Purchase materials, equipment, or other resources.

Purchase materials, equipment, or other resources. is a detailed work activity in O*NET — a concrete unit of work shared across 23 occupations and seen in 29 occupation-specific tasks. It rolls up into the broader work activity Purchase goods or services. in Monitoring and Controlling Resources .

Detailed work activities are the most granular shared layer in O*NET's work-activity hierarchy (Generalized → Intermediate → Detailed → occupation-specific task). The figures below describe how this activity shows up across the economy and what independent studies measure about AI and this kind of work — not a prediction that the work will be automated.

AI exposure

Of the 29 tasks under this activity that the OpenAI / Eloundou “GPTs are GPTs” study rated, 21 (72%) are flagged as directly exposed to language models (E1) or exposed via model-powered tools (E2).

The Anthropic Economic Index observes real AI use on 1 of these tasks, with a mean mapped-usage share of 0.003% per task.

Exposure estimates overlap with model capabilities — whether a model could speed the task up — not whether the work will be done by software. Observed AI use is augmentation and assistance today, not jobs replaced.

Member tasks

Occupation-specific tasks O*NET maps to this detailed work activity, most important first.

• Inspect physical conditions of warehouses, vehicle fleets, or equipment and order testing, maintenance, repairs, or replacements. · Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers · importance 4.3 · no direct exposure
• Purchase supplies, and arrange for outside services, such as deliveries, laundry, maintenance and repair, and trash collection. · Lodging Managers · importance 4.1 · exposure with tools
• Order and purchase equipment and supplies. · Food Service Managers · importance 4.1 · exposure with tools
• Requisition supplies or materials to complete construction projects. · Construction Managers · importance 4.0 · exposure with tools
• Order parts, tools, or equipment needed to maintain, restore, or improve wind field operations. · Wind Energy Operations Managers · importance 3.9 · exposure with tools
• Order drugs or devices necessary for study completion. · Clinical Research Coordinators · importance 3.9 · exposure with tools
• Procure timber from private landowners. · Foresters · importance 3.7 · no direct exposure
• Request bids from suppliers or consultants. · Environmental Engineers · importance 3.7 · exposure with tools
• Purchase security-related supplies, equipment, or technology. · Security Managers · importance 3.6 · exposure with tools
• Manage leasing of facility space. · Facilities Managers · importance 3.6 · exposure with tools
• Review or negotiate energy purchase agreements. · Energy Engineers, Except Wind and Solar · importance 3.6 · exposure with tools
• Order new test equipment, supplies, or replacement parts. · Automotive Engineering Technicians · importance 3.5 · exposure with tools
• Procure materials needed to repair marine equipment and machinery. · Marine Engineers and Naval Architects · importance 3.5 · no direct exposure
• Acquire, distribute and store supplies. · Facilities Managers · importance 3.5 · exposure with tools
• Procure parts and maintain inventory and related documentation. · Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technologists and Technicians · importance 3.4 · exposure with tools
• Purchase necessary equipment. · Computer and Information Systems Managers · importance 3.4 · exposure with tools
• Acquire, distribute and store supplies. · Administrative Services Managers · importance 3.4 · no direct exposure
• Purchase equipment, materials, or parts. · Manufacturing Engineers · importance 3.3 · exposure with tools
• Purchase building and maintenance supplies, equipment, or furniture. · Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers · importance 3.2 · exposure with tools
• Identify, procure, or develop test equipment, instrumentation, or facilities for characterization of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) applications. · Microsystems Engineers · importance 3.1 · no direct exposure
• Perform administrative functions, such as reviewing or writing reports, approving expenditures, enforcing rules, or purchasing of materials or services. · Architectural and Engineering Managers · importance 3.1 · exposure with tools
• Monitor inventory levels and order supplies as necessary. · Photonics Technicians · importance 3.0 · exposure with tools
• Provide direct assistance to farmers by performing activities such as purchasing or selling products and supplies, supervising properties, and collecting soil and herbage samples for testing. · Farm and Home Management Educators · importance 3.0 · no direct exposure
• Obtain product information, identify vendors or suppliers, or order materials or equipment to maintain inventory. · Environmental Engineering Technologists and Technicians · importance 2.8 · exposure with tools
• Book tickets for guests for local tours and attractions. · Lodging Managers · importance 2.7 · exposure with tools
• Direct acquisition of land for construction projects. · Construction Managers · importance 2.6 · no direct exposure
• Select, purchase, set up, operate, or troubleshoot state-of-the-art laser cutting equipment. · Photonics Engineers · importance 2.1 · no direct exposure
• Coordinate equipment purchases, installations, or transfers. · Industrial Engineering Technologists and Technicians · exposure with tools
• Obtain financing for and purchase necessary machinery, land, supplies, or livestock. · Farmers, Ranchers, and Other Agricultural Managers · exposure with tools

Occupations that perform this

• Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers
• Lodging Managers
• Food Service Managers
• Construction Managers
• Wind Energy Operations Managers
• Clinical Research Coordinators
• Environmental Engineers
• Foresters
• Security Managers
• Energy Engineers, Except Wind and Solar
• Automotive Engineering Technicians
• Marine Engineers and Naval Architects
• Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technologists and Technicians
• Computer and Information Systems Managers
• Administrative Services Managers
• Manufacturing Engineers
• Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers
• Architectural and Engineering Managers
• Photonics Technicians
• Farm and Home Management Educators
• Environmental Engineering Technologists and Technicians
• Farmers, Ranchers, and Other Agricultural Managers
• Industrial Engineering Technologists and Technicians

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

• O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
• Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27) Anthropic
• “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

@misc{singulariki-purchase-materials-equipment-or-other-resources,
  title  = {Purchase materials, equipment, or other resources.},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/detailed-activities/purchase-materials-equipment-or-other-resources}
}