UAMS ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDE

NUMBER: 5.1.01
DATE: 01/15/97
REVISION:  05/27/03

PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to notify departments within the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) of the procedures for the procurement of commodities, equipment and services.

POLICY

The procurement of all supplies, commodities and services required by the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) is the responsibility of UAMS' Department of Support Services, Procurement or Contract Services. Departments or individuals within the University are not authorized to enter into an agreement for the procurement of commodities and/or services. Agreements entered into by any means other than the issuance of a purchase order by Procurement or Contract Services is not binding on the University. All UAMS departments must complete and submit an on-line requisition to Procurement or Contract Services for all commodities, equipment, and services required for the management of their department(s).

PROCEDURE

1. Departments must process an on-line requisition using their designated buyer as the purchasing group.  Instructions for processing a SAP requisition are located:     http://intranet.uams.edu/sapdoc/SAPTraining/Procurement/Overview.htm  
    
2. Procurement of commodities or services for which the purchase price and any associated cost (shipping or handling charges) exceeds $5,000 but is less than or equal to $25,000 will require the use of competitive bidding procedures.
    
3. Competitive bidding procedures require three price quotes obtained by in written form by telephone, fax machine, or e-mail. Only firms, which sell the type of commodity or service to be procured, shall be contacted. These procedures shall not apply to commodities and services under state or UAMS contracts. Price quotes may be obtained either by the requesting department or by personnel within the Procurement Services. Commodities or services with an estimated purchase or lease price in excess of $25,000 require the use of the competitive sealed bidding process, sole source justification or a professional preference memo.¹
    
4. When the requesting department obtains price quotes, written documentation should be faxed or e-mailed to the buyer identifying the three vendors providing bids. This document should include the names, addresses and telephone numbers of the vendors, the names of the persons providing the price quotes, the amounts quoted and the SAP requisition number.
    
5. Procurement of commodities or services for which the purchase price does not exceed $5,000 is considered "small purchases" and may be procured without seeking competitive bids. However, competition should be used to the maximum extent practicable.
    
6. Requests for procurement of commodities or services involving radioactive materials must be reviewed and approved by UAMS' Occupational Health and Safety Department prior to submitting the on-line requisition to Procurement Services. The on-line requisition will route to the Occupational Health and Safety Department prior to release to the buyer. All radioactive commodities or services will be reviewed and cleared by the Occupational Health and Safety Department prior to delivery to the requesting department.

7. Requests for procurement of lab animals must be approved and routed to the UAMS Department of Laboratory Animal Medicine (DLAM)².
    
8. An appropriate designated department representative within the requesting department must have SAP security clearance authorizing the purchase requisition and the use of the funds identified on the request prior to access to the SAP requisition process.
    
9. The Procurement Services Department, upon receipt of the on-line requisition will transfer the requisition into a purchase order and fax the order for the commodity or service to the selected vendor.
    
10. Departments SHOULD notify their buyer if the requisition is an emergency. Backup documentation must be faxed Procurement Services, 686-8130. The faxed documents must note the designated buyer and the SAP requisition number. The Procurement Services Department will process the purchase order and will call the departmental contact person indicated on the request or fax the purchase order to the vendor.
     
11.  Departments requesting a revision to an existing purchase order must e-mail their buyer with detailed information of the required changes. All other information on the original purchase order shall remain the same.
     
12. Purchase orders may be cancelled if special circumstances require this action. The department requesting cancellation of a purchase order must send a memorandum by fax or e-mail to Procurement Services indicating the purchase order number, the name of the department and the reason for requesting the cancellation. A purchase order is a contract and if cancelled without just cause, the requesting department has a liability to the vendor. The requesting department may be required to pay certain costs (freight, handling charges and restocking fees) incurred by the vendor prior to receipt of the cancellation. An individual having expenditure authorization for the account listed on the originating purchase request must sign the memo requesting cancellation. This will enable payment of costs incurred due to cancellation.

REFERENCE

¹UAMSPolicy5.1.03
²UAMS Policy 5.1.09