Chapter 5 Ordering

5.1 General Ordering Notes

• Pay attention to the available amount of disposables. Many orders take several days for the shipment to arrive. If you use the last pipette or culture plate and we can’t get any more for a week, everybody’s work suffers! When in doubt, just order multiple boxes of things like pipettes or reorder immediately after you open the last box.

• Get quotes on kits or biologics exceeding $300. If we buy in bulk, we will almost always get a discount off the website price. All you have to do is email or call the sales department for a company and they will provide a quote to be used on your order. Names, contact information for sales reps, and updated product quotes should be recorded in the Google Drive Purchasing Folder. If you are ordering from a new vendor that is not in the Vanderbilt system, you must get a quote and fill in the company information in the purchase request form.

• Purchase from Chem Stock whenever possible. Chemicals can be purchased from Fisher but typically the Chem Stock has the same ones at cheaper prices (especially 200 proof ethanol), and if the items are in stock, you can get them right away. You will need to make sure you have the proper secondary container for transferring the chemicals back to lab.

• When purchasing from Fisher or VWR, we do not pay shipping.

• Many disposable items that we use are available through the Molecular Cell Biology Resource Core (MCBR) - if stocked, these items are avaliable immediately and we do not pay shipping costs. If not purchasing in bulk, always buy from MCBR if possible. They stock many items from Thermo Fisher Scientific (Life Technologies), Sigma Aldrich, Promega, Qiagen, and Bio-Rad that we use frequently. You can also order non-stocked items through the Core that will NOT include a shipping charge, but you will have to wait for them to ship (a useful option if you don’t need these items immediately).

• One Purchase Order Form and one requisition must be filled out for each vendor you are ordering from. You cannot combine multiple vendors on the same purchase order forms. You can split orders from one vendor onto different grants using the same purchase order form.

• Do your research if you are buying new antibodies. We typically can find antibody product information using papers related to our research or by searching in BenchSci.

• Here is a helpful website for ordering things through Vanderbilt.

5.2 On Campus Core Facilities

There are a couple places on campus where reagents and chemicals are stocked and can be purchased for immediate use.

5.2.1 Chemistry Storeroom (aka “Chem Stock”)

Chemicals can be purchased for immediate use at the Chemistry Stock Room (located in the Chemistry building of the Stevenson Center Complex) including 200 proof ethanol, bleach, and acetone. This storeroom also has many other useful items such as NMR tubes, beakers/flasks, gloves, lab notebooks, lab coats, safety glasses/goggles, and tubing. Items can be ordered using the iLab Chemistry Storeroom webpage for pick up. Make sure you have the proper secondary container if transferring chemicals like acetone from the storeroom to the lab. Ethanol and bleach do not need secondary containers.

5.2.2 Molecular Cell Biology Resource Core (MCBR, aka “The Core”)

Many disposable items that we use are available through MCBR for immediate use including PBS, UltraPure Water, Western Blot secondary antibodies, DMEM/F12, Neurobasal Medium, B27 supplement, N2 supplement, etc. This is the best option if you need a reagent immediately or are not buying in bulk. MCBR is located in rooms 902 and 904 of Light Hall. In addition to stocking supplies, MCBR also provides DNA/RNA oligo and siRNA ordering services, is an instrument facility (rtPCR systems), and a cell culture media preparation service. Purchasing items will be conducted through your iLabs account while you are in the Core. You can also also check whether items are in stock or request for them to be purchased using the iLab VUMC MCBR Core (Molecular Cell Biology Resource webpage).

5.3 Ordering Training

5.3.1 Departmental Shopper

Departmental shoppers are able to create requisitions in Oracle, but are not able to submit their requisitions for processing. They must reassign their requisitions to a Procurement Requester for the order to be placed. Every lab member should become at least a Departmental Shopper.

1. Access the Introduction to Oracle Cloud Procurement training module in Oracle using the steps listed in the Training Chapter.

2. Open the “Me” section in Oracle.

3. Click the “Roles and Delegations” button.

4. Click the “Add” button to request the role of VU_Departmental Shopper. Click “Save” to confirm.

5. Make sure that VU_Departmental Shopper is included in your Role Requests Section. This role should become active within a business day.

This link describes instructions listed above with images.

5.3.2 Procurement Requester

Procurement Requester are able to create and submit requisitions in Oracle.

1. Email Felisha to ask her to put you on the list for the purchasing training course in Oracle. Let her know if you are already a Departmental Shopper and that you would like to become a Procurement Requester. At least a few lab members should become a Procurement Requester.

2. Complete the online training, which includes meeting with Felisha or the FUM.

3. Attend a training session conducted by Purchasing Services.

4. Have someone in the lab review your first catalog and non-catalog orders.

5.4 How to place orders

Commonly purchased items are listed in this spreadsheet. This Purchasing Folder also stores additional useful ordering information.

5.4.1 Prior to Creating a Requisition in Oracle

1. Download and fill out the Purchase Request Form.

   • Required information includes: Vendor, Justification, POET Numbers, Item Quantity, Unit, Model/Catalog #, Description, Unit Cost, and Total Cost , Quote Number (if applicable).

   • If splitting order among many grants, list this information in the in the COA/POET number(s) section.

   • Justification should include information about what you are purchasing and how it will be used for the grant you are charging it to.

   • General lab items can have a justification such as “[Item] will be used for general lab procedures/cell culture for [grant name].”

     • Amazon orders must also include this statement : “These items could not be found with these specifications or this price from any other vendor.”

   • Save a copy of this file for your records. The recommended naming format is “Lippmann lab purchase request form - YearMonthDay - Vendor.xlsx.” Make sure to save your quotes too for future reference.

   • You can also check the Aquiire catalog for the prices of your items, as these prices are often lower than on the normal vendor websites.

   • One purchase request form should be filled out for each vendor you are purchasing from.

2. Send the PO request forms (and quotes if applicable) to Ethan for approval. Make any edits that he lists and resend for final approval. Save his approval emails for later.

3. Once you have Ethan’s approval, you can proceed to creating a requisition in Oracle by selecting the “Purchase Requisitions” button in the Procurement tab.

5.4.2 Catalog Orders

Catalog orders refer to any vendor that can be found on the Aquiire catalog. These vendors include Abcam, Cell Signaling Technology, Fisher, Guy Brown, McMaster, Sigma, IDT, and VWR. A list of the current vendors in the Aquiire catalog and additional tips can be found here.

1. Click on the down button next to “Shop by Category” and select “Aquiire.”

2. Select the vendor you are ordering from.

   • Make sure that the vendor is linked to your Oracle Cloud account before proceeding. The page usually lists your email or notes the Vanderbilt Purchasing Department on the home page.
   • If you are not linked, simply return to the Aquiire catalog page and reselect the vendor.

3. Add the items you have been approved to purchase.

4. Go to your cart and checkout. This should return you to the Aquiire Catalog.

   • If you have a promo code for your order, you should input this information on the vendor website before checking out.

   • For many quotes for Aquiire vendors, you can enter the quote number before you check out. For Fisher, you can search for your quote by going to “Your Account” at the top right and selecting “Quotes” in the drop-down menu. If a vendor does not have a way to enter quote information through the catalog, you will need to follow the non-catalog order instructions.

5. Click the “Check Out” button on the Aquiire Catalog page, which will create the beginning of your requisition.

6. For the “Description” section, include this information at the minimum: Your Last Name - Lippmann - Vendor. You can also include information about what you are ordering in this requisition if you want.

7. Copy and paste your justification from your purchase request form to the “Justification” section.

8. Under attachments at the top right section of the Requisition, include a copy of Ethan’s approval. Make sure the Category is set to “Approver.” Click “OK” to save. See the “Information to Include When Reassigning to a Procurement Requester” section for additional attachments to include if you are a Departmental Shopper.

9. Make sure your “Deliver-to Location” is set to Olin Hall 107.

   • The exception is AL Gas Orders.

   • You can make this your default by clicking the pencil next to your name in the “Requisitions” page. You can then change your “Deliver-to Location” to Olin Hall 107, and then click on “Save and Close.”

10. Each item needs to have the Billing information filled out. You can edit multiple items by selecting all the items that go on the same grant, clicking the down arrow by “Actions,” and selecting “Edit.”

    • Under “Project Number,” put the grant number before the period (ex: 601413 for CZI).

    • Under “Task Number,” put the grant number after the period (ex: 1 for CZI or 10 for Start-Up).

    • The “Expenditure Type” should be “SuppLab” for almost every requisition you make.

    • The “Expenditure Organization” is 15220 - Chemical Engineering. This is true for all requisitions you make no matter what your home department is since Ethan’s primary appointment is in the Chemical Engineering Department.

    • You should fill out the “Charge Account” with the following information. You can edit this section by clicking the button directly to the right of the text box.

      • Entity: 150 - School of Engineering

      • NetAssetClass: 15 - Sponsored Contract and Grants (except Start Up which is 10 - Unrestricted Faculty and Student Organization Funds)

      • FinancialUnit: 15220 - Chemical Engineering

      • Account: 6105 - Supplies Expense - Lab

      • All other section should be kept at the default (000 or 0). These are just potential future labeling numbers that are not currently in use.

      -Click “OK” when done filling out.

    • “Budget Date” should be the date you are submitting the requisition.

    • If adding multiple items to the same billing information, put 100% in the “Percentage” section. If splitting the same item across multiple grants, send to a Purchase Requester to fill out as this can get slightly complicated.

11. You can save your requisition by hitting the “Save” button. It is recommended that you do this often. If you want to save the requisition to work on later, you can click the down arrow next to “Save” and click on “Save and Close.”

12. If you are a Purchase Requester, you can hit the “Submit” button when you are done editing a requisition. If you are a Departmental Shopper, you can reassign your requisition to a Purchase Requester by clicking on “Save and Close.” Then you will need to click the requisition to reopen it, select the down arrow next to “Actions,” and choose “Reassign.” You can search the Purchase Requester’s name, and make sure you check “Send notifications to this person” so that they know you have transferred a requisition for them to check and submit.

5.4.2.1 AL Gas Orders

We purchase liquid nitrogen, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen gas from AL gas. For gas orders, you will need to include our account number 1218 and the quantity of tanks being delivered/removed from the room number in your purchase order form. You should use the search function on the left of the Aquiire page to find the gas tanks needed and add to cart (you don’t use the AL Gas catalog). You should change the delivery location in your requisition from Olin 107 to the room the gas tanks need to be delivered to. In the requisition’s “Notes to Supplier” field and the “Justification” field, you should write the following information: “Please deliver to Olin Hall [room number]. Gas account #1218.” Also include the number of tanks that you would like removed from the lab space if swapping out multiple tanks. If you change out a tank or empty a tank, you should put in an order for a new tank immediately. The liquid nitrogen tank should be ordered when you notice that the tank is almost empty or if you have emptied the tank.

5.4.3 Non-Catalog Orders

Non-catalog orders refer to vendors that are not on the Aquiire catalog. This includes Peprotech, Genscript, Ted Pella, and Addgene. There are four different types of non-catalog requisitions, but we almost always use the mon-catalog order by quantity and rarely use the non-catalog order by amount. Non-catalog order by quantity should be used if you’re buying a specific number of an item (ex. 2 incubators, 5 tweezers) and non-catalog order by amount should be used for things like service/maintenance.

1. Under the “Request Forms” sections of the Requisition page, select “Non-Catalog Order by Amount.” This will bring you to a page where you fill out the information for one item that will be on this order.

2. Under “Supplier,” search for your vendor.

3. If applicable, provide a part number in the “Item/Part Number” section. Otherwise, just put “N/A.” For orders containing multiple items, we will add each item one at a time to our cart.

4. Under “Item Description,” write any information that might be helpful in helping the Purchasing Department place the order with the vendor. For example, if you are ordering a peptide, make sure you include the sequence information in this section. You will also want to place the item name and part number (if applicable) in this section as well. Make sure this information matches your quote and/or the vendor’s website.

5. For the “Category” section, you will usually select “Lab Supplies” or “Lab Equipment.” The exception is if you are purchasing software, such as BioRender, which is considered “IT Computer Software.” Additionally, if an item is more than $5,000, you must go through the capital equipment process.

6. For UOM name, you will usually select EA (each), and add quantity information in the item description section. For “Amount,” you will add the cost of each item based on your quote or the vendor website.

7. Add your item to your cart. This will create the requisition with the item you just added, but will NOT save it. Navigate to the cart by clicking the blue number next to the shopping cart icon in the top right, then selecting “Review.”

8. To add additional items, make sure the requisition line of the item you added is selected, then go to actions -> duplicate. This will create an identical line, line item 2. Select the line, then go actions -> edit. Fill out the item description, category name, quantity, UOM Name, Price, and Item/Part Number sections for the new items, then hit “ok” to save changes. If this item is on a different grant, you will need to edit the grant information as well. Repeat for each item.

9. You can either save your requisition to work on late by clicking the “Done” button. Otherwise, you can continue to work on the requisition by clicking on the cart button at the top right of the screen.

10. Fill out the requisition form the same way you would fill out a catalog order requisition form. Make sure you include the quote number in your description name (if applicable). Additionally, make sure you include the following list of attachments:

    • To Buyer: Attach Quote (if applicable)

    • To Supplier: Attach Quote (if applicable)

    • To Approver: Attach Quote (if applicable)

    • To Approver: Attach Ethan’s approval email

11. Submit your order by reassigning it or submitting it yourself.

5.4.3.1 Addgene Orders

In order to order products from Addgene, you need to greate an account. Once you receive your purchase order (PO) from Purchasing Services, you can add your items to your online cart and choose “Pay by Purchase Order” when you are checking out. If you do not enter your order in Addgene yourself, your order will not be placed, and your items will never arrive.

5.4.4 Amazon and Capital Equipment Orders

Send your Amazon order purchase request form and Ethan’s approval email to the Chemical Engineering Department. The subject of the email should be “Your Last Name - Lippmann - Vendor.” Make sure your justification includes this statement in your purchase request form: “These items could not be found with these specifications or this price from any other vendor.” Capital equipment is when at least one component is greater than $5,000. If you are unsure, talk to Purchasing Services. These steps should be followed for any vendor that uses credit cards for ordering rather than Oracle Requisitions.

5.4.5 New Vendors to Vanderbilt

If a vendor is not listed in Aquiire or when searching in the supplier section of a non-catalog order:

1. Double check that the supplier is actually not listed. Many vendors use a different name. When searching in Oracle, be sure to check both “Supplier” and “Alternate Name.”

2. If the vendor is not a registered supplier with Vanderbilt, you will need to start the process, which can take a few weeks. Only purcurement requestors, not departmental shoppers, can do this process. You can follow the “New Supplier Requests” instructions.

3. You will need to ask for the following information from the vendor:

   • an IS Form W-9,

   • a copmleted, signed ACH/Bank form (copy on the procurement requestor website),

   • a contact name, address, phone number, and email for a vendor employee. You will need to enter this information into Oracle. When you enter Oracle and navigate to the page where you can select the tile “Purchase Requisitions,” there is another tile next to it listed “Suppliers.” Select the Suppliers tile, then on the right sidebar click the tab above the magnifying glass tab, then select “Register Supplier” and fill out the information. You will be notified when the request has been completed and the supplier is registered with Vanderbilt. You will then be able to place non-catalog orders with them.

5.4.6 Information to Include When Reassigning to a Procurement Requester

When you are reassigning your requisition to a Procurement Requester, please include the following information:

• Purchase request spreadsheet

• A copy of Ethan’s approval

• Quote (if applicable)

Additionally, please check the box to send a notification to the Procurement Requester so that they know it has been reassigned to them. Procurement Requesters will approve it as quickly as they can so that the order gets placed.

5.4.7 Information to Include When Asking a Lab Member to Order Your Supplies

Sometimes lab members will send out a Slack message to see if anyone wants to add items to their orders. If you want them to order something for you, please include the following information:

• Name of item

• Catalog number

• Vendor (if asking them to create a new requisition for your supplies)

• Quote (if applicable)

• Quantity of item you want ordered

• Link to website (optional, but helpful if not a commonly purchased item)

5.4.8 Approving Orders

For some vendors, Purchasing Services will send you an email to check that you were charged the correct amount and that the items arrived. When you get this email, you can either approve it in Oracle or you can approve the email directly (click the approve button and send an empty email). Make sure you do this in a timely manner because if there are too many orders that are awaiting approval, Vanderbilt and/or the vendor may halt all future orders (from any lab) until the outstanding approvals are answered.

5.5 Commonly Used Grants

These are commonly used grants to purchase lab supplies. Ethan may direct you towards more project specific grants depending on your work.

• Discetionary accounts: FF_220114.10 and FF_220114.30
  • Generally don’t use unless buying capital equipment or Ethan instructs you to use it. The Start-Up grant is also used to purchase office supplies.
• CZI: 601413.1
  • For activities that are specific to BBB transporter biology or don’t “fit” on other grants (pseudo-discetionary money).
• R01: SFP_300234.1
  • For most cell culture supplies, disposables, and general wet lab reagents.