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Purchasing Services Quick Reference Guide

The following rules apply to ALL purchases of GOODS and/or SERVICES (including contract labor). Purchases CANNOT be split to avoid these requirements. In addition, all contracts MUST be signed by the President, CFO, or their authorized designees.

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REMEMBER:
  • Independent contractors / temporary contract labor are subject to the above rules.
  • PURCHASING APPROVAL OF INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR AGREEMENTS IS REQUIRED IN ADVANCE OF RETAINING THE CONTRACTOR.
  • Independent contractors may be utilized only through an appropriate requisition when university employees cannot adequately provide expertise to fulfill a specific objective.
  • It is NOT a substitute for adding headcount. In addition, independent contractors should be retained only if the specific task needs to be fulfilled for the university.
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:
  • Always consult Temple’s university-wide contracts before proceeding with a departmental purchase. Before beginning your purchase, please also visit the TU Portal for more information on Temple University’s purchasing processes and methods of purchasing.
  •  Required purchase orders must be obtained before a vendor is engaged and provides goods or services. Vendors should not provide any goods or services over $5,000 without a purchase order. If they do so, they risk not receiving payment from Temple University.
  •  For all purchases requiring a competitive bid, Purchasing Services reserves the right to determine whether a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a Request for Quote (RFQ) is appropriate. During a Purchasing Services conducted bid or request for proposal process, all communication must go through Purchasing Services. No proprietary information is to be distributed to competing vendors or associates outside of the bid or request for proposal process.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: 
  • Please consult the Buying and Paying channel in the TUportal's Budget and Finance tab.
  • Please contact Purchasing at 215-204-6700 or purchase@temple.edu