Saint Louis University Purchasing

To ensure competitive pricing and cost-effective procurement of goods and services, competitive bids must be obtained on purchases with an anticipated cost of $10,000 or greater. If a department anticipates spending over $10,000 on a single product or product category within one fiscal year, the entire order should be competitively bid as a whole, regardless of whether the order is received as a whole or in separate pieces over the year. This $10,000 bid threshold applies to general expenses and federal grant-funded purchases.

The requisitioning department or Business Services must obtain price quotations from at least three vendors for the purchase of items with an anticipated cost of $10,000 or greater. If the requesting department obtains the bids, a purchase requisition should be submitted to initiate the issuance of a purchase order. Copies of the bids should be attached to the purchase requisition in Workday for Business Services review.

Departments may also request Business Services' help in obtaining required competitive bids. To initiate the bid process by Business Services, the requisitioning department should forward complete specifications for the needed goods or services to the appropriate contact in Business Services. Business Services, in conjunction with the requisitioning department, will issue a Request for Proposal (RFP), analyze the responses, and award the bid based on compliance with the specifications, expected product quality, delivery price and institutional purchasing objectives. After a vendor has been selected, the requisitioning department must submit a purchase requisition to initiate a purchase order.

Business Services continues to encourage departments to exercise cost consciousness and spend their fiscal resources responsibly by making educated purchasing decisions below the $10,000 purchasing threshold. Business Services may also request a competitive bid below the $10,000 threshold when it is deemed appropriate to do so.

Purchases made from University contracts do not require additional bidding, as they have been awarded based on full University requirements. University contracts and standards should be used when possible.

Uniform Guidance from the OMB was effective July 1, 2018.

Bidding requirements include, but are not limited to:

• Individual capital equipment items including all features and related components that comprise a single functional unit but excluding optional attachments or external peripheral devices.
• Annual service or maintenance contracts covering a single unit or a number of similar units.
• Annual quantity purchases of a specific commodity or supply item (e.g., lab supplies, chemicals, and maintenance supplies).

If a product or service is available only from a single source, making it impossible to obtain three competitive bids, a sole-source justification form in lieu of bids should be included electronically when completing the purchasing questionnaire within Workday.

The requisitioning department is responsible for defining product specifications including model, characteristics, service level, and other details describing the product/service to be purchased.

The bid threshold for capital projects has been revised to $25,000.

Updated: 01/13/2021

Due to the inherently proprietary nature of advertising media (print, billboard, broadcast, Web, movie theater screens, and signage), sole-source forms are no longer required when submitting purchase requisitions with account code 743000. All University Advertising purchases must be coordinated with either the University Marketing and Communications department or SLUCare Marketing in order to ensure that due diligence has been done to determine the specific audience being addressed and the necessary media to reach that demographic. The University Marketing and Communications department, as well as SLUCare Marketing, negotiates optimal advertising rates for the University and purchase requisition approval is required by them before a purchase order is issued.

Reviewed: 01/13/2021

Business Services has implemented a new contract management system called Agiloft. The approval process occurs during the workflow in the new CMS. For any questions regarding the contract approval process, contact Ellen Borowiak at ellen.borowiak@slu.edu or Katy Wittwer at katy.wittwer@health.slu.edu.

Updated: 01/13/2021

The Purchasing Department has negotiated an exclusive contract with Staples for office supplies. All requests for the purchase of office supplies should be submitted on a purchase requisition through Workday.

For general questions pertaining to the purchasing of office supplies, contact Mary Lynn Thompson at marylynn.thompson@slu.edu.

Updated: 01/13/2021

Purchase requisitions are created in Workday. A purchase requisition through Workday is used to request procurement of materials, supplies, equipment and services provided by outside vendors.

A purchase requisition must be completed in Workday in advance and in accordance with the policies and procedures included herein to initiate a commitment for goods and services for which the University will be financially responsible. Employees who purchase or order goods/services without an authorized purchase order will risk non-reimbursement. Individuals making unauthorized commitments risk personal liability for any incurred expenses.

Updated: 01/13/2021

A purchase order is the official document that authorizes the procurement of goods and services from a vendor for which the University will be financially liable.

To initiate a purchase order, the requisitioning department must complete a purchase requisition that will be electronically routed to pre-determined individuals for approval. Once approved most POs will be issued to suppliers via Billiken Buy.

Updated: 01/13/2021

To reduce time, paperwork and administrative expense, departments may request a blanket purchase order, which allows multiple orders to be placed against a single purchase order or supplier contract for repetitive or small dollar orders and bulk supplies and materials. Blanket orders allow departments to order items and services on an as-needed basis from the specified vendor by referencing the previously assigned standing purchase order number.

To establish a blanket purchase order, a purchase requisition should be submitted at the beginning of the fiscal year. The amount of the requisition should be the total amount expected to be purchased from the vendor during the fiscal year. Blanket orders can also be issued during the fiscal year as needed.

Note that blanket purchase orders will follow the same competitive bid requirements as standard purchase orders. If the original blanket purchase order exceeds $10,000, regardless of the value of each individual delivery against that order, competitive bids or a sole-source document will be required.

The requesting department should closely monitor blanket order balances to ensure that sufficient funds remain in the purchase order to cover all outstanding invoices and future orders. Blanket order increases should be processed immediately in Workday whenever it is determined that the blanket order will require additional funds.

A blanket order for a punchout vendor should be created as a supplier contract in Workday. These supplier contracts do not encumber the blanket amount, instead they encumber funds as purchase orders are issued against the supplier contract. These purchase orders will not route for approval and will be issued to the punchout supplier immediately. The supplier contract balance will be drawn down in Workday as purchase orders are issued against them.

Updated: 01/13/2021

Cancel a Purchase Order

A purchase order should be closed or canceled to release encumbered budget funds if all invoices against the order have been received and no additional expenditures are anticipated. The option to cancel is only available to certain suppliers. Requests for closing and canceling POs can be sent to billikenbuyadmin@slu.edu, departments should cancel the PO directly with the suppliers.

Change a Purchase Order

Purchase orders can be edited in Workday using the change order function. Change orders will route through all approvals again. Change orders are not issued to the suppliers when approved. if the suppliers require a copy of the change order, a PDF can be downloaded within Workday.

Updated: 01/13/2021

Invoices submitted by vendors for the payment of goods and services authorized by purchase orders are processed by the accounts payable department.

Prior to payment, departments must approve all invoices that are $250 or greater. This approval is made by receiving the item/order in Workday.

All invoices under $250 which match the items identified on the purchase order and do not require departmental approval will be paid without departmental approval.

All invoices with the purchase order noted thereon, must be forwarded directly to Accounts Payable by the vendor. Non-compliance with this policy may result in a delay in the payment of invoices which may adversely affect vendor relations.

Payment is made according to the terms of the vendor. Invoices processed against a purchase order that does not have enough funds available will be held until the department increases the available funds on the purchase order in Workday.

Updated: 01/13/2021

Use of the University's purchasing system, University contracts, or University reward programs for personal purchases is prohibited.

Reviewed: 09/14/2023

• Medical vendors: Mary Lynn Thompson at marylynn.thompson@slu.edu or 314-977-5815
• Research vendors: Ellen Borowiak at ellen.borowiak@slu.edu or 314-977-7045
• University vendors: Ellen Borowiak at ellen.borowiak@slu.edu or 314-977-7045

Primarily to maximize cost-savings and ensure budgetary control on each purchase. Purchasing must review new vendors first prior to the department placing an order to determine vendor legitimacy and whether the vendor adds redundancy in the system.

In addition, Financial Services must determine whether there is proper funding for the transaction prior to the purchase.

There are several methods used to communicate information:

• Business managers are encouraged to attend semi-annual meetings sponsored by Business and Finance. Updates and announcements are provided during the meeting. Business managers and administrative assistants are strongly encouraged to share this information with faculty and staff members.
• The Business Services web page contains up-to-date information and the latest vendor listings.
• Newslink communications and announcements
• Contacting Business Services 

All contractual agreements pertaining to a transactional purchase or commitment on behalf of the University needs to be first reviewed by Purchasing and, in some cases, by General Counsel, before being signed by an authorized signor.

University policy designates that one of the following persons are allowed to sign a contractual agreement:

• President Fred P. Pestello, Ph.D.
• Vice President and CFO David Heimburger
• Those with presidential delegated permission

By utilizing this procedure, the University avoids personal liability risk and allows the university to maximize cost savings and minimize dollar spend.