2.2 Initiating a Request

2.2       INITIATING A REQUEST (Revised 3-05-2024)

Administrative Responsibility:   Associate Vice President for Business Services/Procurement

PURPOSE

This policy provides information on the Requisitioning Process for the University.  Requisitions are submitted to Procurement & Strategic Sourcing (PASS or Procurement) in accordance with Policy 2.1, the Procurement Process / General Guidelines.

SCOPE

This Policy applies to all WSU employees and external contractors involved in the procurement of goods and services for the University, whether as an administrator within a Department or Unit or the final end user of such goods and services.  This policy includes the acquisition by the requisitioning/purchase order (PO) process and by Procard.

DEFINITIONS

The following are terms and definitions of some commonly used terms in preparation for a Requisition:

WayneBuy

The University branded name for the cloud-based eProcurement system, used for both the Requisitioning / PO process and for the Direct Payment Request (DPR) process. 

 

 

FOAPAL

The acronym used for the Banner account structure for the University.  The unabbreviated names are Fund / Organization / Account / Program / Activity / Location.

 

       

POLICY

The WayneBuy Requisition is used to initiate the purchase of goods or services from all outside vendors.  Requisitions are to be submitted to Procurement through the WayneBuy approval process.  Approval Queues are maintained in Banner.

To ensure the best price and quality of goods and services, adequate planning and lead time are essential.  Departments should communicate their requirements to PASS as early in the process as possible. This is especially important when special approvals are required prior to issuing a Purchase Order. Without sufficient lead time, proper market research and vendor negotiations are jeopardized. Advance planning is especially critical before a fiscal or calendar year end or grant/contract termination dates.

WayneBuy Requisitions must include name and contact information (including phone and e-mail) for the Requisitioner, suggested Vendor (if available), shipping location and internal delivery, detailed commodity information, and accurate accounting information (FOAPAL).  A properly completed requisition authorizes PASS to issue a PO. WayneBuy accommodates multiple accounts/indexes on a single Requisition.

Board of Governors statute stipulates that all purchases $50,000 and over require a competitive bid (see Section 2.4).   PASS reserves the right to competitively bid on any request where a competitive market exists (i.e. printing, furniture, promotional items, business equipment, etc.).

This policy incorporates standards set by the Federal Office of Planning and Management's Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, & Audit Requirements for Federal Awards; Title 2, Subtitle A, Chapter II, Part 200 Procurement Standards Sections 200.317 through 200.326, which apply to any University purchase made with federal grant or contract funds.

Completed requisitions must be authorized by the requesting department, special approvers, and other approval levels designated in WayneBuy.  Approval queues are established by the Department/Division Head and must be in accordance with University Policy 15-1, Financial Document and Transaction Approvals.  New approval queues, changes, and deletion requests must be submitted to the Planning, Assessment & Innovation / Business Technology Solutions department for processing via the C&IT ticket request portal.  Approval queues serve as a control mechanism, and a means to approve the expenditure and to ensure accurate encumbrances.  Requests for a copy of an individual department's approval queue should also be made via the C&IT ticket request portal.

Upon complete Departmental authorization, the Requisition is automatically routed to PASS.  If a Requisition does not contain all the necessary information, it is returned to the Originator/Requisitioner by the PASS Coordinator.  PASS's online acceptance of the Requisition commits the funds.

Requisitions must include a total dollar value for each item (including freight charges).  Lack of sufficient funds does not prevent a WayneBuy Requisition from being authorized and submitted to PASS.

PROCEDURE

Formerly APPM 2.2.2 WayneBuy Requisitioning 

Responsibility 

 Department

Action

1.      Complete a WayneBuy Purchase Requisition following the integrated form instructions or online Job Aids.  Job Aids are found on the Procurement website under WayneBuy.  Upload any appropriate support documentation to the WayneBuy Requisition as either "internal" or "external" attachments.

Please Note: A Not-to-Exceed amount must be stated for blanket orders or service contracts.  All blanket orders or service contracts must include start and end dates. The dollar amount for each index/account must be entered in the Accounting section.

 

2.      Verify the budget balance available. 

a.     If the balance is not available, the purchase is not permitted.
b.     If a balance is available, complete the WayneBuy requisition.

3.      Keep a record of the system-generated requisition number.

4.      The system automatically routes the online Requisition to the individual/unit identified in the approval queue.

Please Note: Computing and Information Technology (C&IT) establishes and maintains approval queues.  Departments must identify all individuals to be added or deleted in their approval queues and the dollar amounts each person can approve.  The form to establish or maintain approval queues is available on the PASS website at http://procurement.wayne.edu/docs/rappapprovalqueuerequestform.doc.

Dean/Director /or Designee

1.   Review the online WayneBuy Requisition for appropriateness of the purchase and for budget availability.

a.      Verify budget balance availability. If the budget is available, approve the Requisition using the online WayneBuy approval option.
b.      If the budget is not available, the purchase is not permitted.  Select the "Return" or "Reject" option on the Requisition in WayneBuy.  This action systemically returns the Requisition to the originator or effectively cancels it.
c.        If the purchase is inappropriate, disapprove the Requisition in WayneBuy using the "Reject" function.  This action cancels the Requisition.
 

2.  The system will automatically route the Requisition to all required approvers.  After all Departmental approvals are complete, the system will route to Special Approving Departments (if required) or to PASS.

Special Approval Department

As detailed in Section 2.2.1, one or more Special Approvals may be required for a request to be processed.  It is the responsibility of the Special Approver(s) to do as follows:

1.   Review the online WayneBuy Requisition for appropriateness of the purchase and budget availability.

2.   If appropriate, verify budget balance availability. If the budget is available, approve the Requisition using the online WayneBuy approval form.

3.   The purchase is not permitted if the budget is unavailable.  Select the "Return" or "Reject" option on the Requisition in WayneBuy.  This action systemically returns the Requisition to the originator or effectively cancels it.

4.   If the purchase is inappropriate, disapprove the Requisition in WayneBuy using the "Reject" function.  This action systemically cancels the Requisition.

5. The system will automatically route the Requisition to all required approvers.  After all Departmental and Special approvals are complete, the system will route to PASS. 

 

PASS

1. Review and approve the online WayneBuy Purchase Requisition and assign it to a Buyer or disapprove the Requisition in WayneBuy using the "Reject" function.

 

APPENDICES

N / A

RELATED UNIVERSITY/BOARD POLICIES

N / A              

Effective Date: Prior to 2000

Revised Date: 6/27/2024

Reviewed Date: 3/05/2024

To be reviewed, at minimum, every three years and/or revised as needed by:  Associate Vice President for Business Services / Procurement

Next Review By Date: 3/05/2027

SUPERSEDES POLICY

  1. N / A

HISTORICAL DATES

6/30/2024, 6/18/2018, 04/04/2017, 05/01/2016, 01/01/2013, 04/01/2012, 09/01/2010, 08/01/2009