Purchasing Manager at Jarraff Industries LLC – St. Peter, Minnesota

Jarraff by Prinoth provides high-quality, specialized right-of-way maintenance, land clearing, and tree care equipment. Products include the Jarraff All-Terrain Tree Trimmers, Mini-Jarraff Urban Tree Trimmer and T-Rex Carrier Vehicles.

Located in St. Peter, MN, our facilities are a hub for all vegetation management products offered in North America. With Customer success fueling our passion, our values align with Prinoth's as we work on becoming the best partner and employer.

The combined offering from Jarraff by Prinoth and Prinoth is taking the vegetation management industry by storm, offering a full range of product solutions focus on improving customer safety, performance, and profitability.

Overview

The Purchasing Manager leads the purchasing function for a heavy equipment manufacturing operation, ensuring the timely purchasing of complex components, raw materials, and specialized services. This role manages a team of buyers, maintains supplier partnerships, and drives cost, quality, and delivery performance to support production schedules and long-term business goals.

Key Responsibilities

Supplier Management & Development

• Build and maintain strong relationships with domestic and international suppliers specializing in industrial and heavy-equipment components.
• Partner with engineering and quality teams to resolve any quality issues and determine solutions when quality issues are experienced.
• Support supplier development initiatives to improve quality, delivery, and cost performance.

Inventory, Lead-Time, and Cost Optimization

• Responsible for production forecasting and planning to manage procurement schedules and prevent line-down situations.
• Optimize inventory levels for critical components while balancing cost, lead time, and production needs.
• Analyze purchasing data to identify cost-saving opportunities, supplier consolidation, and process improvements.
• Support make-versus-buy analysis and evaluate alternative sourcing options for high-risk or high-cost parts.

Team Leadership

• Lead, mentor, and develop a team of buyers.
• Set performance goals, monitor progress, and ensure adherence to procurement policies and best practices.
• Provide training on reading engineering drawings, understanding BOM structures, and managing technical supplier discussions.

Compliance, Documentation & Reporting

• Ensure procurement activities comply with industry standards, safety requirements, and regulatory guidelines relevant to heavy equipment manufacturing.
• Maintain accurate purchasing records, supplier certifications, and contract documentation.
• Prepare reports on procurement KPIs, cost savings, supplier performance, and risk mitigation activities.

Education & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in supply chain management, Business, Engineering, or related field.
• 5+ years of procurement experience in heavy equipment, industrial machinery, automotive, or manufacturing environments.
• 5+ years of supervisory or managerial experience.
• Experience with ERP/MRP systems, preferably SAP, BOMs, and technical specifications.

Skills & Competencies

• Strong negotiation skills with experience in high-value, technical components.
• Ability to understand engineering requirements and collaborate with technical teams.
• Excellent analytical skills with a focus on cost, lead time, and supplier performance.
• Effective leadership and team-building capabilities.
• Strong communication and relationship-building skills across engineering, operations, and quality.

Preferred Qualifications

• Knowledge of lean manufacturing, supply chain optimization, and continuous improvement.
• Professional certifications (CPSM, CSCP, CPIM).
• Experience with global sourcing and supplier development programs.

Physical Requirements

The physical requirements described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this position, the employee will:

• Sit at a desk while working on a computer for prolonged periods.
• Must be able to lift 15 pounds at times.
• Must be able to access and navigate each department at the organization’s facilities.

Work Environment

This job operates in a professional office and occasionally a shop environment. This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers, filing cabinets, and fax machines. Working in a shop environment requires the use of safety personal protective equipment to include, but not limited to, eye safety glasses, hearing protectors, and steel toed safety shoes.