Purchasing


Email any Purchasing employee by clicking on their name.


Wayne Szatkowski, Purchasing Manager
847-635-1635

Kathi Kuhlman, Purchasing Assistant
847-635-2607

Office hours are: 7:00 a.m.- 4:45 p.m.

Click on the following for common forms used by Oakton Communtiy College.

Requisition for Purchase Order

Request to use Visa Card

Bidders Application Form



Fed Ex Overnight Request Form. 		Purchasing's main function is to process all of the purchase requisitions for goods and services for faculty, staff and administrators.

Current Bids and Proposals
Recent Results from Bids and Proposals

The services offered include:

Extra Services What cannot be processed by Purchasing


Services
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Processing Purchase Requisitions: The purchasing process at the College is centralized and Purchasing processes all of the purchase requisitions for the entire College. College faculty, staff and administrators can submit a request for purchase by filling out a purchase requisition form, which must include a valid Oakton account number, an Administrators signature, date needed, quantity, deliver to, and as much detailed information about the items to be purchased as possible. Requisition forms may be acquired from the Purchasing Office, room 1540, on the Des Plaines Campus. There is also an excel file in OCCshare/Business Services Forms called Purchase Order Request.xls. Or click on the following Requisition for Purchase Order.
Product/Vendor Selection Guidance: If you have any questions about filling out a requisition please call anyone in the Purchasing office.
Capital Equipment Rules/Process: Each Department/Administrator must submit requests for capital equipment or special supplies to the Budget Office (according to their established guidelines/procedures). Once all requests are compliled, the President's Council then meets to review and approve the requests. The money for these approved requests becomes available on July 1st, the start of the fiscal year.

Departments then have from July 1st until December 1st to submit a requisition for the approved capital equipment or special supplies to the Purchasing Department. Depending on their need and the purchasing process that would need to be followed, these purchases are made at some point during the approved fiscal year. Many purchases of this nature take time and planning and often require Board approval. Please call Wayne at x1632 with any questions regarding the preparation and planning for your capital equipment/special supply purchases.
Office Supplies: The College has bid out a contract for the purchase of office supplies. The current contract is with Corporate Express, Inc. All office supply requisitions are processed through the Central Services Department. Please call Steven Amari at x1651 for details.
College Visa Card: Purchasing processes some orders using the College's credit card. All requests for using the credit card must be approved by Purchasing before placing any order. Requests for a purchase using the credit card requires a properly filled out purchase requisition signed by an Administrator. All receipts / invoices must be given to Purchasing for final processing. If you need to physically have the credit card for a purchase, please call x2607 to arrange use of the card.
Fed Ex Overnight Services - for the College: The College has a standard daily pickup service for overnight packages from Fed Ex. Various types of packaging and forms are available in the Purchasing office, room 1540, on the Des Plaines Campus. All packages must be dropped off at Purchasing before 4:45 p.m. in order to be picked up for next day service. Please call Kathi Kuhlman at x2607 or Stella Pillay at x1630 with any questions. Click on the following link for the Fed Ex form. Fed Ex Overnight request form.
Fax Repair Services: There are ninteen fax machines at the Des Plaines Campus and eight at the Ray Hartstein Campus that the Purchasing department arranges for repair services. If you are experiencing fax problems, please call Kathi Kuhlman at x2607 and describe the problem and service will be coordinated.
Scantron Repair Services: There are six Scantron machines at the Des Plaines Campus and two at the Ray Hartstein Campus. Purchasing arranges for all repair services. If you are experiencing any Scantron problems, please call Kathi Kuhlman at x2607 and describe the problem and a service call will be made on your behalf.
Returns from Purchase Orders: If a department received the wrong item(s) that was ordered on a purchase order, Purchasing is responsible for any exchanges/returns. Please notify Purchasing as soon as possible and keep all original shipping materials. Purchasing will call the vendor and request a return authorization code. Purchasing is required to complete the return process from start to finish. Please call Kathi at x2607 with any questions.
Expediting of Orders: After a requisition is created and a purchase order has been processed, Purchasing is reponsible for expediting that order until it has been received. Please call anyone in Purchasing to check the status of an order as well as answer any quesitions pertaining to that order, such as: shipment, prices, discounts, etc.
Amazon.com Orders: Oakton Community College has a corporate account with Amazon.com. Items, which Purchasing can obtain from Amazon.com, will be received in the Purchasing Office and then delivered to the requisitioner. All orders must have a Requisition for Purchase Order filled out and signed. Click on the following link for the requisition. Requisition for Purchase Order. Please call Wayne at x1635 with any questions.
Nameplates and Rubber Stamps: To purchase a nameplate or rubber stamp submit a requisition to the Purchasing office. If you have questions regarding the specifications of what you want or need, please contact Kathi at x2607. All orders must have a Requisition for Purchase Order filled out and signed. Click on the following link for the requisition. Requisition for Purchase Order.
Visa orders: The College has a Visa card that can be used to make purchases that can not be made using a purchase order. All orders must have a Requisition for Purchase Order filled out and signed. Click on the following link for the requisition. Requisition for Purchase Order. If you have questions regarding the use of the Visa card, please call Wayne at x1635.
All Other Online Orders: All requests for any online purchases require a signed requisition sent directly to Purchasing for processing. All shipments will be received in Purchasing and then delivered to the requisitioner. Please call Wayne at x1635 for any questions.
Office Furniture Standards: The College has standardized on the Steelcase brand of office furniture. All filing cabinets, storage cabinets, bookcases, ergonomic workstations, and office chairs that are purchased by the College, must adhere to the College standards. The College has partnered with Office Concepts to be our exclusive Steelcase vendor.

Any remodeling or new furniture project that requires a completely new workstation for employee(s) or department(s) must be submitted as a capital equipment purchase. See the section on Capital Equipment Rules/Process for more information about this process.

For any questions regarding furniture standards and/or purchases, please call Wayne at x1635.
Items Requiring Board Approval: Each month, Purchasing prepares agenda items that are presented to the Board of Trustees for approval. These agenda items indicate the rationale / justification for the purchase, the price of the item(s) and the name of the company that we are buying from.

Each year, Purchasing prepares approximately 75 agenda items.

The following are sample types of agenda items that are prepared each year.
  • A single piece of equipment of $10,000
  • Furniture - 4 ergonomic workstations @$3,500 each
  • All approved scientific equipment
  • Printing of the College Catalog
  • Maintenance Contracts
  • Construction projections
  • Annual Purchases for 400 computers
If you have a purchase over $10,000, Purchasing will prepare an Invitation to Bid (ITB) or a Request for Proposal (RFP). The process continues as follows:

An Invitation to Bid (ITB) addresses primarily dollar amount, i.e. lowest cost to the College or highest income for the College. ITB’s are usually used when you know exactly what you want, and are looking only to how much it will cost. ITB’s are awarded to the lowest responsible bidder.

Request for Proposals (RFP) are issued, in most cases, when a service is involved. An RFP allows the College to make an award based on a variety of criteria such as experience, references, samples, on-site presentations, and qualifications of company personnel -- in addition to the price and what is in the best overall interests of the College.
  1. Once you have submitted a requisition, the purchasing manager will meet with you to discuss your needs. Then, a formal, written competitive bid or proposal will be prepared. The bids are mailed to vendors to obtain competitive pricing. The bid information will include a detailed description of the item, the quantity, specific terms or conditions related to the items being purchased, general bid terms and conditions, and the bid due date (21-28 days).
  2. Once the bid document is complete, it is forwarded to the appropriate administrator for approval (1 day).
  3. The bids are then mailed to the vendors (1 day).
  4. The State of Illinois statute states that vendors must have a minimum of ten (10) days to prepare their bid response (10-14 days).
  5. Once the sealed bids are received from the vendors, the bids are opened and read aloud at a formal, public, bid opening meeting (1 day).
  6. After the bid opening, Purchasing reads through and evaluates each bid. This includes verifying the prices and confriming that all pertinent information has been submitted (14 days).
  7. Purchasing will then identify the lowest responsible vendor and call them to verify their prices (1 day).
  8. The draft agenda item is then prepared using information gathered from the bid, the company profile and the rationale / justification from the requesting department (3 days). The draft agenda items need to be fully complete two weeks before the monthly Board meeting (14 days).
  9. The Vice President for Business and Finance then discusses the agenda items with the Trustee Purchasing Committee.
  10. Any necessary corrections are made and the final agenda items are prepared. These are due one week prior to the Board meeting (7 days).
  11. The Board of Trustees votes on the purchases at the monthly Board meeting (1 day).
  12. If approved, the purchase order is issued the next day. (1 day) As you can see, it takes almost 90 days to purchase an item that is over $10,000. Please plan accordingly and get your orders in earlier in the fiscal year.


Extra Services:


Overnight Services - for Employees: The College has set up a standard daily pickup service for overnight packages from Fed Ex. Various types of packaging and forms are available in Purchasing, room 1540, on the Des Plaines Campus. All packages must be dropped off at Purchasing, before 4:45 p.m. in order to be picked up for the next day service.

The College offers this same service to College employees. The same rules for pickup times apply. A check made out to Oakton Community College for the full amount of the invoice will be required within three days of being notified of the invoice amount.

What Cannot Be Processed by Purchasing:

Blue Vouchers: Blue vouchers are processed through the Accounting department. Please contact Accounting for more detailed information.
Payroll: Please call Payroll at x1755 with any questions.
Subscriptions: All subscriptions are processed on blue vouchers by Accounting.
Check Pre-payment Requests: All pre-payment check requests are handled on a blue voucher by Accounting.
Reimbursements: All reimbursements for items already received are handled on blue vouchers by Accounting.
Travel Requests and Conference/Seminar Registrations: All travel / conference registrations and travel reimbursements are handled through Vicki Bialek. Please call Vicki at x1876 with any questions.
Library Books: Please call the Library Acquisitions department at x1648 with any questions.
Textbooks for Classes: Please call the Bookstore at x1680 with any questions.
Budget Balance Inquiries: Please call Les Pauls in Accounting at x1636.
Memberships: All memberships are processd on a blue voucher by Accounting.
Tuition for a class or Tutition Reimbursement: Please call Human Resources at X1675

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