UM system tests new purchasing system

EProcurement would negotiate discounts for the university.

By Campbell Massie

Published Nov. 30, 2007

The UM system is testing a new method to obtain materials for discounted prices that could save millions of dollars over time.

The EProcurement system is designed to give faculty and staff the opportunity to buy materials for classes for a discounted price, according to the EProcurement Web site.

"What happens is that the vendors who sell supplies such as chemicals or computers on our site have to negotiate prices," said Nikki Krawitz, vice president for Finance and Administration for the UM system.

In exchange for the discounts to the university, vendors enjoy increased market share. EProcurement expects the number of vendors to increase over time, Chief Procurement Officer Bill Cooper said.

University buyers can still buy materials from other sources, but EProcurement will be able to monitor those purchases.

"We strategically looked at the venders we buy the most from," Cooper said.

Some sites with varying products, such as Dell.com, have created sites especially for the UM system, EProcurement Project Manager Jennifer Alexander said.

"Each of those computer companies would have a site with a price that has been negotiated especially for the University of Missouri," Krawitz said.

Project leaders presented the EProcurement system to the UM system Board of Curators on Thursday at UM-Kansas City where Alexander planned to demonstrate the online system live. Alexander used a slide to simulate the system's search techniques and interface.

EProcurement integrates catalog and purchasing functions from the SciQuest and PeopleSoft programs, respectively, Krawitz said.

EProcurement allows for people within the university to buy materials for a discounted price, Krawitz said.

The system uses a one-stop shopping approach that makes procurement easier, Alexander said.

"We save money by streamlining the process by doing this online," Krawitz said.

Each campus has a pilot group composed of faculty and staff who are testing the site with real purchases, supplies or equipment for their classrooms, Krawitz said. It also gives them the opportunity to compare different materials.

"It enables the individual to go out and compare their items without pulling up multiple catalogs or multiple Web sites," she said.

By streamlining costs and increased discounts, the system is expected to save the UM system somewhere between $5.4 and $17.9 million. That money will go toward other things at the schools, the EProcurement Web site said.

One of the concerns about EProcurement is getting people to use it, the company's Web site stated. They are looking for increased support from university leaders such as curators, chancellors and deans.

— News Editor Elliot Njus

contributed to this report from Kansas City, Mo.