adequate raw material availability and uninterrupted production support.
• Collaborate with customers and project managers to manually calculate demand and place purchase orders for long lead-time items when EDI transactions are not yet available in SAP.
• Coordinate with Receiving to resolve inbound material discrepancies and provide guidance regarding appropriate SAP receipt transactions.
• Communicate material requirements to subcontractors and support material transfers as needed.

Compliance and Continuous Improvement

• Maintain supplier certifications, quality records, and compliance documentation to support IATF requirements and audit readiness.
• Complete Information Security Training and comply with company policies regarding quality, environmental, health, safety, and security standards.
• Perform other duties as assigned.
• Support 5S and Lean Manufacturing initiatives.
• Any additional duties that have not been specifically stated, but which may be assigned and those that are logically and properly inherent to this position.

Requirements

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE:

• Degree in Supply Chain Management or equivalent prior work history and experience in materials planning. 
• 3-5 years business experience in a production facility.
• APICS and/or ISM Membership preferred but not required.

REQUIRED SKILLS:

• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office 365, particularly Excel. 
• Experience with SAP, preferably within the Materials Management (MM) module. 
• Strong organizational, written, and verbal communication skills. 
• Working knowledge of relational databases and data analysis concepts. 
• Excellent attention to detail and critical thinking skills. 
• Demonstrated ability to work independently and collaboratively in a team environment.
• Ability to travel up to 15%, primarily within the local region, with occasional overnight travel as needed
• Completion of Information Security Training required.
• Ability to gain knowledge of company products. Comply with quality, environmental, safety and JOST company policies and procedures.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Work environment consists of approximately 90% office and 10% production floor activity.
• Frequent sitting with occasional standing, walking, bending, twisting, stooping, kneeling, and reaching. 
• Regular lifting up to 10 pounds. 
• Occasional lifting up to 25 pounds. 
• Infrequent lifting up to 51 pounds with or without assistance.

JOST International participates in E-Verify and is an Equal Opportunity Employer