Using Blanket Order Requisitions in NUFinancials

What is a blanket requisition?

A type of requisition that is created to encumber 'up front' an estimated or actual amount for a service, agreement or contract to which payments are made on an ongoing basis. When an invoice is received, payments are authorized by receiving the amount of the invoice on the blanket requisition.

What rules apply to blankets?

• If $25,000 or more, requires a BD-1 (Bid Document) or SSJ-1 (Sole Source Justification).
• All blankets are routed to PPS (Procurement and Payment Services) for approval regardless of dollar amount.
• Changes to POs (Purchase Order) need to be requested using the Change Order Request Process or the Change Order Form (which will route to PPS for processing).

When should you create a blanket requisition?

Create a new blanket requisition at the beginning of each fiscal year.

When should a blanket not be created?

• Not to be used as an open line of credit to purchase non-specific goods or services in the absence of an agreement or contract.
• Not to be used for one-time service.
• Not to be used to facilitate the use of phone orders.

Navigate to Blanket Requisitions

1. Log in to NUFinancials.
2. Click the Requisition tile.
3. 
4. Click Create New Requisition.
5. 
6. Click Special Requests for Non-Catalog Requisition.

 

Requisition Order Details  

These fields provide information that NUFinancials includes in the purchase order after the requisition is approved. Required fields are denoted by the asterisk *.
Note: The University does not use the Due Date field.

1. Enter *Item Description. The description you enter should match the source description of the product.
2. Enter *Price. Enter an amount equal to the total known or estimated amount of the line.
3. Enter *Quantity. For all blanket requisitions, ALWAYS enter 1.
4. Enter *Unit of Measure. For all special requisitions, ALWAYS enter EA.

• Click on the magnifying glass

 

1. Type the first two letters of the unit into the Unit of Measure field.
2. Then, click Look Up.

 
Alternatively, you can scroll through the units of measure to search or just type it.

• Select the Unit of Measure for your desired measurement.

7. Click the Category magnifying glass to look up the categories.

 

8. Click the Category link that best describes the kind of non-catalog item you are requisitioning.
9. You can either select from the list provided or search for a specific category

• To search specific category, type the name and then click “Find”

 
Note: To select the category of capital goods, select the appropriate asset category.

Supplier Information

10. Click the Supplier Name magnifying glass to run a search for the supplier directly from this field.
11. 

11.  Enter the name of the Supplier in the Name field.

• Click “Find”

1. Search results appear in Supplier Search. Click the Supplier ID link to select the Supplier.

 

13. In Supplier Item ID, type the supplier catalog identification, if applicable. This could be the catalog number, quote number, or other unique identifier provided by the supplier. Not all suppliers utilize a supplier catalog ID, so you may not need to enter it.

Manufacturer Section

NOT in Use.

Additional Information Section

1. If needed, enter comments into Additional Information. Comments are applicable to the line item and not the entire requisition
2. Click the Send to Supplier checkbox if the comments should be sent to the supplier on the purchase order.

• Show at Receipt box is not typically used or generally recommended.
• Show at Voucher is infrequently used.

16. Click Add to Cart to add the item to your shopping cart.

17. This will appear as 1 Line next to the shopping cart icon at the top.
18. When you are finished adding line items, Click Checkout at the top of the page.

The Review and Submit step is where you enter ship to codes, chart strings, budget check, and save and submit the requisition.

1. Enter Requisition Name, beginning with BLK or other naming convention as determined by your school/department so it is easily recognizable as a blanket when viewing your list of requisitions. Maximum number of characters is 30.   

2. Click on the Requisition Type magnifying glass. Select Blanket Order.

 

Requisition Lines Section

Option: Adding Attachments

3. To add an Attachment, click Edit next to the comment bubble.

 

4. Click Add Attachment. Choose and upload a file

 

5. Once you’ve uploaded the attachment, click OK. 

 

Ship To Codes

6. To view the hidden section that contains the Ship To and Chart String fields for a line item, click the Triangle next to that line item in order to expand the section.

 

7. Click the magnifying glass next to Ship To: to look up the ship to code. A Look Up window appears.

• In the Description field, type the first letters of the department name. If you know the location ID, you can also type in the “Ship To Location” box.
• Click Look Up.
• Click the Ship To Location code that matches your department. If there is more than one location for your department, select the one that designates the appropriate drop-off location / delivery point.

 
At this time, you can input the Attention To field, if it hasn’t already been populated with the correct name.

Accounting Lines Section (within Requisition Lines Section)

All chart strings utilize Fund, Dept, and Account codes, at minimum. If you do not know which chart string to use, see your manager.

1. To view the hidden section that contains the chart string fields for a line item, click the triangle next to Accounting Lines.
2. Then click Chartfields2.

3. In Fund, enter the Fund code.
4. In Dept., enter the Department code.
5. Scroll right to view Account. In Account, enter the Account code.
6. If you want to add another chart string, click on the "+" sign at the end of the chart string row. To delete click on "–"

 

Important Note: You need to enter your chartstring information before you click on the ‘Line Details’ icon in order to check the Amount Only checkbox. If you fail to do this, you will not be able to save information entered on the Line Details page until you go back and add chartstring information.
For each line on Amount-Only Requisitions (Blankets, Grant Subcontracts, and Receive by Dollar Amount), you must select the Amount Only checkbox in Line Details. Generally, a Blanket and Receive by Dollar Amount Requisition should only have a single Line. Many times, a Grant Subcontract will have to two Lines; One for a Grant Subcontract Line that is Greater Than $25k and one for a Grant Subcontract Line that is Less Than $25k.

1. Click the Line Details icon .  (Located at right for each requisition line).

2.  Select the Amount Only checkbox. By checking the Amount Only box, this will automatically update your quantity to 1. Make sure to enter the right type of Physical Nature  

3. Click OK.  

1. Requisition Comments:  Enter a Comment to explain the reason you are creating a blanket requisition, the length of time the service covers, and any other information that will assist in getting the blanket approved.  For example:  Blanket for cell phone services for 24 months as requested by Professor Smith.
2. Approval Justification. If you want your comments viewable on the Approval Pages for PPS and all other Approvers, you should enter Comments in the ‘Approval Justification’ section.  
3. Scroll down and Click Check Budget.
   1. The budget check ensures the chart string(s) is valid and has no spending controls against it that would prevent you from submitting the requisition.
   2. Successful budget checking pre-encumbers or earmarks the funds.

4.  A pop-up message appears regarding saving and budget checking the transaction. Click OK. 

      

5. When finished budget checking, a Budget Checking Status will appear as Valid.

 

6. Click Save & Submit

1. After you save and submit your Requisition, a Confirmation page appears.

• The Requisition ID is available on this page. This is for internal use ONLY.

•  

  The Requisition is submitted to workflow for approval.

  i. See FMS804 Approvals and Workflows for more information.

   

   

What should I do if my ‘Ship To’ code keeps disappearing?
Go to Requisition Settings and enter the Ship To code from there. This will allow you apply the ‘Ship To' for each Line.
What happens if you click the backspace button multiple times while creating a Requisition?
If you click your backspace button multiple times to erase information while creating a requisition, you may get kicked out of the requisition and your requisition will not be saved. Please highlight the information that you wish to delete, and then click on ‘Delete’.
How do I go back to fix my line item information for a Non-Catalog Requisition?
To fix the Line information for a Non-Catalog requisition, click on the description of the line item and it will take you back to the Create Requisition page, make your changes to the line information, and then click ‘Apply’ to save the changes.

Why do I get the following message when I flag the Amount Only check box on the line details page?

This message is received when users flag the ‘Amount Only’ check box on the Line Details page before adding the Chartstring information.  In order to avoid this message, please add the line Chartstring information before flagging the Amount Only check box on the Line Details page.

What happens when I forget to enter a requisition name in the Requisition Name field?
If you do not enter the Requisition Name when on the Summary Requisition page, the Requisition ID generated by the system will automatically populate the Requisition Name field.
What should I do if the Budget check status is invalid or error?
If you get an error on the Budget Validation Status, review the following link for more information about the error: http://www.it.northwestern.edu/admin-systems/nufinancials/Errors.html.