JOB DESCRIPTION – PURCHASE HEADFoundry & Machine Shop1. Position Details
Position: Purchase Head
Department: Purchase / Procurement
Industry: Foundry & Machine Shop / Engineering Manufacturing
Reporting To: Plant Head / Director / General Manager
Location: As per business requirement
Experience: 15–20 years in Purchase/Procurement, preferably in Foundry, Machine Shop, Automotive or Engineering Manufacturing
2. Job Purpose
To lead and manage the complete purchase and procurement function for Foundry and Machine Shop operations, ensuring timely availability of raw materials, consumables, tools, spares, services and other requirements at optimum cost, quality and delivery while developing a strong and reliable supplier base.
3. Key ResponsibilitiesA. Strategic Procurement
- Develop and implement the overall procurement strategy aligned with production and business objectives.
- Plan procurement of raw materials such as foundry metals, alloys, scrap, consumables, machining tools, cutting tools, lubricants, chemicals, packing materials, spares and other engineering items.
- Identify cost-reduction and value-engineering opportunities.
- Develop alternate sources to reduce dependency and supply risk.
- Establish annual procurement budgets and monitor expenditure.
B. Vendor Development & Management
- Identify, evaluate and develop new suppliers.
- Conduct supplier capability assessment and commercial evaluation.
- Negotiate price, payment terms, credit period, delivery schedules and other commercial conditions.
- Maintain strong relationships with strategic suppliers.
- Monitor supplier performance based on Quality, Cost, Delivery and Service (QCDS).
- Develop alternate and backup suppliers for critical materials.
C. Cost Control & Negotiation
- Lead commercial negotiations with suppliers.
- Benchmark material prices and conduct market analysis.
- Control purchase cost through competitive quotations, rate contracts, annual agreements and volume negotiations.
- Identify opportunities for localization and import substitution.
- Monitor price fluctuations of metals, alloys, scrap, consumables and other key materials.
D. Material Planning & Procurement
- Coordinate with Production, PPC, Stores, Quality, Maintenance and Finance for procurement requirements.
- Ensure timely procurement based on production plans, inventory levels and material requirements.
- Maintain optimum inventory without affecting production continuity.
- Monitor critical and long-lead-time materials.
- Ensure timely follow-up of purchase orders and supplier commitments.
E. Foundry-Specific Procurement
- Manage procurement of pig iron, steel scrap, foundry returns, ferro alloys, inoculants, carburizers, bentonite, resins, hardeners, sand, refractory materials and other foundry consumables.
- Develop reliable sources for critical foundry raw materials.
- Monitor market trends and price movements of ferrous materials and alloys.
- Coordinate with Quality and Foundry teams for material specifications and supplier quality.
F. Machine Shop Procurement
- Manage procurement of cutting tools, inserts, tool holders, coolants, lubricants, fixtures, machine spares, measuring instruments and maintenance consumables.
- Develop technically capable suppliers for tooling and machine-shop requirements.
- Support cost reduction through tool-life improvement, alternate tooling and supplier development.
- Coordinate with Production and Engineering for new tooling and machine requirements.
G. Purchase Systems & Controls
- Ensure proper Purchase Requisition, RFQ, comparative statement, negotiation, Purchase Order and approval processes.
- Ensure purchase transactions are properly recorded in ERP/SAP.
- Establish and monitor vendor rate contracts and approved supplier lists.
- Maintain purchase MIS and procurement performance reports.
- Ensure compliance with company procurement policies and approval matrix.
H. Inventory & Working Capital
- Work closely with Stores and PPC to optimize inventory levels.
- Reduce excess, slow-moving and non-moving inventory.
- Improve inventory turnover and working-capital utilization.
- Ensure critical materials are available without unnecessary stock accumulation.
I. Team Leadership
- Lead, guide and develop the purchase team.
- Allocate responsibilities and establish measurable KPIs.
- Review team performance regularly.
- Develop negotiation, vendor-management and procurement capabilities within the team.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
- Purchase cost reduction / annual savings
- Raw material cost variance
- On-time material availability
- Supplier On-Time Delivery (OTD)
- Supplier quality performance
- Inventory turnover
- Reduction in excess and non-moving inventory
- Alternate vendor development
- Procurement cycle time
- Cost-saving through negotiation and localization
- Purchase budget adherence
- Critical material shortage incidents
- Vendor payment-term improvement
5. Required Skills & Competencies
- Strong negotiation and commercial skills
- Strategic sourcing and vendor development
- Strong knowledge of engineering and foundry materials
- Knowledge of machine-shop tooling and consumables
- Costing and price-analysis skills
- Market intelligence and supplier benchmarking
- ERP/SAP procurement knowledge
- Inventory and working-capital management
- Strong analytical and decision-making skills
- Leadership and team-management capability
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
- Problem-solving and supplier escalation management
6. Educational Qualification
Essential: B.E./B.Tech./Diploma in Mechanical, Production, Industrial Engineering or equivalent.
Preferred: MBA/PGDM in Supply Chain, Materials Management or Procurement.
7. Preferred Industry Experience
Candidates from the following industries will be preferred:
- Foundry
- Machine Shop
- Automotive Components
- Auto Ancillary
- Engineering Manufacturing
- CI / SG Iron Foundry
- Heavy Engineering
- CNC Machining
- Industrial Equipment Manufacturing
8. Preferred Search Keywords
Purchase Head | Procurement Head | Head Purchase | Materials Head | Purchase Manager | Strategic Procurement | Strategic Sourcing | Vendor Development | Supplier Development | Cost Reduction | Foundry Purchase | Machine Shop Purchase | Engineering Purchase | Raw Material Procurement | Tooling Procurement | Ferrous Scrap | Ferro Alloys | SAP MM | Supply Chain | Materials Management | Vendor Management | Procurement Strategy | Cost Negotiation | Inventory Management | QCDS
9. Ideal Candidate Profile
A commercially strong and result-oriented procurement professional with 15–20 years of experience, preferably having hands-on experience in Foundry and Machine Shop procurement, supplier development, strategic sourcing, cost reduction, negotiations and team leadership. The candidate should be capable of independently managing the complete purchase function and contributing directly to cost optimization, uninterrupted production and working-capital improvement.
Pay: ₹80,000.00 - ₹170,000.00 per month
Work Location: In person
