Plant buyer vs purchasing supervisor

The differences between plant buyers and purchasing supervisors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a plant buyer and a purchasing supervisor. Additionally, a purchasing supervisor has an average salary of $68,702, which is higher than the $59,450 average annual salary of a plant buyer.

The top three skills for a plant buyer include purchase orders, lean manufacturing and MRO. The most important skills for a purchasing supervisor are purchase orders, MRP, and supplier performance.

Plant buyer vs purchasing supervisor overview

	Plant Buyer	Purchasing Supervisor
Yearly salary	$59,450	$68,702
Hourly rate	$28.58	$33.03
Growth rate	-	-6%
Number of jobs	24,593	19,412
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	6	6

Plant buyer vs purchasing supervisor salary

Plant buyers and purchasing supervisors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Plant Buyer	Purchasing Supervisor
Average salary	$59,450	$68,702
Salary range	Between $44,000 And $80,000	Between $45,000 And $104,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	CDW
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between plant buyer and purchasing supervisor education

There are a few differences between a plant buyer and a purchasing supervisor in terms of educational background:

	Plant Buyer	Purchasing Supervisor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Plant buyer vs purchasing supervisor demographics

Here are the differences between plant buyers' and purchasing supervisors' demographics:

	Plant Buyer	Purchasing Supervisor
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 49.5% Female, 50.5%	Male, 57.4% Female, 42.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 7.0% White, 66.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 7.8% White, 65.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between plant buyer and purchasing supervisor duties and responsibilities

Plant buyer example responsibilities.

Manage plant ISO system for all procurement functions.
Manage MRP on all stock material to create plane orders.
Assure suppliers comply with safety and quality alignments within company standards and manage non-conformance reporting for logistics as per company policy.
Purchase production material and MRO supplies.
Maintain tool crib and all MRO materials.
Work with appropriate personnel to ensure effective and functional storage for all supplies and commodities.

Purchasing supervisor example responsibilities.

Manage increasing procurement demands of inventory/supplies for manufacturing activities base on an ERP MRP system.
Lead and analyze all RFQ's, RFI's and RFP's from different qualify vendors.
Interview current and prospective suppliers to determine supplier capabilities, logistics and inventory control and management while negotiate delivery terms.
Review requisitions and RFP's, obtain quotations, negotiate pricing, examine bids and award contracts.
Assist in the yearly budgeting process including RFQ's and establishing contracts both locally and at the corporate level.
Direct large projects by creating RFP's, cost negotiation, and bid analysis on specifications and budget cost provided.

Plant buyer vs purchasing supervisor skills

Common plant buyer skills

Purchase Orders, 25%
Lean Manufacturing, 7%
MRO, 7%
Delivery Dates, 6%
Commodities, 5%
Indirect Materials, 5%

Common purchasing supervisor skills

Purchase Orders, 20%
MRP, 5%
Supplier Performance, 4%
Logistics, 4%
Corrective Action, 4%
On-Time Delivery, 4%

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Plant Buyer vs Purchasing Supervisor

Updated January 8, 2025

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