Purchasing Buyer in Mooresville, North Carolina at SHD Composite Materials Inc

Purchasing Buyer Job Description

Summary and Purpose

SHD Composite Materials Inc. was incorporated in August 2018, to service the expanding American and Canadian composite industries. The North American HQ is in Mooresville, North Carolina and became a fully operational manufacturing facility in 2019.

SHD Composite Materials Inc. are manufacturers of advanced composite pre-impregnated (prepreg) materials. With a growing global presence, we can service the American prepreg market with high quality prepreg at fast turnaround times together with world class technical support.

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Our core strength is the ability to supply high or low volume, with a wide range of tooling and component products throughout America and around the world.

The purpose of this role is to support and manage day-to-day purchasing activities, supplier communication, purchase order control, order tracking, inventory coordination, and practical procurement planning.

This position serves as a link between Operations, Production, Quality, Finance, Inventory, Receiving, and external suppliers to ensure materials, supplies, equipment, and services are ordered accurately, received on time, and aligned with company needs.

Person Specification

Either a proven Purchasing Coordinator, Buyer, Procurement Specialist, or a person with an experience mix of purchasing, inventory, receiving, ERP, supplier coordination, operations support with a willingness to learn. The ideal candidate is highly organized, detail-oriented, cost-aware, quality-minded, and able to balance routine purchasing tasks with vendor coordination, inventory accuracy, quote comparison, and practical cost-control responsibilities.

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Key Responsibilities

Purchasing / Procurement

• Create, process, and track purchase orders for raw materials, supplies, tools, equipment, services, and other company needs while following company procedures and approval limits.
• Review purchase requests for accuracy, completeness, pricing, vendor information, specifications, and required approvals before orders are placed.
• Obtain quotes from vendors and compare pricing, lead times, availability, terms, quality requirements, and practical value.
• Work with staff and department leaders to source and cost purchased items as needed.
• Monitor open purchase orders, follow up on outstanding orders, and confirm delivery dates with suppliers.
• Maintain regular supplier forecasts where appropriate to support production planning, material availability, and inventory control.
• Review supplier scorecards with strategic suppliers to ensure best in class total cost ownership.
• Review standard and purchase price.
• Monitor commodity prices, economic conditions, and industry trends.
• Perform annual RFQs or revers auctions.
• Support sourcing of new local or alternate suppliers when current vendors are unavailable, overpriced, delayed, or unable to meet requirements.
• Assist with large equipment, service, or project-related purchasing activity as needed by collecting quotes, organizing documentation, and helping compare options.

Supplier / Vendor Management

• Communicate regularly with suppliers regarding pricing, order status, backorders, shipping updates, documentation, and invoice discrepancies.

• Maintain positive working relationships with suppliers, vendors, service providers, and internal stakeholders.

• Assist with evaluating supplier performance based on price, quality, responsiveness, delivery reliability, compliance, and service.

• Help negotiate basic pricing, delivery timelines, payment terms, and supply arrangements when appropriate.

• Maintain accurate vendor records, contact information, quotes, pricing history, purchasing files, and supplier documentation.

• Monitor supplier pricing, product lead times, market factors, and recurring cost changes; report concerns or opportunities to management.

• Support onboarding and supplier development, alternate sourcing, and supply chain risk mitigation through clear communication and timely follow-up.

Inventory / Materials Planning

• Coordinate with Operations, Production, Planning, Warehouse, Receiving, and Inventory teams to support material availability and production needs.

• Help maintain inventory levels, reorder points, minimum stock levels, and raw material ordering plans while balancing cash flow and warehousing space.

• Identify low-stock items, recurring supply needs, potential shortages, excess inventory, and material availability risks.

• Work closely with Receiving to ensure inventory data, quantities, locations, and ERP transactions are accurate.

• Support cycle counts, inventory reviews, material usage tracking, and correction of ERP or physical inventory issues.

• Maintain inventory, stock, and purchasing records in a tidy, organized, and traceable manner.

• Report on inventory, purchasing activity, open orders, supplier spend, and material risks as required.

Quality / Compliance

• Ensure appropriate specifications, approved supplier requirements, and quality standards are considered when purchasing materials or services.

• Engage with the Quality function when supplier non-conformities, documentation issues, material defects, or approval concerns arise.

• Support purchasing documentation and traceability requirements related to customer, aerospace, internal quality, and company procedures.

• Assist with supplier approval documentation and internal communication when new suppliers or alternate materials require review.

• Follow all company Health and Safety procedures and applicable external compliance expectations related to purchasing, handling, and workplace safety.

Administrative / Financial Coordination

• Match purchase orders, packing slips, receipts, and invoices to support accurate payment processing and timely issue resolution.

• Work with Finance or Accounting to resolve invoice discrepancies, missing documentation, pricing issues, and approval questions.

• Maintain organized purchasing files, records, approvals, vendor documentation, order history, and audit-support materials.

• Support compliance with purchasing policies, approval workflows, cost-control expectations, and documentation requirements.

• Provide purchasing reports, cost comparisons, supplier updates, and open-order summaries for management as requested.

Logistics / Receiving Support

• Coordinate with Receiving, Warehouse, and Operations to resolve quantity discrepancies, damaged goods, incorrect shipments, late deliveries, and missing paperwork.

• Communicate shipping updates, delivery timing, and material availability information to internal teams when needed.

• Support logistics supplier communication and shipping-rate comparisons when assigned, while escalating complex import, export, customs, or compliance matters to management.

Process Improvement / Cost Control

• Identify opportunities to improve purchasing workflows, vendor communication, order tracking, inventory visibility, and cost control.

• Help standardize purchasing forms, approval processes, vendor lists, recurring order procedures, supplier records, and quote-comparison tools.

• Recommend practical changes that reduce delays, duplicate orders, emergency purchases, unnecessary spending, and inventory inaccuracies.

• Support cost-saving initiatives by comparing quotes, monitoring price trends, improving supplier communication, and identifying better purchasing options.

• Assist with implementation or improvement of ERP, purchasing, inventory, or reporting processes as needed.

General Office / Site Support

• Undertake and perform other purchasing, procurement, inventory-support, administrative, or operations-support duties as requested by the company and its stakeholders.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent required; associate or bachelor degree in business, supply chain, operations, engineering, or a related field preferred.

• 2-5 years of experience in purchasing, procurement, supply chain, inventory, receiving, operations support, or a related administrative role preferred.

• Experience creating purchase orders, working with suppliers, comparing quotes, and following up on open orders is preferred.

• ERP system experience is important for this role; familiarity with inventory systems, accounting software, or purchasing platforms is preferred.

• Manufacturing, distribution, warehouse, industrial, aerospace, composite materials, or advanced materials purchasing experience is preferred.

• Experience with supplier performance, inventory planning, cycle counting, basic logistics coordination, or cost-reduction activity is helpful.

Skills and Ability

• Must have excellent communication and interpersonal skills to work with all levels of the organization, suppliers, vendors, and customers when needed.

• Must have flexibility and adaptability for changing workloads and a fast-paced manufacturing environment.

• Must be able to read, write, and speak English.

• Attention to detail, accuracy, documentation control, and follow-through are a must.

• Must have excellent organization and time-management skills.

• Must possess the ability to prioritize tasks, manage multiple orders, and work under pressure.

• Must have strong analytical ability, cost awareness, and practical decision-making skills.

• Must be able to compare quotes, identify cost differences, and make sound purchasing recommendations.

• Must be able to operate Microsoft Office Suite, including Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Outlook.

• Must be able to use ERP systems, purchasing systems, inventory systems, or similar business software as required.

• Must be able to use email professionally and frequently.

• Must be able to use standard office equipment.

• Must be quality-minded, customer focused, supplier focused, and operationally aware.

• Must be able to be forklift certified if required for receiving or warehouse support.

• Must be able to work independently, self-directed, and as part of a team.

• Must be willing to travel locally or nationally if required for suppliers, training, or business needs; occasional international support may be required only if assigned by management.

Work Environment / Essential Physical Demands

• Ability to work in a typical office environment and occasionally enter a manufacturing, warehouse, or receiving environment on concrete floors.

• Must be able to work weekends and overtime if required.

• Must be able to use hands and fingers for fine manipulation and keyboarding as needed.

• Ability to bend, lift, push, and pull as required; up to 110 lbs with appropriate lifting equipment where applicable.

• Ability to stand and walk as needed throughout the day and sit for long periods while working at a computer.

• Ability to safely, effectively, and reliably receive and give urgent and other essential communications in an office and factory environment.

• Ability to detect abnormalities in the workplace and receive safety signals using visual, tactile, or auditory senses.

• Must have good vision and auditory senses.

• Must be able to follow all safety and company policies and procedures.

• Must be able to wear all required PPE when entering production, warehouse, receiving, or manufacturing areas.

• Must be able to work short time periods in cold temperatures if required for inventory, material checks, or warehouse support.

Success Measures

• Accurate purchase order processing and clean purchasing documentation.

• Timely material availability and reduced purchasing delays.

• Improved inventory accuracy, cycle count support, and ERP data reliability.

• Effective quote comparison, cost awareness, and practical purchasing recommendations.

• Reduced duplicate orders, emergency purchases, invoice discrepancies, and stockout risks.

• Effective support of Operations, Production, Quality, Finance, Inventory, and Receiving teams.

Attitude:

• Passion for SHD Composite Materials Inc., high-growth business, and advanced materials manufacturing.

• Customer focused, supplier focused, and responsive to business needs.

• Friendly, flexible team player with a can-do attitude and a flexible approach to changing business and meeting customer needs.

• Professional, detail-oriented, cost-aware, organized, and willing to take ownership of follow-up.

• Quality-first mindset.

• Must take pride in being on time and at work each day.

• Must work with a sense of urgency and take pride in supporting a future leading company.

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Our employees are very important to us, and job satisfaction is of paramount importance.

SHD Composites is an Equal Opportunity Employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any kind. SHD Composites is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all employees and to providing employees with a work environment free of discrimination and harassment.