Graduate Buyer

A graduate procurement role focused on purchasing, supplier management, production scheduling, inventory/material availability, ERP systems, and continuous improvement within an industrial manufacturing company.

HERE TO CREATE OUR BEST WORLD, A TON AT A TIME.

CDE exists to create our best world through bold engineering in the waste recycling and natural material processing industries. We move forward together, continuously creating to the highest global standards. We are always customer-focused, relentlessly innovating with a single purpose in mind:

To create our best world, a ton at a time.

CDE is the leading provider of wet processing solutions for the materials processing industry. Our equipment has applications across a wide range of materials and is delivering significant efficiencies in construction, demolition, and excavation waste recycling (CD&E), sand and aggregates, mining, industrial sands and environmental sectors. Working across five regions globally, CDE has been co-creating with customers for 30 years to deliver collaborative, imaginative and unique processing systems for over 2,000 successful projects.

We empower our customers to transform waste into valuable resources through innovative co-creation, laying the foundations for the circular economy. And we help our customers maximise their natural resources in the most sustainable way possible – with greater efficiency and less waste than ever before.

Our people are genuinely empowered to lead and deliver highly strategic and innovative projects. Elevating our employees is vitally important to us and we do this on both a professional and personal level through providing opportunity and challenge to all and cultivating a culture that values employee wellbeing and fun. Our Platinum status in the world-recognised Deloitte Best Managed Companies Awards, achieved for thirteen consecutive years is testament to this approach.

Our global headquarters and manufacturing center of excellence are located in Northern Ireland, perfectly positioned to serve the UK and Ireland markets. The company also has teams based in Austria, France and Russia to serve the Europe and Russia markets; Dubai, UAE, to serve the MEA market; Ormeau, Australia to serve the Australasian market; as well as Texas, USA and Belo Horizonte, Brazil to effectively serve the vast Americas market.

Job Overview

CDE are seeking a detail-oriented and proactive Graduate Buyer to join our Procurement and Purchasing team.

In this role, you will be responsible for managing procurement activities with a strong focus on production scheduling and material availability. You will collaborate closely with suppliers, production planners and internal stakeholders to ensure the timely delivery of goods and services, optimise inventory levels and maintain alignment with production schedules. This role will support procurement operations through efficient transactional processing, data accuracy, and supplier coordination while developing procurement capability.

Key Responsibilities

Transactional Procurement

·        Raise purchase orders and process requisitions

·        Maintain supplier confirmations and delivery tracking

·        Update IFS ERP system with accurate order data

Operational Support

·        Expedite orders and support shortage resolution

·        Assist with urgent demand and rework requirements

·        Support Buyers and Senior Buyers in daily activities

·        Represent procurement at project kick-offs, whiteboards, etc.

·        Provide wider Buyer support while retaining responsibility for PO raising, expediting, shortages and supplier communication 

Supplier Communication

·        Communicate with suppliers on order status

·        Provide updates to internal stakeholders

Data & Systems

·        Ensure data accuracy in IFS ERP system

·        Support reporting and system updates

·        Maintain documentation and records

·        Maintain supplier prices, price lists and agreed commercial data in IFS

·        Support validation and updating of purchasing information for price changes and queries

·        Maintain supplier and part master data, including general procurement system updates

·        Collate data and prepare routine procurement reporting information

·        Support general procurement administration, including filing, document control, meeting support and action follow-up

Development

·        Build knowledge of procurement processes and CDE operations

·        Develop ERP/MRP capability and system knowledge

·        Support continuous improvement initiatives

Success Measures

·        PO accuracy

·        System data accuracy

·        Responsiveness

·        Progression in role capability

·        Pricing and master-data accuracy

·        Timely completion of administration and system updates

Additional Responsibilities

·        Represent Procurement in audits, reviews, operational walk‑throughs and meetings

·        Attend operational meetings, including Level 1/2/3 reviews, planning sessions, whiteboard meetings and buyer forums.

·        Proactively support and communicate with the Operations, Planning, Engineering, Finance, CustomCare and Logistics teams, including prioritising information flow, updates and resolution of material shortages.

·        Participate in continuous improvement initiatives across procurement and operations.

·        Adherence to the Company Health and Safety Policy.

·        Any other duties within reason and capability associated with this role

Required Qualifications

·        Strong working capability in Microsoft Office applications, Excel, Word, PowerBI

·        Experience in an Operations, Supply Chain, or Procurement role (preferred).

·        Knowledge of manufacturing environments and planning processes.

·        Understanding of Procurement principles, OTD management and supplier performance.

·        Familiarity with NCR and other quality‑related processes.

·        Competent in cross‑functional collaboration and stakeholder management.

Skills & Competencies

·        Strong organisational and time‑management skills.

·        Excellent communication and supplier relationship management.

·        Ability to interpret MRP signals and production plans.

·        Proficiency in ERP systems (IFS preferred) and MS Excel.

·        Problem‑solving mindset with attention to accuracy and detail.

·        Ability to work under pressure and manage multiple priorities.