May 2004

Purchasing is an important function of administrative management at Kent State University. The purchasing function at KSU is decentralized and varied, but is overseen by the Procurement Department which is a service department organized to support the students, and the instructional and research efforts of the faculty and staff; as well as other University service departments. Purchasing involves the acquisition of equipment, furnishings, supplies and services for the University within pre-established budgetary constraints.

The purchasing function at Kent State University is accomplished through any of three (3) means:

1. Purchasing Cards: Purchasing cards may be used for purchases totaling less than $2,500.00 per transaction. Such purchases as would be applied to a purchasing card are executed by those departments that have chosen to obtain and use a purchasing card for their typical operational buying. The Procurement Department administers the card registration, card assignment, and card company contract, and oversees the overall maintenance of the program, including setting restrictions on the purchase of certain items (e.g., food, travel, etc.).

2. Check Requests: Check requests may be used for purchases totaling less than $2,500.00 per transaction. Similar in scope to purchasing cards, check requests are utilized by those departments that do not have or do not desire to have, a purchasing card, or which conduct business with vendors who do not accept purchasing cards.

3. Purchase Requisitions and Purchase Orders: The purchase requisition is the most important document in the purchasing cycle. Necessary for all purchases totaling in excess of $2,500.00, it is used to request purchases of all commodities and services through the Procurement Department. It provides the account number to be charged, authorized signature of the account, item description of commodity and or service required, quantity, delivery instructions, and desired delivery date. Complete and correct preparation of the requisition form expedites the purchasing process. Except in a bona fide emergency, the requisition form must be in the Procurement Department before purchasing action can be initiated. For requisitioning purposes, individual departments may obtain price quotations for the commodities and/or services they require, and from the vendors they choose, and will submit those quotations along with a properly-approved purchased requisition to the Procurement Department for processing into a purchase order. Often, the Procurement Department is asked to assist the requisitioning department to identify vendors, evaluate quotes, and help facilitate purchases.

Whenever quotations for commodities exceed a total value of $25,000.00, or quotations for services exceed a total value of $50,000.00, it is necessary to execute a closed, formal bid process to obtain the best overall value for the University in the procurement of such goods or services. Typically in bid processes, the appropriate Buyer assembles a cross-functional selection committee to develop the specifications required by the department, as well as to evaluate proposals or quotations received, and to interview vendors who have submitted proposals or quotations. The committee is facilitated by the appropriate Buyer from its inception through the award of business.

The Procurement Department provides a copy of the bid document to vendors who have asked to be added to the appropriate bidders list or to vendors who have responded to advertisements of the bid, and wish to submit a bid of their own. To that end, each bid process must be advertised as a means of alerting the general public of the opportunity to bid on any open project, and informing interested parties of the means by which they may do so. The Procurement Department advertises in local newspapers, the Procurement Department website, the Procurement bulletin board, and the website for the Inter-University Council Purchasing Group. The many venues of advertising offer ample opportunities for the public to be made aware of the Procurement Department's projects.

(Please note that the process for construction projects is handled solely by the Office of the University Architect. The OUA observes a specific bid process that manages, apart from Procurement, and it makes all awards. Its requisitions are forwarded to Procurement and a purchase order is issued, but Procurement does not have a role in the process of bidding, evaluation, and award. Procurement often recommends that the OUA add certain vendors to its bidders lists, as many of its recommendations are minority business enterprises who have requested inclusion in such lists.)

Once a determination for purchase has been made, either with or without a bidding process, each requisition is processed into a purchase order. The preparation of the purchase order initiates a contract by accepting legally the offer made by the vendor.

Please feel free to contact any member of the Procurement Department for additional information.