Purchasing Associate

EllisLudell; Itasca (IL); On-site; USD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

EllisLudell is seeking an experienced Purchasing Specialist to manage procurement, expediting, and supplier communications to support production and sales. The role collaborates with Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Engineering to ensure material availability and cost efficiency.

The ideal candidate will have at least two years in purchasing/procurement, familiar with ERP/MRP, and capable of improving supplier performance and lead times.

Qualifications

• Minimum of two years of professional purchasing, procurement, expediting, or supply-chain experience; manufacturing experience preferred.
• Associate degree in Business, Supply Chain, Operations, or related field preferred, or equivalent experience.
• Experience with ERP/MRP systems; Qantel and Guardian experience is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Review material requirements, production needs, and internal requests to set purchasing priorities.
• Create and manage purchase requisitions and orders with accurate pricing and due dates.
• Expedite open orders to align with production schedules and customer deadlines.
• Communicate with suppliers on order acknowledgments, delivery status, and changes.
• Maintain supplier records, quotations, contracts, and correspondence.

Skills

Purchasing

Procurement

Expediting

Supply Chain

ERP/MRP

Education

Associate degree in Business / Supply Chain

Tools

Qantel

Guardian

ERP/MRP systems

Job description

Company Description

EllisLudell is a fifth-generation, family-owned manufacturing company that designs and builds industrial equipment to protect critical elements in production environments, such as water, heat, process stability, and operational knowledge. The company engineers industrial water heating, heat recovery, wastewater treatment systems, and industrial laundry equipment for customers in food processing, industrial laundry, textile services, and other process-driven industries. EllisLudell's Uptime system provides real-time equipment monitoring, diagnostics, and guided maintenance procedures that help teams reduce unplanned downtime and improve reliability. By integrating preventive maintenance and machine-level visibility into its products, EllisLudell supports consistent performance, regulatory compliance, and long-term operational confidence. The company is committed to disciplined engineering and lasting partnerships that strengthen performance in modern manufacturing operations.

BASIC FUNCTION

Responsible for purchasing and expediting materials, components, supplies, and services required to support production and sales requirements. Reviews material demand and supply requirements, creates and maintains purchase orders, communicates with suppliers regarding open orders, resolves delivery and purchasing issues, and maintains accurate purchasing records. Works collaboratively with Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Engineering to support supplier performance, material availability, cost reduction, and continuous improvement initiatives. Works closely with the Mechanical and Electrical Engineering teams in the Philippines to identify sourcing, product, and process improvement opportunities, including evaluating components and materials that may be competitively sourced from suppliers in the Philippines.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Review material requirements, MRP reports, production shortages, sales order backorders, and internal requests to determine purchasing and expediting priorities.


• Create purchase requisitions and purchase orders and maintain accurate pricing, quantities, due dates, acknowledgements, and revisions within the ERP/MRP system.


• Monitor and expedite open purchase orders to ensure materials and supplies arrive in accordance with production and sales requirements.


• Communicate with suppliers regarding order acknowledgements, delivery status, schedule changes, shortages, late deliveries, and other issues affecting material availability.


• Maintain purchasing records, supplier correspondence, acknowledgements, contracts, and other required documentation.


• Prepare and communicate material shortage, delivery status, and other purchasing information to appropriate internal departments.


• Coordinate with Manufacturing, Engineering, Stockroom, Sales, Customer Service, Receiving, and other departments regarding material requirements and purchasing-related issues.


• Reconcile invoice and purchase order discrepancies and coordinate corrective action as required.


• Coordinate the disposition and return of defective or nonconforming purchased material with suppliers and appropriate internal departments.


• Obtain and evaluate supplier quotations based on pricing, quality, lead time, availability, and other applicable purchasing requirements.


• Support supplier evaluation, selection, development, and performance monitoring.


• Maintain supplier performance information and scorecards for key suppliers as required.


• Track and evaluate supplier price changes and identify opportunities to reduce or avoid material cost increases.


• Identify and evaluate alternate suppliers and sourcing opportunities that may improve cost, quality, availability, lead reliability.


• Work closely with Mechanical and Electrical Engineering personnel in the Philippines to identify components and materials that may be sourced from qualified suppliers in the Philippines.


• Collaborate with Engineering when evaluating alternative components, materials, suppliers, or manufacturing methods to ensure technical and quality requirements are maintained.


• Support cost-reduction and value-improvement initiatives by evaluating sourcing alternatives based on purchase price, freight, lead time, quality, minimum order requirements, inventory impact, and overall cost.


• Identify and document purchasing and sourcing cost-saving opportunities and assist with tracking implemented savings.


• Actively participate in continuous improvement efforts to improve purchasing processes, supplier performance, material availability, and overall supply-chain efficiency.


• Perform other related duties and responsibilities as assigned

REQUIREMENTS

• Minimum of two years of professional purchasing, procurement, expediting, or supply-chain experience; manufacturing experience preferred.


• Associate degree in Business, Supply Chain, Operations, or a related field preferred, or equivalent applicable experience.


• Experience working with ERP/MRP systems; Qantel and Guardian experience is a plus.


• Proficient in Microsoft Office applications, including Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.


• Working knowledge of purchase orders, material requirements, supplier quotations, pricing, delivery schedules, and supplier communication.


• Strong verbal and written communication skills.


• Strong organizational, mathematical, analytical, and problem-solving skills with attention to detail.


• Ability to manage multiple priorities and effectively respond to changing production and material requirements.


• Ability to effectively collaborate with suppliers and cross-functional teams, including Manufacturing, Engineering, Supply Chain, Stockroom, Receiving, Sales, and Customer Service.


• Professional, team-oriented, self-motivated, and capable of working independently with appropriate direction.

Join EllisLudell, where great people, teamwork, and fresh ideas come together to build something we're proud of. Come grow with us--you'll be valued, supported, and have some fun along the way!