Purchasing Associate

About Pierce, an Oshkosh company

At Pierce Manufacturing, we build trucks that protect people and communities around the world. To our team, there is no room for anything less than providing the absolute best. Since 1913, building truck bodies on Model T Ford chassis in an old converted church has evolved to creating highly customized, carefully designed and engineering pumpers, aerials, tankers and rescue units that have no equal. Today, you'll find more than30,000 Pierce apparatuses on the road that are making a difference in people's lives, every day. To us, every step in the process of building our trucks is personal. From innovation and expertise, to the customization and service. Our trucks are designed to perform under the toughest conditions.

The Purchasing Associate plays a critical role within the Aftermarket and Service Parts Supply Chain organization. This position is primarily responsible for coordinating and administering daily purchasing activities that support commercial parts distribution, customer service fulfillment, and inventory replenishment.

The typical role manages supplier purchase orders, monitors open order pipelines, expedites critical and emergency customer requirements (including vehicle-down orders), and maintains purchasing data integrity. The ideal candidate pairs strong organizational and analytical capabilities with clear supplier communication skills to ensure high order fill rates, accurate commercial pricing, and rapid resolution of supply chain disruptions.

YOUR IMPACT

These duties are not meant to be all-inclusive and other duties may be assigned.

• Purchase Order Administration: Create, review, issue, and maintain purchase orders for aftermarket replacement parts, commercial components, and inventory replenishment.
• Order Book & Delivery Management: Proactively manage supplier order books, track unacknowledged orders, resolve delivery date slippages, and execute order defers, expedites, and cancellations based on customer demand shifts.
• Critical & Emergency Expediting: Interface daily with commercial suppliers, manufacturers, and distributors via phone, email, and supplier portals to accelerate high-priority orders and emergency customer service requests.
• Cost & Invoice Variance Resolution: Review purchase price variances (PPV), investigate PO-to-invoice price discrepancies alongside Accounts Payable, and verify supplier catalog pricing and discount terms.
• Reporting & Data Analytics: Run and analyze weekly open purchase order reports, supplier on-time delivery (OTD) scorecards, past-due order trackers, and inventory replenishment metrics.
• RFQ & Sourcing Support: Issue Requests for Quotation (RFQs) for commercial off-the-shelf components, standard hardware, and replacement parts; summarize vendor quotes, lead times, and terms to support purchasing decisions.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner closely with Aftermarket Customer Service, Parts Sales, Warehouse & Logistics, and Accounting to communicate delivery ETAs, address backorders, and resolve receiving discrepancies.
• Continuous Improvement: Participate in supply chain optimization projects, supplier performance reviews, process standardization, and system enhancement initiatives.
• Travel: Minimal and infrequent (e.g., occasional regional supplier visits or corporate training).

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Business Administration, Logistics, or a related field; OR an equivalent combination of education and direct purchasing/order management experience.

STANDOUT QUALIFICATIONS:

• Experience: Prior internship, co-op, or 1-2 years of experience in aftermarket parts purchasing, wholesale distribution, retail supply chain, or inventory coordination.
• ERP & Systems Proficiency: Hands-on experience navigating ERP/MRP platforms (e.g., JD Edwards, SAP, Epicor, or similar inventory systems) for purchase order entry, supplier inquiry, and order tracking.
• Analytical Tools: Proficiency in Microsoft Excel (VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, pivot tables, data filtering) to manage large order reports and track supplier delivery performance.
• Customer-Centric Urgency: Strong sense of urgency and ability to prioritize competing customer order requirements in a dynamic, high-mix distribution environment.
• Supplier Communication: Professional written and verbal communication skills with the confidence to negotiate lead-time improvements, hold vendors to delivery dates, and resolve discrepancies.
• Detail-Oriented: Exceptional organizational skills, accurate data entry, and thorough follow-through on open orders and unresolved invoice inquiries.

Pay Range:

The above pay range reflects the minimum and maximum target pay for the position across all U.S. locations. Within this range, individual pay is determined by various factors, including the scope and responsibilities of the role, the candidate's experience, education and skills, as well as the equity of pay among team members in similar positions. Beyond offering a competitive total rewards package, we prioritize a people-first culture and offer various opportunities to support team member growth and success.

Oshkosh is committed to working with and offering reasonable accommodation to job applicants with disabilities. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to disability for any part of the employment process, please contact us at [email protected].

Oshkosh Corporation is a merit-based Equal Opportunity Employer. Job opportunities are open for application to all qualified individuals and selection decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or other protected characteristic. To the extent that information is provided or collected regarding categories as provided by law it will in no way affect the decision regarding an employment application.

Oshkosh Corporation will not discharge or in any manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with Oshkosh Corporation's legal duty to furnish information.

Certain positions with Oshkosh Corporation require access to controlled goods and technologies subject to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations or the Export Administration Regulations. Applicants for these positions may need to be "U.S. Persons," as defined in these regulations. Generally, a "U.S. Person" is a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or an individual who has been admitted as a refugee or granted asylum.