Commodity Purchaser

Dick's Lumber & Building Supplies•Balzac, AB

10h•Hybrid

About The Position

The Commodity Purchaser will be responsible for commodity lumber, panel, and treated purchasing for multiple branches across the group’s banners. This role also includes ownership of the group’s treated lumber programs, coordinated with the group-wide buying program. The ideal candidate will have experience in buying or trading commodity wood products in a Canadian LBM, wholesale, or mill-direct environment, with a strong understanding of market dynamics and pricing references. This position requires comfort operating within an ERP-driven purchasing workflow and experience with treated lumber programs. Negotiation skills and disciplined documentation habits are essential.

Requirements

3–5+ years buying or trading commodity wood products (dimensional SPF, studs, OSB/plywood, treated) in a Canadian LBM, wholesale, or mill-direct environment
Working knowledge of commodity market dynamics and pricing references (Random Lengths / RISI / Madison’s) and the ability to translate them into buy/hold/cover decisions
Established or demonstrable supplier relationships with Western Canadian mills and distributors
Strong numeracy: per-MBF/MSF conversions, landed cost math, freight economics (rail vs. truck into MB/SK), margin and replacement-cost analysis
Comfortable operating in an ERP-driven purchasing workflow (suggested orders, PO entry, receiving reconciliation)
Treated lumber experience: ACQ smooth / ground-contact / PWF programs, seasonal ramp planning, and managing supplier mix across treaters and distributors
Negotiation skills with a track record of securing volume programs, block buys, or forward positions
Disciplined documentation habits — confirmations reconciled to POs, positions tracked, no handshake-only deals

Nice To Haves

Direct BisTrack experience (suggested-order batches, PO workflows, stock-by-length)
Experience administering or negotiating vendor rebate programs
Truckload / railcar load-building experience (optimizing to mill load plans and weight limits)
Comfort working alongside AI-assisted purchasing tools and structured digital workflows

Responsibilities

Oversee the group’s treated lumber programs end-to-end
Annual program negotiation with treaters and distributors
Seasonal inventory ramp and wind-down for treated lumber
Manage supplier escalation paths for immediate needs vs. planned truckloads
Manage treated replenishment cadence across branches
Run and vet suggested-order batches for MB/SK branches
Triage lines for coverage, stock status, and shortfalls
Set quantities, assign suppliers, and generate POs for prairie replenishment
Balance immediate-need buys against truckload economics
Execute block-buy commitments and bought-ahead positions on dimensional and treated products
Track availability of purchased products
Draw down truckloads against programs
Allocate positions to branches as needs firm up
Monitor print and futures for commodity markets
Time coverage on SPF, studs, and panels for prairie demand
Maintain accurate replacement costs
Feed market intel into group pricing coordination and CEC pricing prep
Negotiate programs, pricing, and freight with mills and distributors serving MB/SK
Reconcile confirmations against POs
Escalate and resolve shortages, substitutions, and claims
Watch turns, aged stock, and below-cost SKUs across prairie branches
Participate in margin reviews and corrective re-pricing or liquidation
Align prairie buys with group-wide positions and rebate programs