Buyer

Highwater Marine, LLC/Pontoon Boat, LLC; Indiana (PA); On-site; USD 75,000 - 95,000; Full time

Job summary

Bennington, a market-leading pontoon boat manufacturer and part of Polaris Industries, seeks a Buyer to manage material inflows for manufacturing and aftermarket operations. The role focuses on delivering high-quality materials at optimal cost, on time, while supporting a world-class supply chain.

The buyer will analyze reports, develop commodity strategies, and collaborate with engineering, operations, and finance to meet business goals. Occasional domestic travel may be required.

Qualifications

• Bachelor degree in supply chain, engineering, or equivalent preferred.
• 3+ years purchasing, procurement, and/or sourcing experience in a make-to-order environment.
• Ability to build network relationships with cross-functional teams (engineering, operations, finance).
• Ability to analyze data and present clear recommendations to peers, suppliers and leadership.
• Understanding of market trends and material indices to identify cost-saving opportunities.
• Strong analytical skills with Excel, PowerPoint, Visio, Power BI; Sytline ERP is a plus.
• Ability to read basic engineering drawings (Edrawings/AutoCAD viewer).
• Willingness to travel domestically occasionally.

Responsibilities

• Analyze reports to generate purchase requirements, delivery schedules, and inventory levels for assigned commodities.
• Develop and implement commodity strategies to optimize cost, quality, delivery, risk, terms, and supplier performance.
• Manage purchasing data including pricing, terms, and lead times within ERP systems.
• Lead resolution of supply shortages, quality concerns, or build issues including expediting activities.
• Read and interpret sales orders, production schedules, and engineering documents/drawings to create commodity-specific job aids & instructions.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to understand requirements and provide purchasing solutions.
• Develop understanding of cost structure and challenge supplier and stakeholder assumptions to achieve best-in-class costs.
• Manage supplier relationships to ensure timely delivery of product and issue resolution.
• Analyze and report on KPIs such as cost savings, supplier quality, risk, and delivery.
• Ensure compliance with policies, procedures, and ethical standards; support continuous improvement initiatives.
• Promote transparency and management of the entire supply chain value stream with suppliers.

Skills

Bachelor degree

3+ years purchasing

Cross-functional collaboration

Data analysis

Cost optimization

Ability to read engineering docs

Education

Bachelor degree in Supply Chain/Engineering or equivalent

Tools

Excel

Power BI

Sytline ERP

AutoCAD Viewer

Job description

Bennington is the market leading pontoon boat manufacturer and a wholly owned subsidiary of Polaris Industries, a Fortune 500 company. We pride ourselves on delivering a boating experience that’s second to none through our emphasis on innovation, design, product quality, and relentless focus on customer satisfaction. Our team members live that passion every day and have fueled our growth across 6 buildings in Elkhart, IN.

The Bennington purchasing department is a key partner to the all of the functional areas of the business. As Buyer, you will work with our supplier partners to manage the flow of materials and services into our manufacturing and aftermarket operations with the highest quality, at optimal cost, on-time. You will contribute to establishing a world class supply chain so that we can reliably produce the boats and supply the parts that allow our customers to celebrate life on the water.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES :

• Analyze reports to generate purchase requirements, delivery shedules, and inventory levels for assigned commodities.
• Help develop and implement commodity strategies which optimize cost, quality, delivery, risk, terms, and overall supplier performance.
• Manage and maintain purchasing data including pricing, terms, and leadtime within all the Bennington purchasing systems including ERP.
• Lead resolution of any supply shortages, quality concerns, or build issues that may arise on assigned commodities including leading expediting activites.
• Read and interpret sales order reports, production schedules, and engineering documentation/drawings to create commodity specific job aids & instructions.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to understand their requirements and provide purchasing solutions that align with business goals.
• Develop a deep understanding of the cost structure and challenge supplier and key stakeholder assumptions to achieve best in class costs.
• Manage supplier relationships to ensure timely delivery of product and resolution of issues.
• Analyze and report on key performance indicators, such as cost savings, supplier quality, supplier risk, and supplier delivery.
• Ensure compliance with company policies, procedures, and ethical standards in all purchasing activities.
• Support continuous improvement initiatives to streamline processes and enhance overall purchasing efficiency.
• Promote transparency and management of entire supply chain value stream with suppliers.

Requirements

SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE

• Bachelor degree (B.A. or B.S) in Supply Chain Management, Engineering, or Equivalent Preferred.
• 3+ Years Purchasing, Procurement, and/or Sourcing Experience in a make to order environment.
• Ability to build network relationships with cross-functional skill teams (engineering, operations, finance, etc.).
• Ability to evaluate and analyze data to enable decision-making and present clear recommendations to peers, suppliers and executive leadership.
• Ability to conduct business case studies (e.g., cost studies, labor time studies, component tooling, quality costs, capacity analysis, process flow, financial reports)
• Understanding of market trends, industry developments, and relevant material indices to identify opportunities for cost savings.
• Strong analytical skills and experience using Excel, PowerPoint, Visio, Power BI, Sytline ERP is a plus.
• Ability to understand basic engineering documents & drawings (eDrawings and AutoCad Viewer).
• Ability to communicate clearly and concisely.
• Demonstrated business acumen.
• Lean, Six Sigma, or other process improvement experience is a plus
• Ability to thrive in a fast pace environment and perform under pressure while maintaining attention to detail.
• Skills necessary to prioritize assignments and multitask to achieve goals on-time.
• Able to occasionally travel domestically.

This Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer, and does not discriminate on the basis of race, gender, ethnicity, religion, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or on any other basis prohibited by law. Information on race, gender and national origin will only be used for statistical and recordkeeping purposes, and will not be used in making any employment decisions. All information provided will be kept separate from your expression of interest. Providing this information is strictly voluntary, and you will not be subjected to any adverse action or treatment if you choose not to provide this information. If you do not choose to answer these questions, we ask that you select "Decline to Identify" for each question. Thank you for your voluntary cooperation.