SOP-PURCH-38: Ways to Make a Purchase

Number: SOP-PURCH-38

Subject: Ways to Make a Purchase

Summary: Describes the methods available to make an IU business purchase and when each should be used.

Source: University Procurement Services

Date of Issue: 11/22/2024

Procedure

BUY.IU

When making a purchase that supports IU business, BUY.IU, IU’s procure to pay system, is the most preferred method and should be used whenever possible. There are four purchase methods available in this system and each is accomplished using a requisition document. Methods are listed below in order of preference.

Catalog Order

BUY.IU contains catalogs that offer negotiated terms, pricing, and delivery expectations for the items IU purchases most frequently. In BUY.IU, a list of catalogs are available on the Shopping – Ordering (Catalog) dashboard. When searching for a supplier, catalog supplier records are notated with a yellow asterisk supplier icon. Catalog orders result in a purchase order (PO) being generated and sent to the supplier.

Amazon Business is not a catalog supplier and may not be used in place of BUY.IU catalogs. Amazon Business is appropriate to use when purchasing items that are not available in BUY.IU. Review the Amazon Business (video), linked in the Reference section of this SOP, to learn more about using Amazon Business appropriately.

Non-Catalog Order to a contracted supplier

A contracted supplier is one IU has a contract with because of a prior competitive bidding event. Contracted suppliers are available in the BUY.IU supplier database and are notated with a contracted supplier icon. The icon is a blue circle with a white star inside of it. Non-catalog orders result in a PO being generated and sent to the supplier.

Non-Catalog Order to a non-contracted supplier

A non-contracted supplier is one that does not have a competitively bid contract in place with IU. These suppliers may be available in the BUY.IU supplier database. A supplier that is not available in BUY.IU must complete supplier registration prior to doing business with the university. Non-catalog orders result in a PO being generated and sent to the supplier.

Check Request Form

A check request form is used to make a one-time payment and may be used when the exchange of a PO and invoice is not typical and the transaction does not involve a contract or other type of agreement. Each check request form contains an Instructions page that defines when it is appropriate to use.

Procurement Card/P-Card

A Procurement Card, commonly referred to as a P-Card, is a credit card issued for use by an IU employee or department. Generally, the P-Card may be used if a supplier is unable to complete BUY.IU registration, or if a supplier only accepts online payment via credit card. There may be additional nuances to consider. Review the SOP-CARD-04: Restricted Items for more information.

The P-Card is preferred in place of BUY.IU in four situations:

• Hospitality purchases that do not involve a contract or other agreement and are under $4,999.00, the university-defined single transaction limit. The P-Card is preferred over BUY.IU in this situation because it is a more efficient payment method. Hospitality invoices in BUY.IU often result in additional review and processing of corrections. The P-Card eliminates these extra steps.
• Amazon Business. Small dollar, one-time purchases to suppliers that are not in BUY.IU and are not restricted.
• Conference registration payments to non-IU hosted conferences.
• Subscription and membership payments, excluding software. Software subscriptions or memberships may not be purchased using the P-Card without prior exception approval.

P-Card charges are substantiated and reconciled in Emburse Chrome River, IU’s expense management system.

Reimbursement of Out of Pocket Purchase

Purchasing an item for IU business with personal funds and then seeking reimbursement is not a preferred procurement method and should be avoided whenever possible. When making a business purchase, BUY.IU or a P-Card is always preferred over an employee spending personal funds and requesting reimbursement. Additionally, reimbursement of a restricted item, as defined by SOP-CARD-04, requires approval from Purchasing.

IU’s sales tax exemptions, such as the Indiana Sales Tax Exemption Form ST-105, cannot be used with personal funds. Sales tax paid by the purchaser may or may not be reimbursed. The allowability of sales tax reimbursement is at the discretion of the Fiscal Officer.

Employee reimbursements are processed in Emburse Chrome River, IU’s expense management system.

Definitions

Catalog order:

A type of order in BUY.IU that is built using supplier-provided product listings and negotiated pricing.

Contracted supplier:

A supplier with whom IU has a contract because of the completion of a prior competitive bidding event.

Invoice:

A document given to the buyer, in this case IU, to collect payment for goods or services provided.

Non-catalog order:

A type of order in BUY.IU that allows the requestor to manually enter descriptions and pricing information for the goods or services requested.

Non-contracted supplier:

A supplier that does not have a competitively bid contract in place with IU.

Purchase order (PO):

A legally binding document the buyer, in this case IU, provides the entity providing a good or service that defines the items requested and the terms and conditions of the request.

Requisition:

An official request for goods or services.

Single transaction limit:

The maximum amount that can be charged to a P-Card.

Supplier:

An individual, business, or other entity that provides a good or service in exchange for payment.