ABOUT AIR INDIA SATS AIRPORT SERVICES PRIVATE LIMITED
AISATS, a leading gateway services provider in India, is a 50-50 joint venture between Air India Limited (a part of the TATA Group) and SATS Ltd., one of the world’s largest providers of air cargo handling services and Asia’s leading airline caterer. ‘AISATS’ is defined by its people – they are our greatest strength. Their commitment to seamless delivery and customer delight is what enables us to fulfil our brand promise of service excellence. This has been the hallmark of our business for more than a decade. With deep domain knowledge of the aviation ecosystem, we offer end-to-end ground handling services such as passenger and baggage handling, ramp handling, aircraft interior cleaning, load control and flight operations, and cargo handling services for general, perishable, transshipment, express courier and special cargo.
Senior Manager – GSE CAPEX Procurement
Location: Gurugram
Function: Centralized Procurement – Capital Expenditure (Ground Support Equipment)
Reports to: Head – Procurement
Team Size: Capex Buyers / Category Managers / Procurement Analysts (as applicable across Business units)
ROLE SCOPE & COMPLEXITY
- Organization-wide ownership of GSE Capex procurement
- Multi-location, multi-BU, 24x7 aviation operations
- High-value Capex contracts with OEMs (domestic & global)
- Interaction with CFO, auditors, airport authorities, OEM principals
- Strong dependency on operational timelines (aircraft induction / GH contract go-live)
JOB PURPOSE
The Senior Manager – GSE CAPEX Procurement is accountable for strategic, centralized, and end-to end procurement of all Ground Support Equipment (GSE) capital assets required for airline operations and ground handling businesses across domestic and international stations.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
GSE CAPEX PROCUREMENT STRATEGY & POLICY OWNERSHIP
- Define and implement centralized GSE Capex procurement strategy aligned with:
- Airline fleet plans (NB / WB / Freighter)
- Ground handling contract lifecycle (award, renewal, exit)
- Organization’s cost, cash flow, and governance objectives
- Convert decentralized GSE buying into policy-driven centralized sourcing.
- Establish category-wise sourcing strategies for:
- Ramp GSE
- Passenger handling GSE
- Cargo & warehouse GSE
- Power & air equipment
- Drive make-vs-buy-vs-lease decisions in coordination with Finance.
- Act as policy owner for GSE Capex procurement SOPs
CAPEX DEMAND CONSOLIDATION & PR GOVERNANCE
- Consolidate BU-wise and location-wise GSE Capex requirements into annual and rolling procurement plans.
- Validate PRs for:
- Business justification
- Alignment with approved Capex budgets
- Specification standardization
- Avoidance of duplicate or premature Capex
- Challenge non-standard or unjustified requests to protect capital discipline.
- Prioritize PRs based on operational criticality and revenue linkage.
END-TO-END CAPEX PROCUREMENT EXECUTION
- Own the complete procurement lifecycle for all GSE Capex:
- Requirement finalization & scope freezing
- RFQ / RFP structuring
- Vendor pre-qualification & shortlisting
- Techno-commercial evaluation
- Negotiation & commercial closure
- PO / Contract issuance
- Ensure transparent, competitive, and auditable sourcing processes.
- Lead procurement of complex and high-value equipment such as:
- Pushback tractors
- High loaders
- Passenger buses
- Electric GSE fleets
- Ensure procurement timelines align with aircraft induction and GH SLAs.
OEM & STRATEGIC VENDOR MANAGEMENT
- Establish long-term strategic relationships with:
- Global GSE OEMs
- Domestic manufacturers
- Authorized dealers and integrators
- Lead senior-level negotiations covering:
- Base pricing & escalation protection
- Volume-based rebates
- Warranty & extended warranty
- AMC / CMC with uptime guarantees
- Spares price locking and lead time commitments
- Penalties, LDs, and performance guarantees
- Structure multi-year rate contracts and framework agreements.
- Conduct periodic vendor performance reviews and corrective action plans.
GSE STANDARDIZATION & LIFECYCLE COST OPTIMIZATION
- Drive organization-wide standardization of:
- GSE models
- Specifications
- OEM base
- Reduce total cost of ownership by:
- Minimizing customization
- Rationalizing fleet variety
- Aligning spares and maintenance philosophy
- Promote adoption of:
- Electric / low-emission GSE
- Telematics-enabled equipment
- Work with Engineering to ensure procurement decisions reduce long-term maintenance and downtime costs.
COMMERCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT & CONTRACT STRUCTURING
- Structure contracts to mitigate risks related to:
- Delivery delays
- Performance failures
- Ground handling contract termination
- Asset redeployment or resale
- Ensure contracts include:
- Exit clauses
- Buy-back / resale support
- Asset transfer flexibility
- Coordinate with Legal to ensure strong commercial protection.
- Protect organization from stranded assets post GH contract exit.
DELIVERY TRACKING & OPERATIONAL COORDINATION
- Track PO-to-delivery and commissioning milestones.
- Proactively escalate delays that can impact:
- Aircraft induction
- Station launch
- Ground handling contract go-live
- Coordinate with:
- OEM logistics teams
- Engineering & Maintenance
- Station Operations
- Finance for GRN & capitalization
- Ensure procurement enables zero disruption to flight and ramp operations.
CAPEX FINANCIAL CONTROL & REPORTING
- Track Capex spends vs approved budgets.
- Support Finance with:
- ROI / TCO / payback analysis
- Capitalization accuracy
- Depreciation alignment with asset & contract life
- Prepare CFO-level MIS and dashboards covering:
- Pending PRs & POs
- Delivery timelines
- Savings achieved
- Commercial risks
- Support internal, statutory, and management audits.
STAKEHOLDER MANAGEMENT & BUSINESS PARTNERING
- Act as single point of ownership for all GSE Capex procurement matters.
- Partner with:
- Ground Operations
- Engineering & Safety
- Finance & Legal
- GH Commercial & Bid teams
- Provide Capex inputs for:
- GH RFP pricing
- Contract feasibility analysis
- Influence stakeholders to adopt standardized, cost-effective solutions.
TEAM LEADERSHIP & CAPABILITY BUILDING
- Lead and mentor Capex procurement team members.
- Build strong knowledge in GSE procurement.
- Drive performance culture through clear KRAs and KPIs.
- Ensure strong succession and capability development.
KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS (KPIs)
- GSE Capex savings vs benchmark
- PR-to-PO and PO-to-delivery cycle time
- Percentage standardization of GSE fleet
- Budget adherence
- Vendor SLA compliance
- Audit observations (target: zero high-risk findings)
- On-time availability of GSE for operations
EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATIONS
- BE / B. Tech – Mechanical / Electrical / Automobile
- MBA / PGDM – Supply Chain / Operations / Finance (preferred)
- 12–20 years of experience in:
- Aviation GSE procurement OR
- Airline / Ground Handling Capex procurement OR
- Heavy equipment / infrastructure Capex sourcing
- Proven experience in:
- Centralized procurement
- High-value OEM negotiations
- Multi-location operations
