Procurement Engineer

About Us:

Culture’s mission is to simplify and accelerate bioprocess development to enable our customers to bring their biopharmaceutical products to market faster.

With a focus on upstream cell culture process development, Culture has developed a unique platform that merges products, services and data management that can be applied to mammalian, microbial and viral vector production processes. This platform enables high-throughput process development projects to be rapidly and seamlessly executed directly by our customers in their own facilities, in our service laboratories, or both, all driven by our cloud-connected web application, accessible from anywhere, for designing, managing and analyzing experiments.

At Culture, we combine our passions for biomanufacturing, engineering, and operations to build new solutions that make bioprocess development faster. We value curiosity, communication, collaboration, a customer focused mindset and a drive for results.

The Opportunity: 

Culture Biosciences is looking for a Procurement Engineer to join our Supply Chain & Manufacturing team. In this role, you will own the sourcing and purchasing of components and materials used to build our proprietary bioreactor hardware and consumables, while also contributing directly to hardware development and build activities. You will partner closely with our engineering team to evaluate components, support prototyping, and help translate designs into manufacturable, scalable products. The ideal candidate combines hands-on technical skills in hardware with strong procurement and supplier management capabilities. 

What You’ll Do:

• Source and procure mechanical, electrical, and fluidic components for Culture Biosciences’ proprietary bioreactor hardware.
• Manage procurement of consumables including cell culture media, reagents, plasticware, and single-use assemblies.
• Develop and maintain supplier relationships; qualify new suppliers and manage ongoing vendor performance.
• Negotiate pricing, lead times, and terms with suppliers to achieve cost and availability targets.
• Collaborate with engineering and R&D teams during new product development to source components that meet design and regulatory requirements.
• Support the transition from prototype to production by establishing scalable supply chains for new materials.
• Manage purchase orders end-to-end from requisition through receipt and invoice reconciliation.
• Perform incoming inspection of received parts and materials against specifications
• Carry out investigations into part quality issues, identifying root causes and driving corrective actions.
• Monitor inventory levels and work with operations to ensure material availability while minimizing excess stock.
• Identify and mitigate supply risks; develop dual-source strategies for critical materials.
• Ensure supplier compliance with quality, regulatory (e.g., ISO 9001), and sustainability standards.
• Maintain accurate item master data, supplier records, and procurement documentation in ERP systems.
• Track and report procurement KPIs including cost savings, on-time delivery, and supplier scorecards.
• Support continuous improvement initiatives across the supply chain function.
• Partner with the hardware engineering team during design and development phases to evaluate component options, assess manufacturability, and provide sourcing input.
• Assist in hands-on hardware builds, prototyping, and assembly activities alongside the engineering team.
• Review bills of materials (BOMs) and engineering change orders (ECOs); ensure procurement systems are updated with design revisions.
• Evaluate component specifications for cost, availability, lead time, and supplier capability during new product introduction (NPI).
• Support documentation and traceability requirements for hardware builds, including component certifications and certificates of conformance.

About You:

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Life Sciences,  or a related field.
• 4–6 years of experience in procurement, sourcing, or supply chain roles, preferably in hardware manufacturing or life sciences.
• You have hands-on procurement experience with:
  • Electromechanical or fluidic hardware components (e.g., sensors, tubing, valves, PCBs, enclosures).
  • Life science consumables such as cell culture media, reagents, or single-use bioprocess materials.
  • ERP or purchasing systems (e.g., NetSuite, SAP, Oracle) for purchase order management and inventory tracking.
  • Supplier qualification and performance management processes.
  • Contract negotiation and supplier agreement management.
• Experience working in or with regulated industries (e.g., ISO 9001, GMP, or similar quality frameworks) preferred.
• Ability to read and interpret engineering drawings, bills of materials, and technical specifications.
• Strong analytical and organizational skills; comfortable managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.
• APICS CPIM/CSCP or similar certification is a plus.

Location & Schedule: 

• This position is based in our South San Francisco office and will be required to be on site 5 days a week Monday through Friday.

Base Salary Range:

• Culture Biosciences's compensation package includes market competitive salary, equity for all full time roles, and great benefits. Our expected base salary range for this role is $115,000 - $150,000. We are hiring for multiple levels and backgrounds so final offers may vary within the range provided based on experience, expertise, and other factors.

Benefits:

• Competitive salary and equity compensation
• Medical, Dental, Vision, and Life insurance
• Medical and Dependent Care FSA (prorated based on start-date)
• 401(k) plan with company match
• Responsible Time Off (non-accrual based) policy, 11 paid company holidays and a week-long winter break
• 12 weeks of parental leave at full salary

Culture Biosciences provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants. We seek to build a company that promotes inclusion and expands the diversity of our industry as a whole. We encourage people with identities underrepresented in biotech and technology to apply.