Whitehead Institute

Procurement Manual

&

Reference Guide

Table of Contents

Introduction Who we are

Receiving Department Who we are

Lawson Financial System Account Authorization Form Sample

Prime Vendors Preferred Vendors Radioisotope Ordering Non-Purchase Order Items

Check Request Form Sample Animal or Animal by-product purchases Sole Source Letter

Three Samples Attached Change Orders

Change orders can be done via e-mail to buyer Returns

UPS Shipping Request Form Sample Closing Commitments

Sample provided by AA Attached MIT Requisitions

MIT Requisition Sample Home Deliveries

Introduction

Welcome to the Whitehead Institute! The Office of Procurement Services has put together this manual to help guide you along the Procurement path. Please remember, this is only a guide and if you require further assistance, we will be more that happy to address your needs via phone, e-mail or in person!

We are located at 9 Cambridge Center, 2nd Floor and our hours of operation are 8-5, Monday through Friday.

Who we are!

Marcia GlattDirector of Procurement 258-5751Oversees Purchasing and Receiving

Kelly MerrifieldPurchasing Manager 258-5112Manages Buying Staff

Betsy CutlerPurchasing Agent 258-7257

Melora RichSenior Buyer 258-9385

Phil GrayAdministrative Assistant 285-5114Part-time

Alaina SilvestriVWR On-Site Coordinator258-9145

Receiving Department

Our Receiving Department works diligently to make sure that you receive your goods in an expeditious manner. All goods are delivered to the end users on the same day they are received. We have a dual signature receiving system where receiving personnel will obtain signatures for all packages as they arrive on the dock and will obtain signatures from lab personnel who are accepting the packages.

Who we are!

Bruce Kirk

Receiving Supervisor

258-5116

Kalsang Phuntsok

Senior Receiving Clerk

258-5116

Tenzin Phunkhang

Clerk

258-5116

Karma Sichoe

Clerk

258-5116

Lawson Financial System

The Office of Procurement Services is responsible for Lawson Training in the Purchase Order (PO) and Requisition (RQ) system.

In order to receive training, you must fill out an ACS account authorization form, which is located in your “Informed Filler” folder.

Forward completed form to Chelle Riendeau at 5 Cambridge Center. When she informs you that your password has been created, contact Kelly Merrifield in Purchasing to schedule training.

Prime Vendors

A “Prime Vendor” is a vendor who is selected to do business at the Whitehead Institute. These vendors have participated in a bidding process conducted by the Office of Procurement Services and were selected based on price, availability, customer service and value-added service. The following vendors are considered “Prime Vendors” and should be used as often as possible when selecting a vendor who carries comparable products.

VWR Scientific / Laboratory Equipment and Supply Distributor. PerkinElmer Life Sciences / Radioactive and Non-Radioactive supplier

(formally NEN) Acme Dry Ice / Dry Ice, Pellets and Blocks Middlesex / Gases WB Mason / Office Supplies Corning / Plastic and Glassware Supplier (to be purchased through Westnet

Scientific) Artcraft / Stationary Supplier

Preferred Vendors

A “Preferred Vendor” is one that has been selected by the Office of Procurement Services as a reliable vendor who offers excellent pricing and customer service.

Gov Connection / ComputersNew England Biolabs / EnzymesQiagen / RNA PurificationRoche Diagnostics / Biological ChemicalsUSA Scientific / Pipette Tips and TubesFisher Scientific / Secondary Lab Supply DistributorWestnet/ Corning distributorDell Computers / Computers

Radioisotope Ordering

If your lab needs to order radioactive material, you must have the following information clearly noted on the requisition before you can process your order:

Authorized end userLab’s radiation authorization number from

approved RPO protocolExisting radioactive inventoryExact size and quantity of isotope being

orderedMUST HAVE ACCOUNT CATEGORY 2410

Non-Purchase Order Items

Seminars and Classes should be paid by check request.

Travel arrangement approvals must go through OSP.

Animal or Animal-by product purchases

Any laboratory that requires animals for their investigative research must purchase them through the Department of Comparative Medicine (DCM) at MIT and have approved animal protocol for the lab.

The purchase of such products are done through DCM, not the Whitehead Office of Procurement Services. Contact DC Guidelines for Purchasing Animal-related Commercial Products and for Subcontracting Animal Procedures Off-site Animal-derived products (such as polyclonal or monoclonal antisera or cell lines) that are commercially available as a catalogue item and

will not be used in animals at MIT/WIBR are not a concern of the CAC or DCM and do not require a CAC protocol. Alternatively, if the investigator requests another institution (commercial or academic) to de novo produce a unique animal-related product such as antisera or transgenic animals, or if animal products such as a cell line will be generated elsewhere and then used in animal experiments at MIT/WIBR, this use must first be described in a CAC-approved protocol followed by a purchase order routed through the DCM Purchasing Office. Because the CAC is responsible for all animals at any site if the project is paid for through MIT/WIBR, only AAALAC-accredited service providers will be approved. AAALAC accreditation substantiates successful peer review of animal care and use programs as promulgated by the Guide. Accredited contract labs are listed on the AAALAC website, https://www.aaalac.org or you can contact the DCM Purchasing Office (X31718) for a list of pre-approved vendors.

If all animal work is conducted at a contract site and there is no contact of protocol participants with animals or fresh tissues, investigators need a CAC-approved protocol but do not need to complete CAC Certification or participate in occupational health screening. Animal orders are still processed through DCM for accounting and legal reasons.

Investigators or instructors using animal tissues obtained from slaughterhouses or commercial sources that will not have contact with live animals at MIT/WIBR should submit the CAC form entitled “Application to Exempt Use of Animal Tissues or Body Fluids from CAC Review”. Acknowledging that animal welfare on campus is not an issue when only tissues are used, the purpose of this form is to obtain approval from the CAC because the AWR define “animal”·as living or dead vertebrates or their tissues.

These guidelines cannot anticipate all potential types of purchase order requests that involve animal use. When clarification is needed, please contact the DCM Purchasing Office (X31718) or the CAC (X39436) for guidanceM at 253-1757.

Sole Source Letter

The Office of Procurement Services will require a “sole source letter” when a single requisition total is $10,000.00 or over*. This includes equipment, service or consumable products). A sole source letter must be printed on Whitehead letterhead, addressed to the Director of Procurement Services and signed by the PI or department head. It should state why you have chosen a particular vendor for a particular product. You must also include the vendor’s name, product name, description and price.

*A sole source letter is not necessary if 2 quotes can be provided.

Change Orders

Send change order e-mail to: change quantity, cancel a line, cancel an entire purchase order, change an activity, change and account or, to add a line to the purchase order.

If the purchase order has been received and invoiced, the Office of Procurement Services will not be able to make changes to an order in Lawson. You will need to notify the Business Office if an adjustment needs to be made.

Returns

When returning an item, you must send an e-mail to the buyer. The Procurement Department will contact the vendor to arrange the return and obtain a return authorization number. Please remember to keep the product in our area. Receiving will pick up the product for return.

If the return is due to customer error, then you will need to fill out a UPS return form. Your lab will be charged for shipping this item back to the vendor.

Please keep in mind that Procurement will not be able to process any returns due to customer error under $25.00. The current cost for returns under $25.00 far exceeds the cost of the product after calculating administrative costs, freight charges and restocking charges.

Closing Commitments

After reviewing your monthly financial report, you may notice commitments that are outstanding and need to be closed.

If you need Procurement Services to either cancel or close a particular Requisition or PO, please notify the appropriate buyer. Make sure that the PO/Requisition number, activity, line number, dollar amount, vendor and, reason for closure is identified.

Home Deliveries

The Whitehead Institute Office of Procurement Services cannot authorize shipments of consumable scientific materials to an individual’s home address.

All of our vendors have been instructed to notify the Office of Procurement Services if any individual instructs them to ship material to any location other than 9 Cambridge Center or, 5 Cambridge Center.