Purchase Orders

Owned by Joel Whitney
Last updated: Mar 21, 2024 by Maria Czaplicki
The following information relates specifically to the College of Law and is to be used as guidance specifically for College of Law employees. These guidelines are subject to change as SU Procedures and Policies change.

Purchase Orders (POs) are typically used to set aside funds to purchase large items. These are not a means of paying an invoice already received. 

(warning) For expense types not on the BFAS list, a PO must be requested using the vendor's quote or estimate once it's agreed to proceed with the job. 

To pay invoices already received for expense types on the BFAS list, please see Requisitions section.

The preferred method to obtain goods and services is utilizing the electronic requisition system available through the eProcurement module available in PeopleSoft Financials. This will provide easy access to our preferred suppliers and contract pricing through the catalogs set up under the web tab. eProcurement special request requisitions have replaced the paper requisition process for all goods and services that require a purchase order.

  • Common examples of orders needing a POs include printed materials from vendors such as Century Rental, Halo, Ad Solution, Eastwood Litho, Holy Shirt, Signage Systems etc.

The College of Law submission of eProcurement special requests is currently centralized through the Budget Office. 

Departments should submit a PO request to the Budget Office by completing a requisition. 

Make sure to fill in all sections as you would on the paper form which include:

  1. Vendor name and address
  2. Requesting department contact information
  3. Complete business purpose (who, what, when where, and why)
  4. Payment amount
  5. Chartstring
  6. Instead of inserting a unique requistion number,   type "PO TBD" or "ePro".

Once complete, merge the ‘PR.pdf’ with the ‘Estimate/Receipt.pdf’ and any other supporting information (W9 if a new vendor, email converted to pdf, approvals, etc) and email the completed packet to the budget office at lawbudget@syr.edu

Suggested file naming convention for POs:  “PO TBD Halo Estimate # 1234 $500” (this outlines a PO is needed/TBD, vendor name, estimate #, total invoice amount)

  1. At that point the budget office will obtain the appropriate authorized signatures and submit the ePro Special request to issue a PO.
  2. Purchasing will issue a PO number and notify Budget and the vendor (which is why it’s important for you to provide vendor contact info on the req).
    1. Purchasing will email a copy of the PO to the submitter. Please forward the PO email to lawbudget@syr.edu for our records. 
  3. This will prompt the vendor to proceed with processing the order and we are locked into a contract.
  4. Once you receive a final invoice and the information is in line with the order you received, please send invoice and your approval to process against the PO.
    1. Please include the PO # in the email subject and ensure it is typed on the invoice
  5. Budget will finalize the approval and forward to Disbursements for processing. 
Contracts for Consultants and Non-SU employees require additional steps