This FAQ is for members of our university community who have questions on how to purchase goods and services.
Our department strives to provide you with the best possible service. The more you know about the purchasing process, the more efficient we can become and successful in our supplier contracts. For this purpose, we have put together answers to some commonly asked questions and best practice considerations.
The Procurement department is the center of all purchasing-related business activities. We don’t actually “buy” things or services, as Kent State utilizes a decentralized spending model. However, if your department has a need than we have the solution. If we can’t offer direct assistance, we can point you in the proper course and advise important steps. All goods on campus being used, probably started with us! Or at least because our policy allows it.
We:
Requisitions, and subsequent purchase orders, must be created in FlashCart if a good order (tangible item) is $2,500 or more.
Purchases of goods, using a single vendor or the annual accumulation with said vendor, $25,000 or more must be bid.
Requisitions, and subsequent purchase orders, must be created in FlashCart if a service order is $50,000 or more. Additionally, if the service is $50,000 or more using a single vendor or the annual accumulation with said vendor, it must also bid.
Any purchase $100,000 or more, using a single vendor, will need SVP Finance and Administration as well as Division VP approval.
Any purchase $1,000,000 or more through the length of the contract will need Board of Trustees approval.
University-required contracts must be used, no exceptions. These suppliers are listed on the Procurement website by commodity. If the specified vendor(s) in each of these categories does not have your item or service, contact procurement@kent.edu for additional guidance and support.
Sourcing, or procurement (the act of procuring), is the process of locating and selecting businesses (suppliers or vendors) based upon set criteria or the commodity that needs purchased.
A commodity is the general classification or categorization of a product or service. A commodity code details or describes what was purchased in a common category or group.
We use a modified UNSPSC (the United Nations Standard Products and Services Code) commodity code list to categorize items or services.
Without considering policy, the competitive bidding process allows all interested vendors an opportunity to participate in quotes. You may be unaware of all eligible vendors including diverse and other disadvantaged vendors; another might offer best value. Not only do we remove any biasness, the contracts that result from such processes are legal binding documents that manage risk. Purchasing off-contract, without permissible cause, weakens the bidding process and lessons the impact as it relates to its benefits to Kent State University.
Throughout our website, the use of the two terms are used synonymously.
Although very similar, required suppliers are necessitated by state or university negotiated agreements. These vendors are on university-wide contracts. Preferred suppliers have been properly vetted and comply with all university policy and state requirements. Many of these suppliers have specific departmental contracts and are required for that particular department. The use of these vendors can be extended to the university community. This saves both time and money to the university. Other suppliers can be used if the good or service cannot be found on these preferred agreements.
On our website, under Contracted Suppliers, you will see the required commodities to which we have established university-wide contracts through bid or consortia under the "required" section. Some are required by the state. Some are required through cross-departmental bid-awarded contracts. We found these commodities are the most sought purchases and were strategically sourced. The vendors within the required commodities are the only contracts that must be used.
The preferred vendors are listed by commodity on our website, also in the "Contracted Suppliers" tab. If you need help sourcing, please contact Procurement! You keep us employed and happy!
If it is a commodity that may be under contract, please contact Procurement for sourcing suggestions. We still may be able to source through a contracted supplier. Otherwise refer to the flowchart and vendor sourcing attributes.
We understand and acknowledge there will be instances in which this will occur. We also recognize budget limitations. However, the success of these contracts is captured with pricing based on the entire university community. When we can demonstrate aggregation of spend over time, we can then negotiate further cost considerations with these suppliers. Additionally, these contracts are developed with other value-added activities besides cost reduction.
If the price differential is not significant, purchase with the required supplier and forward appropriate information to Procurement. For large price disparities, please contact Procurement for advice or approval. If we cannot resolve with the required supplier, we will work with the departments on alternative sources.
Some contracts are required by the state; we may not be able to consider new suppliers in those commodities until a contract has expired and is available to bid. Additionally, if spend with one vendor exceeds policy limitations, Procurement must post its commodity-driven good or service for public bid. Any vendor may respond and will be given equal opportunity. We welcome feedback and offerings toward strategic supplier considerations on all commodities.
Purchasing or servicing with a vendor is not as simple as "lowest cost" or "best overall value." As a steward of university funds, and state funds, there are important considerations to question before placing an order or service request.
Kent State has both required and preferred suppliers, as there are certain considerations to vendor selection. Before your purchase, make sure we don't have an established contract through a required commodity. Also, there are special vendor attributes that must be considered before final vendor selection. Factor them in before you chose your vendor. Please note, the total annual spend for the vendor must be under policy regulations; otherwise, it will need to be bid.
Contact the general Procurement email or phone for direction at procurement@kent.edu or 330-672-2276.
Please find a blank form at the Tax and Treasury Service's Sales Tax Exemption Certificate website
Send a copy to us; however, first be sure to fill out as much of the application as you can (ex. contact and shipping information). We will review terms, sign and return to you.
Send a copy to Procurement; we may suggest submission to General Counsel. However, we will review and advise.
It is against university policy to split credit card orders into separate transactions to avoid the use of a purchase order. All tangible good orders exceeding $2500 must be processed through FlashCart. Be sure the vendor is in PaymentWorks prior to beginning your requisition.
Refer to the University Pcard Manual on best practices and permissible purchases. The manual is located in the "Policy and Procedures" section of the Accounts Payable Purchasing Card website.
Search for your vendor in PaymentWorks. If the vendor is listed in the Suppliers section, the university has paid it directly in the past and the vendor accepts check payment. All vendors (both new and existing) must complete the PaymentWorks onboarding process before they can be paid through Accounts Payable. Information about PaymentWorks can be found on the Accounts Payable website.
FlashCart is our brand name for ESM Purchase, the university’s e-procurement system. It is designed to streamline the purchasing process for faculty and staff by allowing users to:
Some of FlashCart’s key features include:
A requisition (sometimes called a “purchase req”) is the first part of the ordering process. A requisition is the document that provides the order details: vendor name, vendor address, shipping/delivery location, contact person, accounting information such as index and fund, item or SKU number, item description, quantity, unit of measure (UOM), and dollar amount per UOM.
After a requisition is entered into FlashCart, it will carry through its approval hierarchy, finalizing the document as a purchase order. When accepted by the seller, it becomes a contract binding on both parties
As a KSU employee your access to FlashCart is established through KSU single sign-on setup via FlashLine. Once in FlashLine you automatically are able to access FlashCart with no additional setup needed.
The more information that is entered into the requisition, the better. Data drives decision-making and we rely on clean, usable data for analysis.
FlashCart will force certain fields. Standard entry should be the real quantity purchased, a SKU or model number, and an item description. Do NOT use a quote or order number, or “As Attached” in your data entry. Take the time to enter in the purchase. It’ll only help on the receiving side and order verification.
If your order has not yet completed the approval workflow, please contact Procurement and we can assist you in making your corrections. Every requisitioner has edit capabilities on their own orders, and at any time in the approval, workflow changes can be made before it becomes a purchase order.
Submit a change order through FlashCart. See the Flashcart/ESM Purchase Quick Use Guide for a step-by-step procedure for submitting a change order.
No. Beginning April 15, 2020, all vendors must be in the PaymentWorks system prior to use. Review the Accounts Payable website for additional information.
If the address is not shown in FlashCart, email Procurement at procurement@kent.edu to let us know, and we will verify the address with PaymentWorks and Banner and make sure that it is listed.
Use the code that best describes what you are purchasing, not what you are purchasing for. For example, food should be categorized as “food”, not as “organizations or clubs” because you purchased food for a club.
There are certain nuisances, however. Pens, for example. A pen that is not descript and used during normal office operations is an office supply. A pen, with a Kent State logo or event name, purchased usually in a large quantity as a give-away item, is a promotional supply. A pen that is not descript but isn't intended for office use, may be considered an event management item.
The list of commodity codes and brief descriptions is found under the About tab of the Procurement website.
Contact Procurement for further discussion!
If your FlashCart requisition hasn’t been approved yet, here are the most common reasons and what you can do to check or resolve it:
No, the supplier does not receive your full p-card number directly through FlashCart. Instead the p-card information is securely stored and transmitted through Kent State’s integrated payment system. Suppliers receive authorization for payment, but not the full card details.
The purchase order will have been sent directly to the vendor as long as the “Electronic” order release method has been selected in the “General Details” section of the draft requisition. Every established vendor in FlashCart has a preferred order transmission method, such as email or cxml, which is automatically appended to their profile. Your vendor may or may not send an order acknowledgement. From there, you will receive your good or service, followed up with a subsequent invoice. The invoice should be an exact match of the purchase order. If it is not, follow up with Procurement for a change order. If it matches, follow Accounts Payable’s required steps for invoice submission through E-Payables.
Follow Accounts Payable’s required steps for invoice submission through E-Payables, details for which can be found at the following link: https://www.kent.edu/accountspayable/e-payables.
The purchase order will have been sent directly to the vendor as long as the “Electronic” order release method has been selected. Every established vendor in FlashCart has a preferred order transmission method, such as email or cxml, which is automatically appended to their profile. Your vendor may or may not send an order acknowledgement. There are instances when an error has occurred; looking at the purchase order’s history will confirm submission. Follow up with your vendor’s customer service if you are uncertain. Also, follow up with Procurement on any errors, so we can get them resolved.
No. By policy and audit standards, a requisition should be completed before goods or services are obtained.
In Banner, use form FGROPNE to create a list of your open POs by Org code. The report will show the original encumbrance amount and the amount remaining. Refer to the “Visual Guide to Run Open Encumbrances by Organization Number Report in Banner” on the Procurement website for detailed instructions.
