Commodity Buyer in Northampton, Massachusetts

Commodity Buyer

Location:

Northampton, MA (Hybrid)

Business:
Malvern Panalytical

About Malvern Panalytical

Malvern Panalytical is a global leader in analytical instrumentation, providing innovative solutions that enable scientists and engineers to characterize materials with confidence. Our technologies support highly regulated and precision-driven industries, including pharmaceuticals, materials science, chemicals, and academia.

Role Purpose

The Commodity Buyer manages the full procurement lifecycle for assigned commodities, supporting manufacturing through cost control, supplier performance, and continuity of supply. This role focuses on machined components, sheet metal, and plastics, with a strong emphasis on plastic machining. The position plays a key role in collaborating with Engineering and Manufacturing to drive cost-effective sourcing decisions.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage the end-to-end procurement lifecycle for assigned commodities, including supplier selection, negotiation, contracting, and ongoing supplier management.
• Lead value analysis and cost-reduction initiatives in partnership with Engineering and Manufacturing, identifying opportunities to reduce total cost while maintaining quality, performance, and reliability.
• Collaborate with Engineering to review technical drawings, specifications, and designs, supporting design-to-cost, manufacturability improvements, and alternative sourcing recommendations.
• Negotiate pricing, commercial terms, and contracts with suppliers to achieve cost savings, including improvements in purchase price variance (PPV).
• Build and maintain strong supplier relationships, including regular communication, performance reviews, and supplier site visits.
• Support sourcing and supplier engagement for new product introductions, engineering changes, and production transitions.
• Work collaboratively within a small procurement team, providing backup support and contributing to shared objectives as needed.

Skills & Experience Required

• 3-4 years of purchasing or procurement experience within a manufacturing environment.
• Experience sourcing machined components, sheet metal, and plastics, with a strong emphasis on machined plastic components.
• Ability to read, understand, and discuss technical drawings and prints.
• Experience negotiating with suppliers and supporting cost-saving initiatives.

Preferred

• ASCM, CPSM or other Procurement accreditation.
• Experience participating in value analysis, cost-reduction, or design-to-cost activities.
• Exposure to low-volume, high-mix manufacturing environments

Working Environment

• Hybrid role with flexibility; initial on-site presence at the Northampton location is expected to build familiarity with products, processes, and team members.
• Ongoing on-site presence, dependent on business needs.
• Occasional travel to supplier sites, mostly within Massachusetts and the New England region.

About us - Malvern Panalytical, Micromeritics and Sci Aps. Together we are a powerful and highly complementary combination of market leading technologies. We are the toolmakers for the world's most innovative companies, academic institutions, and government laboratories. We are their partners in discovery. Malvern Panalytical instruments analyze the chemical, physical and structural nature of materials, from proteins to polymers and semiconductors to minerals.

Our leading technologies measure particle size, shape, concentration and zeta potential, biomolecular interactions and stability, elemental concentrations and crystallographic structure. Micromeritics manufactures systems for the characterization of particles, powders, and porous materials for a wide- range of end markets including catalysts, chemicals, building materials, clean-tech and battery. Our leading technologies measure surface area, porosity, density, adsorption and particle activity. Sci Aps specializes in portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF), laser-based (LIBS) and near-infrared (NIR) analyzers to measure any element in any environment.

Sci Aps is the Center of Excellence for our handheld instruments. We have a global footprint with R&D and manufacturing sites in North America, Europe, and Asia. We are more than 2,500 employees in a customer-focused organization with sales and service offices in 20 countries, all committed to delivering expert and responsive customer support. We are part of Spectris. Spectris combines precision with purpose, delivering progress for a more sustainable world.

Precision is at the heart of what we do - our leading, high-tech instruments and software equip our customers to solve some of their greatest challenges to make the world cleaner, healthier and more productive. Malvern Panalytical, Micromeritics & Sci Aps Your Partners in Discovery Malvern Panalytical, Micromeritics and Sci Aps, part of the Spectris Group, are committed to a diverse and inclusive culture where everyone can thrive and achieve a fulfilling career.

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