When purchasing goods through eBuy, three key roles come into play:

• Requester: This is the person who chooses/uses items being purchased.
• Preparer: This is the person who enters purchase data into the system.
• Approver:  This is a person in the department who electronically approves the requisition. The approver is often the supervisor of the Requester and has Signature Authority for up to a specified dollar amount.

All Laboratory personnel with an LDAP (email) account are authorized to use eBuy. With this authority, eBuy users must comply with the Laboratory’s purchasing standard practices. The maximum eBuy order limit is $25,000.

Splitting eBuy Orders

The intentional splitting of an eBuy order into multiple orders to circumvent required approvals or the maximum eBuy order dollar limit of $25,000 is prohibited. It is the responsibility of all eBuy Requesters, Preparers and Approvers to avoid possible order splitting.

• The single order approval threshold (purchases greater than $500) was established to ensure that purchases are approved as an appropriate business expense and are being charged to the proper project.
• The maximum eBuy order limit of $25,000 was established to ensure that we do not miss opportunities to negotiate a more favorable price when larger quantities are being acquired, resulting in savings to the Requester’s project.

If you are purchasing multiple quantities of individual products that total over $25,000 or individual products over $25,000, we encourage you to contact our Procurement Help Desk.

eBuy orders are routinely reviewed to identify possible split orders. If it appears that a split order has been made, the Requester, Preparer and Approver will be contacted for clarification. Final determination as to whether order splitting occurred will be made by Procurement. If it is found that an order split has occurred, the individuals involved will be informed and reminded about the prohibition. Repeated occurrences by a single individual will result in the issue being brought to the attention of department management. 

Approvals/Workflow

eBuy transactions are subject to dollar amounts and may require the permission of an Approver. Hazardous and restricted items also require Approver permission. eBuy users must obtain department financial guidance and determine appropriate projects to charge before creating eBuy requisitions. The Requester is responsible for gaining approval on all orders.

Below are some of the approvals that may be required, depending on the type of purchase:

Purchases of up to $500

In general, eBuy requisitions of $500 or less do not require approval from an Authorized Signer except for in the following cases:

• The Preparer or Requester is an affiliate
  
• The department or project in question is set up to always require approvals

Purchases Greater than $500

An Authorized Signer must always be entered to approve eBuy transactions over $500.

Restricted Items

Restricted Items require special approvals, controls or safety measures. Restricted Items purchased through eBuy are automatically routed to the designated EHS contacts for approval or review. eBuy users must still comply with safety and other requirements associated with the items on this list.