Recording and Maintaining University Equipment

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Last Updated: June 2008

Responsible University Officer:
  • University Controller

Procedure Contact:
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PROCEDURE

Requesting to Use Capital Equipment Assets Off Campus

  1. Download the Property Disposal form (UM????) from the Financial Forms Library and request that the equipment be used off campus. The purpose of the off campus use must be for University business and must contribute to the University's mission. The upper right-hand portion of the form should be completed, with the name of the person taking the equipment and responsible for it filled in. Dean, department head, or administrator's signature is required on the form.
  2. Requestor must ensure that the University has title to the equipment wishing to be used off campus, or the usage may not be allowed. If unsure about items on projects, call Sponsored Projects Administration (SPA) at 612-624-5599.
  3. Though certain types of equipment are designed to be portable (like laptops and projectors), if the items are traveling to and from the University, and will be in transit more than 60 days, they necessitate having a form on file for their use. This enables the equipment to be tracked centrally and aids departments in case of loss.
  4. Inventory Services processes Property Disposal form (UM????)
  5. If authorized by Inventory Services, an approved copy will be sent back to the department that submitted it. If the form is not approved, the off campus use is not allowed.
  6. Inventory Services will make the appropriate adjustments to the physical record of capital equipment assets in the PS Asset Management module.
  7. There is space on the form to be updated ("Actual Return Date" and "Returned to Bldg/Room") and an updated form copy should be sent to Inventory Services when the item returns to the University premises.
  8. The same procedure should be followed for non-capital equipment, but those form copies don't need to be routed through or approved by Inventory Services. Instead, forms on non-capital equipment should be completed and maintained in departmental records.

Request to Secure an Reference Number for Fabricated Capital Equipment

  1. Does the department have a need to capitalize equipment expenses for an item that is to be fabricated, with a lifespan greater than one year, and a total cost of $2,500.00 or more?
  2. If so, copy the University Capital Equipment Fabrication Form (UM1601) from the Administrative Forms library or contact Inventory Services at 612/626-8222 to obtain the form.
  3. Complete the form, including the approvers' signatures, and forward to Inventory Services.
  4. Inventory Services will process the form and assign a University fabrication asset number for the item to be fabricated. Incomplete forms may be returned to the department for completion before a fabrication asset number is assigned.
  5. If authorized by Inventory Services, a number-stamped copy will be sent back to the department that submitted it.
  6. The stamped fabrication asset number will allow the department to refer to it when sending through capitalized expenses on other documents that should be applied toward the item being fabricated through Construction-In-Progress (CIP). The fabrication asset number should be referenced on all pertinent invoices for proper allocation of funds.
  7. After the item is declared to have been completed and placed into service, it will pass through the capitalization process and Inventory Services will locate the item in the department and affix the UM asset tag number barcode sticker to it.

Inventorying Capital Equipment Assets

  1. Inventory Services defines the scope of the area to be inventoried.
  2. Inventory Services defines the inventory control transaction defaults.
  3. Inventory Services extracts the file of assets to be inventoried and loads them into the barcode scanners.
  4. The first phase of the physical inventory is executed, going room-to-room and scanning barcodes on equipment found in known locations.
  5. Inventory results are uploaded or "dumped" back into the PS Asset Management module on a daily basis.
  6. Inventory specialists will resolve any duplicate asset tag or serial numbers.
  7. Inventory Services will match inventory results to all equipment asset information.
  8. The second phase of the physical inventory will be conducted. Specific items not yet located will be pursued with department staff and/or faculty.*
  9. A report on items that cannot be located (discrepancies) will be routed back to the department through the administrators and/or RRC managers.*
  10. As discrepancies are resolved, the department must notify Inventory Services of those resolutions.*
  11. Inventory specialists will verify those items resolved and Inventory Services director will notify department administrators and/or RRC managers of final discrepancies and/or disapproved resolutions.*
  12. Department heads, administrators, and RRC managers will be copied on Capital Equipment Inventory Report Letter, stating the statistical results of the inventory, discussing any issues, and listing any missing items (discrepancies).*
  13. Inventory Services will create physical inventory transactions deleting missing items from the capital equipment records.
  14. Inventory transactions are processed through Asset Accounting.

* Denotes departmental involvement

Tagging Capital Equipment

  1. A capital equipment asset enters into the Asset Management module through PS Purchasing, Accounts Payable, or Project Costing modules, or by manual processes (gifts, inventory accessions, inter-institutional transfers).
  2. Inventory Services reviews the items checking to see that the capitalization appears accurate and complete. If not, they are sent back to departments for correction and resubmission.
  3. The reviewed and approved transactions are loaded, moving the items into the Asset Accounting process.
  4. The report is generated to list taggable items.
  5. From that report, Inventory Services manually matches up UM inventory barcode identification stickers with asset tag numbers and attaches them to marker's cards.
  6. UM inventory barcode stickers and marker's cards are sorted by inventory personnel and assigned to various marking zones.
  7. Inventory Services personnel go to departments to locate and mark new capital equipment asset purchases for about two months, twice yearly. This generally occurs around May - June and November - December.*
  8. When items are located and marked with UM asset tag barcode identification stickers, marker's card copies are updated.
  9. Inventory Services makes adjustments to capital equipment asset records in the PS Asset Management module, based on the marker's card copy updates.
  10. Inventory Services reports to department any failure to locate new capital equipment items.*
  11. Department must help to locate the items that Inventory Services and department contact people have not located.*
  12. Department must notify Inventory Services if items reported as unlocated are subsequently found.*
  13. For any item needing to be marked with a barcode sticker that cannot be located, the respective department head and RRC manager will be notified that the item will be declared missing and a statement of loss will be forwarded to the head. The loss of the item's remaining net book value will negatively impact the department's carry forward balance report.

* Denotes departmental involvement

Transferring or Selling Capital Equipment Assets to Another University Department

Selling Capital Equipment Assets to Another Department

  1. Determine if the item to be transferred is capital equipment. If it is not, Inventory Services does not need to be notified.
  2. Query the item you wish to sell in the PeopleSoft Asset Management module to view the chartfield string the item was purchased on. Determine if the equipment was purchased with sponsored funds on a project chartfield. If so, ownership of the equipment must reside with the University at the completion of the grant/contract, or the item cannot be sold.
  3. The buyer and seller must negotiate a sale price. The dept ID/program of the seller and that of the buyer must agree upon a price at which to sell the item. Generally, parties will want to sell items at the net book value (NBV), so that the gain/loss will compute to zero. Otherwise, recording a loss for this sale transaction will negatively impact a department's carry forward balance reports.
  4. The DeptID/program selling the item should complete an Interdepartmental Property Transfer form (UM 1556) located in the Financial Forms Library and fax or mail the form to Inventory Services for processing. Make sure to complete the fields for the new contact person and location.
  5. Inventory Services will make the appropriate sale adjustments in the PeopleSoft Asset Management module.

Transferring Capital Equipment Assets to Another Department (no charge)

  1. Determine if the item to be transferred is capital equipment. If it is not, Inventory Services does not need to be notified.
  2. Transferring equipment implies that no money is exchanging hands. You can query the item in the PeopleSoft Asset Management module to see if it has a remaining net book value (depreciable) value. If the item has no remaining depreciable value, it can simply be transferred from one deptID/program to another. If it has remaining net book value, the transaction will. negatively impact a department's carry forward balance reports. Remaining depreciable value can be queried on the item through the PS Asset Management module.
  3. The DeptID/program transferring the item should complete an Interdepartmental Property Transfer form (UM 1556) located in the Financial Forms Library and fax or mail the form to Inventory Services for processing. Make sure to complete the fields for the new contact person and location.
  4. Inventory Services will make the appropriate transfer adjustments in the PS Asset Management module.

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