Nissan Motor Corporation

Gergely Baranyi serves as Purchasing Director for Raw Materials and Passive Safety Technologies at Nissan Motor Corporation, where he plays a key role in strengthening sustainable and resilient automotive supply chains. His work centers on shaping balanced global and regional sourcing strategies that support Nissan’s long-term vision while staying grounded in real market dynamics. Under his leadership, the team manages a multibillion-dollar spend, builds and maintains strategic supplier relationships and advances localization initiatives that align with Nissan’s global direction.

Through this article, Gergely shares his experience leading purchasing in a rapidly shifting automotive landscape, showing how clarity, circular thinking and regional strategy are reshaping the future of supply chains.

The Mindset that Guides Me Every Day

As a purchasing leader, I focus on clarity, steadiness and long-range thinking with my team.

These qualities show up in the way we move through the day. We stay close to raw-material markets, build forecasts the business can act on and shape regional commodity plans that match both global direction and local realities. New programs often begin with my team, we guide guide sourcing choices, lead contract work and keep projects on track with the right level of support.

My work also stretches into sustainability, compliance and risk management.

My team stay in close coordination with our Japan colleagues on platinum group metals (PGM) hedging and stock planning and I carry responsibility for United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) compliance in aluminum and steel.

When early signs of strain appear in the supply chain, I bring teams together quickly, identify the root causes and steady the flow before it disrupts operations.

I lead this way because purchasing only works when people stay aligned, informed and confident in the path forward. My goal is to build a team that anticipates pressure, responds with discipline and strengthens Nissan’s push toward a resilient and sustainable supply chain.

Why Strong Supplier Capability Determines the Future of Recycled Metals

Metal recycling is becoming a key element of sustainability strategies in the automotive industry, driven by regulatory pressure, cost efficiency and the move toward circular manufacturing. It is also a way to reduce reliance on virgin materials. Recycled metals are core to procurement strategies at Nissan. Steel, aluminum and PGMs are leading the way across categories.

Recycling only works when the supplier partners behind it can deliver with the same strength, reliability and transparency expected from virgin materials.

The real work begins when we look at who can keep pace with this direction. Recycling only works when the supplier partners behind it can deliver with the same strength, reliability and transparency expected from virgin materials. That is why we at Nissan evaluate suppliers through a sharper lens, one that focuses on capability, traceability and long-term alignment with where the industry is headed.

Some of the key evaluation criteria include:

• Sustainability goal alignment with Nissan

• Recycled-content materials must go through the same process capability and quality assurance certification as virgin materials

• Clear recycled-content certification

• Use of digital traceability tools

• Ability to provide life-cycle assessments comparing virgin and recycled materials

By raising the bar on supplier readiness, we strengthen the chain around us and make recycling a scalable contributor to a cleaner and more resilient future for automotive manufacturing.

What’s Standing in the Way of Wider Recycled-Metal Adoption

Recycled metals should be powering far more of the automotive supply chain than they do today, but several real-world hurdles continue to slow that momentum.

Some of these barriers include:

• Virgin material can be cheaper

• Difficulty maintaining consistent quality and performance

• Lack of standardized processes and traceability across scrap collection

• Disassembly and sorting of some materials can still be a complicated and expensive process

• Additional investments are needed to ensure high-grade scrap that is easy to transport and ready for mill use without further processing

Thriving in a World Where Regional Sourcing Sets the Rules

The biggest challenge is the shrinkage of global trade and the rise of tariffs. OEMs will need to find ways to source raw materials in the region where the vehicle is produced. Since not all raw materials are available in every region, recycling becomes increasingly valuable.

Major regions and countries like the EU, China and the U.S. have their own regulations, which is another reason OEMs must create regional strategies to meet those requirements.

In a landscape shaped by these pressures, metal recycling is a true competitive differentiator, and at Nissan, we are fully committed to it.

It is a promise we intend to carry forward with purpose.