Departmental Purchase of Computers

Purpose of the Policy

Azusa Pacific University (APU) recognizes that it is operating in a very dynamic environment and, as such, seeks to ensure that computer needs that could not have been anticipated in the normal planning and budgeting cycle for a department can be met without delays that would negate the benefits to be derived from meeting the need. This policy is to ensure that computers purchased by departmental funds, outside of the University computer budgeting process, will fulfill the purposes and provide the benefits to the University for which they were purchased.

Background

APU has established a budget review process to ensure that computer purchases are clearly support the planned fulfillment of its mission and goals. APU also recognizes that God is sovereign and that opportunities to advance the mission of APU will appear that cannot be anticipated. These may require the acquisition of computers for which funds had not been budgeted for Information Technology (IT). Departments that are called to help meet the challenges of advancing the mission of APU through these opportunities may have funds available to purchase these computers. However, APU recognizes that the total cost of ownership of such a purchase extends beyond the initial expenditure for the hardware and software. There are unseen costs that would typically be included in IT’s budget. They include labor and materials costs for setup, regular maintenance, problem resolution, server services, and network services. For departmental computer purchases, the funds for those costs have not been budgeted, but must nevertheless be provided to ensure that IT can pay for these critical services and materials. Thus, all these factors must be addressed in any computer purchase, and especially those by departments.

Scope

This policy applies to all computers for use by part-time and student employees of Azusa Pacific University purchased from department funds outside of the APU budget process. The following issues are addressed in this policy:

  • Criteria for the justification for the acquisition of computers.
  • Financial responsibility of departments that fund the acquisition computers.
  • Criteria for inclusion in the computer refresh cycle.
  • IT service commitment.

Policy

Departments will be permitted to fund the purchase of desktop computers out of the departmental budget. The dean of the department or a delegate of the dean must agree to the conditions below to secure approval for the purchase. The CIO, or his delegate, may deny the purchase of the computer if, in his judgment, there are extenuating circumstances that would preclude the use of the computer for its stated purpose.

  1. Computers funded by departments will be used only for part-time staff and student workers. This process will not be used to acquire computers for full-time staff and temporary staff.
  2. The department will comply with the policies governing the provisioning of computers to part-time staff and student workers.
  3. The department will fund the incidental nontechnical costs of placing a computer in its area. These include, but are not limited to:
    1. Furniture
    2. Workspace
    3. Peripheral devices
  4. The department will transfer $6,000 to IT at the time of approval. This amount will be to provision, for a four-year period:
    1. The desktop computer
    2. Delivery of the desktop computer to the department
    3. Setup and maintenance of a network connection
    4. Server space
    5. Hardware setup and support, and
    6. Standard software setup, licensing, and support
  5. The department will comply with APU’s policies and guidelines for ergonomic compliance in the intended placement and use of the computer.
  6. The need for the use of this computer will be reviewed by IT no later than 18 months after delivery, and must be reconfirmed before the computer can be replaced after four years. If the need cannot be reconfirmed, the computer will be removed at the end of the four-year period.
  7. Should the need be reconfirmed prior to the end of the four-year period, the department will take one of the following steps:
    1. Request and secure approval through the standard APU budgeting process to increase the refresh budget by $2,000 in order to include the computer in the standard refresh cycle, or
    2. Commit to transferring $6,000 to IT to replace the computer after four years, and continue provisioning of all services for an additional four-year period.

Any questions relating to the contents or implementation of this policy should be addressed through the Chief Information Officer.

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