Procurement Manager (RMC) - Chennai

Department: Procurement & Supply Chain
Designation: Procurement Manager
Industry: Ready Mix Concrete (RMC)
Location: Chennai

1. Job Purpose

To lead procurement, strategic sourcing, vendor development, and commercial contracting for the RMC business. The role will ensure competitive sourcing, reliable supply, cost optimisation, and operational efficiency across raw materials, logistics, equipment, and outsourced plant operations under an asset-light business model.

The primary objective is to optimise the total procurement and operating cost per m of saleable concrete, without compromising quality, customer service, or supply reliability.

2. Key Responsibilities

A. Strategic Sourcing & Raw Material Procurement

• Develop sourcing strategies for cement, coarse and fine aggregates, natural sand, manufactured sand (M-sand), fly ash, GGBS, and chemical admixtures.
• Identify, evaluate, and onboard reliable suppliers based on cost, quality, availability, logistics, and credit terms.
• Negotiate competitive rates, annual rate contracts, volume discounts, freight charges, and payment terms.
• Ensure uninterrupted material availability across RMC plants while optimising inventory and working capital.
• Track commodity price movements and develop alternate sourcing options to improve contribution margins.
• Benchmark material costs across plants, suppliers, and operating clusters.

B. Vendor Development & Commercial Contracting

• Develop and manage a robust vendor ecosystem for raw materials, RMC plant setup and operations, transit mixers, concrete pumps, and maintenance services.
• Identify vendors capable of setting up, operating, and maintaining RMC plants under an asset-light model.
• Negotiate plant operating charges, production rates per m, equipment rental, transportation, pumping, fuel, and maintenance costs.
• Structure vendor contracts with clearly defined commercial terms, service-level agreements (SLAs), performance benchmarks, penalties, and termination provisions.
• Ensure contractual clarity on asset ownership, statutory approvals, insurance, breakdowns, maintenance, safety, and business continuity.
• Develop alternate vendors and contingency arrangements to minimise dependency and supply disruptions.

C. Asset-Light Operations & Cost Optimisation

• Evaluate vendor proposals based on total delivered cost per m, plant capacity, utilisation, equipment availability, and operating efficiency.
• Establish transparent mechanisms for production reconciliation, raw material consumption, fuel usage, equipment deployment, and vendor billing.
• Monitor plant uptime, production efficiency, transit mixer utilisation, pumping costs, and logistics performance.
• Work with Operations, Quality Control, Sales, and Finance teams to identify cost-saving opportunities.
• Drive optimisation of material consumption, wastage, freight, and outsourced operating charges without compromising concrete quality.
• Support commercial evaluation and procurement planning for new plant commissioning and market expansion.

D. Logistics & Equipment Management

• Develop competitive logistics arrangements for inbound raw materials and outbound concrete transportation.
• Negotiate and manage contracts for transit mixers, concrete pumps, loaders, and other equipment required for plant operations.
• Establish equipment deployment norms, utilisation benchmarks, availability commitments, and maintenance responsibilities.
• Monitor freight costs, vehicle availability, breakdowns, turnaround time, and service performance.
• Implement contingency plans for equipment shortages and peak-demand periods.

E. Quality, Compliance & Risk Management

• Coordinate with Quality Control teams to ensure incoming materials comply with approved specifications, applicable BIS standards, and mix-design requirements.
• Conduct supplier assessments, quality reviews, and periodic vendor performance audits.
• Ensure compliance with procurement policies, purchase orders, GST documentation, invoicing requirements, and applicable statutory obligations.
• Identify and mitigate risks relating to price volatility, supplier concentration, vendor dependency, logistics disruptions, contractual exposure, and quality failures.
• Implement controls for quantity verification, weighbridge reconciliation, material testing, consumption monitoring, and prevention of procurement fraud.

F. Budgeting, MIS & Performance Management

• Prepare procurement budgets and monitor actual costs against approved budgets and benchmarks.
• Develop monthly MIS covering raw material costs, freight, plant operating charges, equipment costs, and total cost per m.
• Track purchase price variance, procurement savings, supplier performance, payment terms, and material consumption.
• Establish vendor scorecards and periodic performance reviews.
• Provide procurement inputs for plant-level profitability, annual business plans, new market entry, and capacity expansion.
• Maintain appropriate procurement documentation, approval controls, and contract records.

3. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

1. Total procurement and operating cost per m of saleable concrete.
2. Raw material and logistics cost savings against approved benchmarks.
3. Plant operating cost and equipment charges per m.
4. Material availability and supply continuity across operating locations.
5. Vendor adherence to agreed rates, SLAs, quality standards, and delivery commitments.
6. Plant and equipment uptime under vendor-operated arrangements.
7. Reduction in material wastage, rejection, and consumption variance.
8. Improvement in supplier credit terms and working capital efficiency.
9. Timely vendor onboarding, contract finalisation, and plant commissioning.
10. Compliance with procurement policies and contractual obligations.

4. Educational Qualification & Experience

• Bachelors degree in Engineering, Commerce, Supply Chain Management, or a related discipline.
• MBA in Supply Chain Management / Materials Management preferred.
• Typically 8–12 years of relevant experience in procurement, sourcing, or supply chain management, preferably in RMC, cement, infrastructure, construction, or building materials.
• Strong experience in raw material sourcing, logistics contracting, vendor development, and commercial negotiations.
• Experience in outsourced plant operations, contract manufacturing, equipment rentals, or asset-light business models will be an advantage.
• Proficiency in MS Excel, ERP systems, procurement MIS, and cost analysis.

5. Key Competencies

• Strong commercial negotiation and cost optimisation capabilities.
• Strategic sourcing and vendor ecosystem development.
• Understanding of RMC raw materials, plant operations, logistics, and concrete cost structures.
• Ability to analyse and optimise total cost per m.
• Contract management, risk assessment, and commercial discipline.
• Strong analytical, planning, and cross-functional coordination skills.
• High integrity, accountability, and execution orientation.

6. Role Expectations

The Procurement Manager will be responsible for building a scalable, reliable, and cost-efficient procurement ecosystem that supports RMC business growth through vendor-operated plants and outsourced equipment and logistics.

The role must deliver sustainable cost savings, strong vendor partnerships, uninterrupted supply, and robust commercial controls, while protecting product quality and plant-level profitability.