Technical Buyer

Yanfeng•Novi, MI

About The Position

The Technical Buyer supports procurement and management of spare parts and components to maintain equipment and tooling performance, minimize downtime, and control costs. The role includes inventory and stockroom optimization, pricing and ordering administration, budget planning, supplier agreement management, and improving procurement and tracking systems. Over time, the position will increasingly focus on strategic sourcing, process improvement, and other high-value activities as directed by CapEx Procurement Management. The role supports Yanfeng and North American plant operations, including during critical equipment downtime events, and collaborates with procurement, plant operations, IT, suppliers, and other teams. It also provides support for maintenance systems and procedures, preventive maintenance, equipment and tooling transfers, plant audits, logistics, and related projects. The position has no supervisory responsibilities and may require travel to customer sites, including industrial manufacturing plants.

Requirements

At least 3 years of relevant experience in technical procurement.
Bachelor’s degree in Procurement, Supply Management, IT Systems, or Business; equivalent work experience may also be considered.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office, including Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Teams.
Self-motivated, team-oriented, and able to negotiate and lead or encourage teammates and suppliers.
Ability and willingness to travel and work at customer sites, including industrial manufacturing plants.
Ability to work additional hours and/or overtime as needed or assigned to complete job duties on time.
Understand, apply, and meet function-related International Operating System (IOS) requirements.
Understand, apply, and meet function-related Environmental, Health & Safety (EHS) requirements.
Understand, apply, and meet function-related Product Safety requirements.
Understand, apply, and meet function-related Compliance requirements.
Understand, apply, and meet IT/information security and confidentiality requirements for YFAI information.
Comply with company policies and procedures.

Nice To Haves

Experience using ERP systems such as QAD, EAM, SAP, or DSSI.
Experience with automotive equipment and facilities maintenance, preferably plastic injection molding and/or assembly.
Understanding of procedures for maintaining automotive production and facilities equipment used in automotive plant operations.
Basic understanding of tooling and equipment maintenance and preventive maintenance for automotive equipment and tooling.
Experience managing equipment projects from specifications and RFQs through decommissioning.

Responsibilities

Help minimize Yanfeng machine and tooling downtime and reduce spare-part and component costs.
Lead pricing agreements for key components and spare parts.
Support continuous improvement, software and system changes, and preparation of reports tracking key KPIs and deliverables.
Troubleshoot system and software problems and enhancements, collaborating with system, team, and IT partners to improve efficiency.
Support procurement and plant operations on projects assigned by Yanfeng Procurement Management.
Support North American plant operations during critical equipment downtime events as required.
Track and report savings from spare-parts inventory maintenance, reduced downtime, and spare-parts or component purchases.
Support equipment and tooling transfers between Yanfeng plants.
Support the Yanfeng disposition and scrap process, including use of related software as needed.
Support development of 24x7 emergency component and downtime system or partner opportunities as the role evolves.
Search for alternative component solutions, including from China, that meet timing and specification requirements as necessary.
Help resolve spare-parts supplier invoice and payment issues as necessary.
Support shipping, customs, and logistics matters related to component purchases as required.
Support audits of North American plant maintenance departments, covering preventive-maintenance accuracy and content, spare parts, and manpower, according to the North America maintenance audit standard.
Help the AME team and plant teams create preventive-maintenance tasks and schedules for new and existing Yanfeng-managed equipment and tooling.
Provide day-to-day plant technical support related to EAM/system software and procedures as needed.
Support training on equipment and tooling spare-parts crib inventory software.
Support optimization of system preventive-maintenance tasks to balance labor hours with required maintenance.
Develop a basic understanding of weekly maintenance KPIs for all North American plants.
Support plant maintenance audits to assess operational efficiency, staffing adequacy, and proper maintenance of Yanfeng equipment by plant maintenance teams.