Procurement Forester

Vance, AL

Job Responsibilities

  • Procure pole quality timber for the designated peeling operations.

  • Identify and mark pole quality trees based on ANSI specifications, accurately record sizes marked.

  • Identify any defects that will declass a pole, catfaces, lightning scars, rotten knots etc.

  • Accurately estimate pole heights 

  • Where applicable identify and measure pole quality logs on a log deck.

  • Work with wood dealers and loggers to select pole quality trees on the log deck where marking conditions or marking volumes are not favorable.

  • Develop and enhance relationships of wood dealers / loggers that will provide continuity of supply; monitor the volume committed and the performance of suppliers against their commitments; stay within agreed upon guidelines for committed volume; assist in developing sources of poles and manage them weekly, providing the best balance of quality and continuity of supply.

  • Work to understand the Koppers mill processes, the customer’s needs and the impact wood quality has on them; monitor and continuously improve the quality of the wood delivered to the Koppers facilities; provide procurement information support for Koppers mill or mills within the area

  • Accurately appraise standing pole timber purchase opportunities; manage the harvest of these to assure they cut out.

  • Visit the pole mill’s in your assigned area and communicate with the mill manager and workers about the quality and sizes being produced. Walk the yard and view the barkie, green, dry & treated material for quality. Relay any questions or concerns based on your visit to the manager.

  • Communicate clearly and regularly with the procurement manager and other foresters where applicable about tract information, regarding but not limited to how many pieces marked, what the sizes being marked, logging conditions, area marked and left to be marked, estimated time to complete marking, marking conditions and estimated time for harvesting to be completed on tracts being cut.

Qualifications

  • Associate degree in Forestry or in related field required

  • Bachelor’s degree in Forestry or related field preferred

  • Ability to travel 100% around the Vance, AL area

  • Thorough knowledge of timber cruising, map reading, orienteering, measuring diameter and circumferences of trees and measuring standing heights of trees.

  • Knowledge of forest management, wood procurement, wood quality, market conditions for stumpage, pulp mill and sawmill requirements and specifications, landowner concerns, competitive environment, wood price structures, logging costs, wood supplier issues

  • Knowledge of SFI and state BMP guidelines

  • Excellent negotiating and interpersonal skills

  • Basic knowledge of accounting, transportation and basic computer systems

  • Essential Competencies

  • Adaptability

  • Self-Motivation

  • Negotiation skills

  • Math skills

  • Ability to work effectively in a team environment

  • Initiative

  • Improvement orientation

  • Communication skills

  • Able and willing to work outside in the elements every day including heat in the summer and cold in the winter including walking and maneuvering through tracts of woods in appropriate gear to perform the job. Self-motivated to do this every day approximately 8 hours or more as required by the demands of the mill.

  • Ability to work at the pole mill weighing trucks in and out, classing poles and any other assigned duties as required to keep mill running, based on qualifications.

Koppers Inc. and its subsidiaries are equal opportunity employers and do not discriminate against any employee or applicant on the basis of age, color, disability, genetic information, ethnicity, national origin, race, religion, sex, veteran status, or any other category or characteristic protected by federal law or by any applicable state or local law.

About Koppers, headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is an integrated global provider of treated wood products, wood treatment chemicals and carbon compounds. Its products and services are used in a variety of niche applications in a diverse range of end-markets, including the railroad, specialty chemical, utility, residential lumber, agriculture, aluminum, steel, rubber, and construction industries.  With more than 1,800 employees, it serves its customers through a comprehensive global manufacturing and distribution network, with facilities located in North America, South America, Australasia, China and Europe. 


Koppers is also firmly committed to advancing a Zero Harm culture that places the care and protection of its people, environment and communities above all else. This focused approach empowers employees to ensure safe operations through a heightened awareness of process safety, product safety, environmental stewardship and security.


Koppers was established in December 1988 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and became a publicly-traded company listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2006.

Kevin Ragon