University of Maryland Libraries Purchasing Procedures

I.     Introduction

II.    Purchasing Procedures

III.   Order Types - Definitions and Procedures

IV.   Order Forms -- Description and Use

V.    Receiving -- Procedures

VI.   Reimbursements -- Procedures

VII.  Purchasing and Procurement URLs

PROCUREMENT OF LIBRARY SUPPLIES, EQUIPMENT AND SERVICES

I. INTRODUCTION

The procurement of goods and services necessary to support library operations is the responsibility of the Library Purchasing Unit (LPU) in the Planning & Administrative Services Division (PASD).  The LPU operates under guidelines provided by the campus Department of Procurement and Supply.  The governing principle of purchasing is to acquire necessary goods and services at the lowest possible cost consistent with the quality required and legal responsibilities as defined under the Code of Maryland Regulations (COMAR) and interpreted by campus administrative procedures.  The University is charged by the State to procure goods and services through competitive bidding.

All purchases must be made in accordance with applicable laws and regulations, including, but not limited to the University System of Maryland and University of Maryland policies and procedures, which are found in summary form on the Procurement & Supply's website located at

 www.purchase.umd.edu

The information provided below pertains to purchases with state funds only; procurement procedures for foundation accounts are not included in this document.

The prinicipal investigator for any project funded by a grant, gift or any source different from the library operating budget, is responsible for knowing and complying with the permissible use of the project's funds.

II. UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES PURCHASING PROCEDURES

Supply Representatives

Each department/branch /unit/team should have a designated Supply Representative who is responsible for ordering and is familiar with routine order procedures.  The Supply Representatives' duties and responsibilities are to:

1. Orient new staff to the Libraries' ordering procedures.
2. Facilitate departmental orders from their staff including ordering and
    receiving supplies and obtaining the necessary approval signatures.
3. Keep copies of the purchase requests.
4. Maintain an adequate supply of toner for fax machines, printer cartridges,
    and calculator ribbons, etc.
5. Maintain a record of all equipment held by the department, branch, unit or team.
6. Notify LPU if any equipment is moved to another department, sent to storage
    or otherwise retired from service.

The LPU should have a list of all Supply Representatives for each department/branch /unit/team in order to contact them in the event of questions concerning orders or receipts.

Pending Purchase Requests

Purchases that are large or complex make take a long time to plan.  When staff is working on such orders it is important to keep the Library Purchasing Unit informed of the impending order.  The LPU will then be aware that an order is pending and be better able to assist staff in the placement of the order in a timely fashion.

 Delivery Notifications

Staff who are authorized to place orders should alert the LPU and/or others who regularly receive and sign for deliveries -- i.e., Hornbake Library facilities staff -- that certain deliveries are expected on approximate dates.

III. ORDER TYPES

The following list defines and provides procedures for handling the various order types processed by the LPU.  An approved Purchase Order (P.O.) must accompany all orders and accompanying information as needed.

Computer systems, and peripherals

Computers, peripherals and other equipment orders must be approved by a director.  All orders of all computer systems, peripherals, and software must be requested through the Information Technology Division.
Orders should include equipment description as well as vendor information.

Consultants

Hiring of consultants or purchase of other services must take into account the value (cost) of the contract.

$5000.00 or less
When the total value (cost) of the agreement is $5000.00 or less, and the consultant is an incorporated business, a Simplified Consultant Contract can be used and paid for by Purchase Card (PCard).  Guidelines for completing a Simplified Consultant Contract are found at
 

 http://www.purchase.umd.edu/general/forms/umconsult.pdf

Over $5,000.00
Agreements with total value (cost) over $5000.00, for consultant contracts, and purchases requiring signing of vendor agreements, must be requisitioned through the Library Purchasing Unit from UM Central Procurement.

NOTE:   The University is not obligated to pay for any service obtained without a Purchase Order.

The following documentation must be submitted to the LPU:

• Sole Source Justification found at:
http://www.purchase.umd.edu/general/forms/sole.pdf
• Consultant's resume and social security number.
• Description /Specifications/Statement of Work which should include description of project, tasks and responsibilities, timeframe specified, hourly and/or daily fee.
• Travel and lodging if required and reimbursements.

NOTE: Library staff members are not authorized to sign vendor agreements/contract documents.  Such documents must be reviewed and signed by authorized Procurement and Supply officials.  Only a designated procurement officer can sign a vendor agreement.

Equipment

Library equipment is normally covered by maintenance contract, unless it is judged cost effective to obtain maintenance on a time and materials basis.  Requestors of new equipment should indicate maintenance contracts are desired.

Maintenance is usually included as part of the bid process and commences following expiration of the warranty period (typically 90 days).

The end-user must notify the Library Purchasing Unit promptly of any changes in the status of the equipment, i.e. when equipment is moved to another location, temporary storage, or retired and disposed of.

Individual units, departments, divisions or teams are responsible for monitoring bills and ongoing use of cell phones, pagers, etc., once the instruments are purchased.

Furniture

Furniture includes chairs, desks, bookcases, tables, file cabinets, computer workstations, etc.  For complete lists of what the State defines as furniture see:

Maryland Correctional Enterprises (MCE)

Furniture- Maryland Correctional Enterprises (MCE)

The University is required to purchase office furniture from Maryland Correctional Enterprises (MCE), the State of Maryland Correctional Facility.  Furniture made and sold by MCE receives preferential treatment.  That is, any equipment ordered which appears in the MCE catalog must be obtained from that source even if the cost is greater.  Exceptions are rare and granted only if sufficient justification is provided by the requester.

Before ordering furniture:

1. Determine if the item needed is listed in the MCE catalog.  If a MCE catalog is not available in your divisional office, contact the Library Purchasing Unit at 5-9050 to request one.  For a listing of products and services by MCE, refer to
 

http://www.dpscs.state.md.us/mce/MCE2007.pdf

2. Contact the University's MCE representative, Kyle Saunders, for price and written quote, at 301-405-3655, or e-mail: mce@umd.edu.

MCE has a showroom on campus.  A visit to this facility is highly recommended, to get an idea of what is being ordered and the choices available.  For appointments, contact the MCE Representative.(Campus Showroom hours: 10 am - 2 pm Wednesdays)

NOTE: Five exceptions are recognized by law for not purchasing from MCE:

1. If MCE cannot provide the items within a reasonable time.
2. If MCE cannot meet reasonable specifications
3. The cost of purchasing from MCE exceeds the budgetary allowance.
4. The procurement is an emergency procurement as defined by law (note that the
    definition of  an emergency procurement is those items necessary to avoid or
    to mitigate serious damage to public health, safety and welfare)
5. The item is not included in the master list of items available from MCE.

Each instance must be justified and documented by the requester. (Email MCE rep to verify items are not available through them.) The completed documentation should be sent to the Library Purchasing Unit along with the request.
 

Honorariums

A UM Libraries' Supply & Services Requisition form and a signed Letter of Offer & Acceptance must be completed in order to hire a speaker for an Event such as a seminar, conference, or workshop. Plan well in advance, it takes 4-6 weeks to process a check once the paperwork has been submitted.

If the Speaker is on UMD payroll, an Honorarium cannot be requested/processed. Contact the Library Personnel Office for payroll method of compensation.

Instructions and a sample letter can be found at  http://www.lib.umd.edu/PASD/F_S/honorarium.pdf

Purchasing Card Purchases (PCard)

The PCard User's Guide is found at:
 

 http://www.purchase.umd.edu/general/visaguide.htm

Restrictions On PCard Purchases:

 
 http://www.purchase.umd.edu/general/visaguide.htm#somroac

Additional information of PCard purchasing may be found at http://www.purchase.umd.edu/general/forms/pcminstruct.pdf

• If furniture will be purchased from any source other than State Use Industries, the PCard is not to be used.  Instead, send a purchase request to the Library Purchasing Unit to be processed.
• Do not "string" purchases to avoid the $2,500.00 or $5000.00 limit.

Registrations  (conferences, workshops, classes, etc.)

On-Campus
1. Obtain divisional director's approval.
2. Attach completed registration form.
If registering on-line, attach the printed form.
If registering via other routes provide the appropriate paperwork and Internal Request form.
3. Send to LPU for payment.

Off-campus (when purchasing card is not accepted)
1. Obtain divisional director's approval
2. Attach completed registration form.  (If registering on-line, attach the printed form).
3. Provide contact information (name, phone, fax, email)
4. Provide method of payment accepted (purchase order, check, etc.)

Off-campus (when purchasing card is accepted)
1. Provide information above to the divisional administrative assistant PCard holder.

Rush Orders

Legitimate rush orders are those for which the need could not have been anticipated in time to process a regular order.  Rush or emergency orders must be accompanied with justifications and a director's signature.

Supplies

Boise Cascade is the University of Maryland's main supplier for office supplies.  Use the latest version of catalog and order form, which are sent out on January of every year. Copies of the catalogs and order forms are available from LPU.

Library units, departments or teams should maintain adequate supplies of critical or strategic but regularly used supplies, such as printer cartridges, so that no rush orders need be done.  The Library Purchasing Unit does not maintain an inventory of supplies.
 

Ordering Procedures

1. Supply Representatives must assure that all Boise Cascade orders are sent
    to LPU by Tuesday afternoons.
2. All orders will be placed once a week on Wednesdays. The orders are shipped
    and received within a few days (with the exception of out-of-stock and
    discontinued items).
3. All items received should be checked against the packing list that accompanies
    the order.  Any shortages, defective items, breakage, etc. should be immediately
    reported to the Library Purchasing Unit to be rectified.

NOTE: If the total of orders from Boise is above the dollar threshold set by LEC, both the unit head and Director's signatures are required

Other Supplies should be ordered using the UM Libraries Supply & Service Requisition Form and should include all appropriate information.

Vendors

A person or business entity with whom the library does, or wishes to do business.
Vendors are generally divided into two categories:

On campus

All providing department on campus -- for example, University Printing, Photographic Services, Adele's restaurant, Terrapin Trader Surplus Property. Upon receiving a properly completed and signed "UM Libraries' Supply & Requisition Form," LPU generates an Internal Services Request (ISR) to the providing department on campus to obtain the necessary goods and services

Note:  Catering from Dining Services is an exception to the above.  See

 http://www.dining.umd.edu/catering/

Off campus

All business entities outside the campus -- for example Boise Cascade, University Products, American Library Association, equipment suppliers
The University supports the State and Federal Minority and Small Disadvantaged Programs.  Staff is encouraged to use these vendors when possible.  Information may be found at

 http://www.purchase.umd.edu/general/msvi.htm

Master Contracts are a sub-set of off-campus vendors.  A Master Contract is a contract between the University and a supplier that has been established after a competitive procurement process.  Departments may purchase goods or services covered by a Master Contract directly from the contract vendor without going through Procurement and without further competition.  See

 http://www.purchase.umd.edu/general/morders/procedures.htm

IV. FORMS

All requests for supplies and services need to be submitted on appropriate forms. The two forms used for requests are available from the LPU.
 

• Boise Cascade Order Form -- used to order office products from Boise.
• "UM Libraries' Supply & Services Requisition Form" -- used for all other requests, such as registration, services, purchase of equipment, etc.

Upon receipt of any orders, placed through the Library Purchasing Unit, directly by branches, departments, units or teams or any off campus site the following information should be sent to LPU:
 

• All packing slips
• All receipts

 http://www.purchase.umd.edu/general/howrec99.htm

VI. REIMBURSEMENTS

All reimbursement requests:

1. Should to be submitted on a regular "UM Libraries' Supplies & Services Requisition Form", along with director's signature and original receipts.
2. Should include name, home mailing address and social security number of individual to be reimbursed, documentation for any purchases of refreshments & food items for a library event which clearly states the purpose of the event, date, location where held, name and affiliation of persons attending.
3. Should attach copies of registration information and form, if reimbursement is for fees for registration.

NOTE:  Costs for alcoholic beverages, personal purchases, gifts, contributions and donations (such as flowers) are not to be included.

The turn-around time for reimbursement check is approximately 4-6 weeks.

VII. PURCHASING AND PROCUREMENT LINKS

Comprehensive Policies and Procedures

       http://www.usmd.edu/Leadership/BoardOfRegents/Bylaws/SectionVIII/VIII300.html
 

 Policies and Procedures

       http://www.purchase.umd.edu/general/pap.htm
 

List of Master Contracts
 

 http://www.purchase.umd.edu/general/morder.htm

  Procurement Forms

 
 http:/www.purchase.umd.edu/general/forms2.html

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