AWARD - The transmission by the procurement officer or his/her designee, after all required approvals have been obtained, of the executed contract or written notice of award to the selected vendor.
BID - A statement of price, terms of sale, and description of the supplies, services, construction, or construction-related services offered by a bidder in response to an invitation for bids under procurement by competitive sealed bidding or comparable simplified procurement procedures.
BLANKET PURCHASE AGREEMENT (BPA) - An arrangement under which a purchaser contracts with a vendor to provide the purchaser's requirements for an item(s) or a service, on an as-required and over-the-counter basis. Properly prepared, such an arrangement sets a limit on the period of time it is valid and the maximum amount of money which may be spent at one time or within a specified period and specifically identifies these persons authorized to accept goods.
CHANGE ORDER - A written order signed by the responsible procurement officer, directing a contractor to make changes which the changes clause of a contract authorizes the procurement officer to order with or without the consent of the contractor.
COLLABORATIVE AGREEMENT - Is a business agreement or procurement activity involving the university and another party or parties, the primary purpose of which is other than the acquisition of goods and/or services.
CONSORTIA CONTRACT - A consortia contract is a contract that has been developed by a consortia to serve the defined purpose of both the consortia and the consortia member needs. These contracts are often competitively solicited and are made available to consortia members and may be extensible to others. Examples of consortium agreements include BTAA contracts, MEEC contracts, the Educational & Institutional (E & I) Cooperative contracts.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST - A conflict of interest is any situation in which the university is conducting business with a company that is owned, operated, or for which a UMD/USM employee has an interest. Conflicts of interest can extend to companies owned by family members of UMD employees. Conflicts of interest are to be avoided whenever possible. Each potential conflict of interest situation must be vetted to ensure Maryland State ethics laws are not violated.
The UMD Conflict of Interest Officer and Conflict of Interest Committee are charged with making determinations regarding Research related apparent Conflicts of Interest.
CONTRACT - A contract is a legally binding agreement between two parties that obliges each party to do, or not to do, a certain thing. The term "contract" encompasses all agreements intended to be binding between the parties, whether they are called contracts, purchase orders, agreements, memoranda of understanding, etc. Even oral agreements can be legally binding.
CONTRACT MODIFICATION - Any written alteration in the specifications, delivery point, date of delivery, contract period, price, quantity, or other provision of any existing contract, whether accomplished in accordance with a contract provision, or by mutual action of the parties to the contract. It includes change orders, extra work orders, supplemental agreements, contract amendments, or reinstatements and renewal options.
INVOICE - A contractor's written request for payment for supplies, commodities, services, maintenance, construction, construction-related services, architectural services, or engineering services performed or provided.
MULTI-YEAR CONTRACT - A contract that spans years and requires funding for more than one fiscal year. Note: while contract dates may span multiple years, purchase orders can be done annually or line items added as budget dollars come available. A multi-year contract does not require full funding at the onset.
PREFERRED PROVIDER - The State of Maryland has designated Preferred Providers that UMD is expected to use prior to conducting a competitive solicitation or using another contracting method. Preferred Providers are State of Maryland sanctioned providers for specific types of goods or services. UMD works with these State of Maryland Preferred Providers, whenever practical:
- Blind Industries & Services of Maryland (BISM)
- Maryland Correctional Enterprises (MCE)
- Maryland Works
PROCUREMENT - All functions that pertain to the process of buying, leasing as lessee, purchasing, or otherwise obtaining any supplies, services, construction, architectural services, engineering services, or services provided under an energy performance contract, including description of requirements, selection, and solicitation of sources, preparation and award of contract, and all phases of contract administration.
PROCUREMENT OFFICER - Any person authorized by an Institution and/or by the University in accordance with law or regulations to formulate, enter into, or administer contracts or make written determinations and findings with respect to them. The term also includes an authorized representative acting within the limits of authority.
PURCHASE ORDER (PO) - A document issued by an Institution authorizing a procurement from a vendor. If issued in acceptance of a bid or proposal, the document is an “acceptance” and forms a contract upon issuance. If issued not in acceptance of a bid or proposal, a contract is formed upon acceptance by the vendor. Acceptance is evidenced by any reasonable manner in light of the circumstances including prompt shipment or prompt promise to ship or a definite expression or written confirmation sent by the vendor within a reasonable time.
PURCHASE REQUISITION (REQUISITION) - A purchase requisition is the internal initiating document required for the purchase of items and the engagement of service providers. Purchase requisitions authorize approval to expend funds. This document is prepared electronically through the Kuali Financial System (KFS) by authorized individuals within the requesting schools and departments. Depending on various elements and method of procurement, Procurement staff will convert the purchase requisition into a PO.
SOLE SOURCE - Procurement method when a competitive source selection method cannot be used because a product or service is practicably available only from one source. A sole source purchase means that only one supplier (source), to the best of the requester's knowledge and belief, based upon thorough research, (i.e. conducting a market survey), is capable of delivering the required product or service. Similar types of goods and services may exist, but only one supplier, for reasons of expertise, and/or standardization, quality, compatibility with existing equipment, specifications, or availability, is the only source that is acceptable to meet a specific need.
TERMS AND CONDITIONS - Standard clauses and requirements incorporated into all solicitations and resulting contracts which are derived from laws or administrative procedures.