Contracting for Services
Many services are provided by UVic departments, or by designated suppliers previously selected through a procurement process. Take a look at the list below to see if the service you need is already easy to request!
What are you looking to buy?
Academic services
Academic Services include the development or delivery of credit or non-credit courses, seminars, and workshops.
All contracting for Academic Services is handled by the Office of the Vice-President Academic and Provost; see their Contracting for Academic Services page for more information.
Construction and maintenance
Legal services
Photocopying and printing
Resale or disposal
See our Asset Disposal page. Purchasing Services handles all resales and disposals in-house.
Items with remaining utility must first be offered to other UVic departments free of charge. If no department currently has a use for them, Purchasing Services will facilitate a sale to an external party and profits will be given to the owning department.
Purchasing Services will also facilitate the recycle or disposal of items in compliance with Occupational Health, Safety, and Environment (OHSE).
Technology Services
For any services related to telecommunications (hardware, software, AV telephones, etc.), contact the UVic Technology Solutions Centre. They may be able to provide your service in-house or direct you to an ideal source.
Approval must be obtained from the Technology Solutions Center prior to purchasing computing or telecommunications services.
Marketing, media, graphic design
Internal communications, media relations, professional photography and videography, web development, and promotional materials are all handled internally by UVic Communications + Marketing.
Review their website to contact the appropriate office. If external consultation is required, they may already have experience with preferred suppliers.
Travel
Travel Services include, among other things, airfare, hotels, ferries, and meals.
Faculty & Staff travel is to be arranged and paid for by UVic ccard or paid personally and reimbursed (UVic ccard is the preferred option).
UVic guest travel can also be paid on UVic ccard or through arrangements with Purchasing Services.
Next, either you or the department assisting you will need to find a vendor. Your options for doing so are set by UVic's Purchasing Policy and depend on the value of the service you're looking to buy.
Most services require a Services Agreement - Non-Academic. It does not matter how small the contract amount is, the deciding factor is the level of risk involved. If you are not sure if the service that you require needs a contract, please e-mail purchase@uvic.ca before you enter into any agreement with your selected vendor.
Plan Ahead! Reach out to your Purchasing Officer before entering into an agreement with a vendor.
Click here to find your Purchasing Officer.
- Under $15,000 - you can find and select a single vendor to buy from, or optionally you can work with Purchasing Services to run a competitive procurement process. Note you will need a written quote from your chosen vendor.
- Above $15,000 - you will need to collect and submit three quotes from different vendors before deciding between them. Alternatively, you can work with us to run a competitive procurement, or fill out the Direct Award form to document your justification for selecting a single source. Note that this form must be approved by Purchasing Services before you can move ahead.
Do I need some kind of contract?
Once you've selected the vendor you want to work with, you should always draft a Services Agreement. This is a contract between UVic and the vendor, and must be finalized and signed before any work is performed.
Purchasing Services is here to help you make sure that you and the university are protected from risk, and that you get everything you need at the price you agreed to.
Without a services agreement, you and/or UVic could be liable for:
- individual health and safety risks
- losing control over intellectual property
- exposing staff, students and/or faculty to IT and privacy security violations
- violating Canadian and international law
UVic has two standard templates for Services Agreements. If the answer to any of the following questions is yes, you'll need to use the Long-Form Services Agreement, Otherwise, risk to the university is low and you can use the Short-form version.
- Is the contract risk level high? This could be physical or financial risk, or a privacy issue.
- Will there be confidential information disclosed as part of the work?
- Is a dispute resolution clause needed?
- Will you need to pre-approve any subcontractors?
- Are the insurance needs especially complicated? Ex. chartering a helicopter
- Do you require ownership of intellectual property rights in the produced material?
- Will the contractor be working outside of Canada?
Here are some key elements your Services Agreement must include:
Maximum contract amount
Special conditions
Description of services
Fees and expenses
Who can sign my services agreement?
To summarize Signing Authority policy, individuals from departments outside Purchasing Services are not authorized to sign services agreements for procurements greater than $15,000. Purchasing Services must approve and sign these agreements in order to commit UVic to the contract.
If you don't have the appropriate authority and you sign a contract, you may be binding yourself to the agreement without the university's support.
Certain university staff have privileges allowing them to bind the university to contracts below $15,000 - however, we strongly recommend that you speak to us before committing. The service you're buying may have complex risks or legal requirements that the Purchasing office is specifically equipped to handle.
How do I pay the contractor?
In most cases, you will need a Purchasing Services Buyer to create a Purchase Order or an Agreement (AGR) document in Banner. To get one, you'll need to submit a Web Requisition in the FAST application. The Web Requisition should include the following:
- Quote(s) and/or Direct Award form
- A draft of the Services Agreement
- Approval by the Account Holder & a Signing Authority for your department
- Approval from Research Accounting if necessary