Consolidated Services is responsible for receiving and warehousing equipment and material considered surplus by university departments. These items are offered to other university departments that may have an official need for them. Items deemed junk by the State of South Carolina Surplus Property Office may be disposed of in accordance with the South Carolina Consolidated Procurement code through the State Surplus Property office.

Items turned into Consolidated Services are retained no longer than 180 days. Items that are not used by the university are placed on a Turn-In-Document (TID) and sent to the State of South Carolina Surplus Property Warehouse for disposition.

If you need additional information about any of these items, please feel free to call us at 803-777-2156.

 

Procedures

Expand allRegional Campuses

• Consolidated Services maintains inventory records for all regional campuses on items valued at or above $5,000.00.
• Purchase orders received that pertain to regional campuses are assigned university decal numbers.
• These purchase orders are used to prepare an Inventory Form #2, Equipment Numbering Receipt or Inventory Property Report.
• The Inventory Property Report lists all purchase orders, item numbers, descriptions, university decal numbers, room and building number that pertain to the regional campus.
• The regional campus will then complete the form with any additional information such as added description, model number, serial number, building number and room number where equipment is located.
• The Inventory Form #2, or Inventory Property Report, is then returned to Consolidated Services, and the regional campus inventory records are updated. 

Computer Services

• Consolidated Services works closely with DoIT to provide up-to-date inventory records.
• Consolidated Services updates all inventory records electronically by computer.
• Inventory records are updated for new additions, information changes and items deactivated from active inventory.
• A number of programs have been formulated by DoIT to allow Consolidated Services to retrieve a wide selection of information for use in maintaining accurate inventory records.
• DoIT works closely with Consolidated Services to design new programs that will make the inventory system more efficient. 

Controller's Office

• Consolidated Services coordinates closely with the Controller's Office on all matters concerning purchase orders.
• Discrepancies between the way temporary numbers were assigned to a purchase order, and the way items were actually tagged, have to be resolved with the Controller's Office.
• Cost changes to purchase orders are correlated closely between the Controller's Office, Purchasing and Consolidated Services to maintain accurate values of university assets. 

Miscellaneous Duties

• The Annual Equipment Financial Report is prepared and forwarded to the System Vice President for Business and Finance upon request.
• Equipment Purchase Orders, Purchase Requisitions, Intra-Institutional Transfers, Inter-Departmental Transfers, Direct Expenditure Vouchers, letters, memoranda and all correspondence from departments are on file in Consolidated Services for use by office personnel to ensure all records are correct and up to date.
• Documentation for the transferring of items into and out of the Consolidated Services warehouse is handled by Consolidated Services personnel.
• Correspondence with other state agencies concerning the disposal of surplus property is handled by this office. 

Inventory of Departments

• Section 1-49.4 of the Code of Laws of South Carolina makes the heads of state agencies and institutions responsible for personal property under their supervision and requires that such property, except for expendables, be inventoried annually.
• Personal property for the purpose of inventory control is defined as furniture, fixtures and equipment that has a value of $5,000.00 or greater and each having a useful life of over two years.
• All items meeting these criteria will be tagged an inventoried.
• Each department at the University of South Carolina is required to take a yearly inventory of the property in its possession.
• Items that are on the department's active inventory that are lost, missing or stolen require approval through the Office of the President before they can be removed from inventory.
• The University Police Department must first be notified by the department of any items that are lost, missing or stolen.
• After the USCPD investigation, the department missing the property must complete an Inventory Form #8 – Deletion Request and forward it to the System Vice President for Law Enforcement and Safety.
• That office will take any action required and forward the Inventory Form #8 to the Office of the Vice President for Business and Finance for action.
• The Director of Law Enforcement and Safety will notify Consolidated Services of the Vice President's decision. Consolidated Services will, in turn, notify the department.
• Consolidated Services will spot check departments of randomly selected items of equipment by computer during the year on an unannounced basis.
• The department's spot inventory list is turned into Consolidated Services and any corrections are entered into the computer to update the inventory records.
• A list of discrepancies, if any, is compiled and sent to the department head for action to be taken and must be returned to Consolidated Services within 30 days.
• Any items which are lost, missing or stolen must be reported to the System Vice President for Law Enforcement and Safety for removal from the department's inventory.
• If the discrepancy list is not returned within 30 days, Consolidated Services will notify the Director of Purchasing who will, in turn, notify the Vice President for Business and Finance concerning additional steps to be taken in the matter.
• Any items that are discovered lost, missing or stolen on day-to-day operations must be immediately reported to the University Police Department.
• Consolidated Services will notify the department of any property that inventory personnel have observed as not being utilized so the property may be put into use or turned into the Consolidated Services Warehouse as surplus. 

Consolidated Services Warehouse (Surplus)

• Consolidated Services maintains a warehouse where university departments may turn in items that are surplus to their needs.
• If these items are in a serviceable condition, they may be reissued to other university departments.
• University departments may make inquiries to the Consolidated Services warehouse at any time to find out if surplus property is available for reissue.
• If the equipment is able to be taken by the department, a purchase requisition (available from Consolidated Services) must be completed and signed.
• A department may pick up items or submit a Physical Plant Work Request through the Physical Facilities office and have the moving crew deliver the items to the department.
• The items are transferred to the inventory of the department if they are on the active inventory of the Consolidated Services Warehouse.
• Any department turning items into the Consolidated Services Section must complete an Inventory Form #7, Equipment/Furniture Removal Request.
• A department may bring surplus items along with an Inventory Form #7 to the warehouse or submit a Physical Plant Work Request along with an Inventory Form #7 to the Physical Plant and have the moving crew deliver the items to the Consolidated Services Warehouse.
• Any storage of property by the Consolidated Services Warehouse will be short term and must have prior written approval by the Director of Purchasing.
• After a reasonable length of time, items may be declared surplus to the needs of the University of South Carolina.
• Within 30 days from the date property becomes surplus, it shall be reported to the Surplus Property Management Office (SPMO) on a Turn-In Document (TID) for sale. Upon receipt of the TID, the SPMO screener shall physically check the property listed on the TID to determine whether it is surplus or junk. The screener shall affix color coded tags to each item as it is screened to distinguish between surplus and junk.
• Property coded by the screener as surplus will be separated and picked up by SPMO vehicles. Items classified as junk can be sold, but have to be advertised in a newspaper of general circulation for 15 days in advance of the sale. If inventory chooses not to sell the junk, it shall be trashed or thrown away, hauled to dump or dumpster, etc., provided that these areas are legally approved for such disposal.
• Property that has been picked up by SPMO will be sold by them and State of South Carolina Budget and Control Board Internal Operations will send to Consolidated Services a Notice of Sale of State Property with the Bill of Sale number on it listing property that has been sold and the amount of money credited to the university or returned to the general fund of the state.
• Consolidated Services must write a memo to the University Controller's Office stating the account numbers and amounts in which to credit the money from the sales.
• The University Controller's Office then submits a Form 30, Appropriations Transfer to the Division of General Services requesting the university be credited with the funds from the sale.

 

Operational Procedures

Expand allFilling Requisitions

• Departments ordering materials from Consolidated Services fill out a purchase requisition. 
• Requisitioning departments mail requests to Consolidated Services. If a department has a rush order periodically they will bring the requisition to Consolidated Services. 

Ordering Inventory Material

• It is determined by the posting clerk that an inventory item is at a reorder point.
• The ongoing state contract is screened to determine if item is currently accessible on contract.
• If item is on state contract, a University of South Carolina purchase requisition is typed in accordance with the state contract.
• If item is not listed on the current state contract, a University of South Carolina purchase requisition is typed with reference to previous vendors.
• Consolidated Services Manager checks and signs the purchase requisition and forwards it to Purchasing to be ordered.
• Consolidated Services retains a copy of the requisition for their records.
• The date the requisition was typed, and the amount ordered is posted to the computer printout to prevent duplication.

Inventory and Consolidated Services

• Consolidated Services conducts an inventory annually.
• University of South Carolina Internal Audit supervises, examines and inspects Consolidated Services' inventory.
• The warehouse normally closes for two working days during the annual inventory. A memorandum is sent to the USC Today email to be published two weeks before the closing. The warehouse will be open for receiving only during the inventory period.
• All requisitions and receiving reports must be entered to the Information Management System before inventory can begin.
• The inventory is conducted by two teams each team consisting of two people. One team counts bin area the other team counts the material in the pallet racks.
• Each individual is given a computer printout listing of inventory. This listing is in a numerical sequence by stock number. The stock numbers in the warehouse are also arranged in the same order so that count teams follow a numerical structure. Members of count teams count ten items at a time, one member following the other. After each member has counted ten items, they stop and compare tallies. If the quantity agrees then the totals are logged on the computer printout. If the counts do not agree, the count teams will recount to resolve the difference. This system of comparing counts guarantees that an accurate inventory has been taken.
• When all segments have been carefully counted, then the inventory may be entered to the Information Management System. This is done by forwarding an updated total on hand to DoIT production control. If the updates are minimal it is less troublesome to make the revision at Consolidated Services.
• A detailed listing of the inventory is sent to Internal Audit. This list includes quantity, nomenclature, unit cost and total value. The value of inventory is derived from this report.
• Test counts are made weekly during the year to insure that quantity on hand is accurate with balance on the Information Management System. Efforts are made to reconcile any discrepancy by checking previous transactions. If any item cannot be reconciled, then it is adjusted.

Personal Use Of State Property

• All supplies, tools, equipment, materials, scraps etc. belonging to the University of South Carolina are classified as state property. They cannot be used for personal purpose or taken from the campus by any individual. There is no procedure by which any person can give away any item of state property regardless of its condition. Materials deposited in dumpsters, trash barrels, etc. are included in this category.
• The warehouse manager will be responsible for determining if material is salvageable (has monetary value) or is waste. If material is questionable, the manager will seek the advise of department head or the Office of Inventory and Property Control. If salvageable, material will be stored or disposed of through the Office of Inventory and Property Control. Waste material will be placed in dumpsters or taken to the landfill.
• Any request for Physical Plant property or Maintenance Warehouse Inventory must be for official use of the University of South Carolina.