Constitution
Constitution and Terms of Reference
FORMATION: The Purchasing Department representatives of the Universities listed under “Membership” agree to participate in a cooperative purchasing group.
NAME: The name of the group shall be the “Western Universities Supply Management Association” (WUSMA).
MEMBERSHIP: The Western Universities Supply Management Association comprised of the following members:
The University of Alberta
Athabasca University
Brandon University
The University of British Columbia
British Columbia Institute of Technology
Technical University of British Columbia
The University of Calgary
The University of Lethbridge
The University of Manitoba
The University of Northern British Columbia
University of Regina
Royal Roads University
University of Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan Indian Federated College
Simon Fraser University
Trinity Western University
TRIUMF
University of Victoria
The University of Winnipeg
Consideration will be given at any time to expanding the membership, providing that the expansion is agreed upon by resolution of the majority of the group membership, and that the expansion will not go beyond the geographical boundaries of the four (4) Western provinces. CAUBO will provide the liaison between WUSMA and the other university purchasing associations in the Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic regions.
OBJECTIVES:
1. To enhance professional purchasing standards among Western university and college Supply Management personnel.
2. To exchange ideas, policies, procedures, research, etc.
3. To develop cooperative contracts where feasible, as a means of reducing the cost of doing business and to obtain maximum value for monies expended in the procurement of goods and services.
4. To provide technical sources for networking.
5. To encourage standardization of specifications for commonly purchased items.
ORGANIZATION:
WUSMA shall consist of the general membership, comprised of one (1) voting representative or his/her designate, of each of the institutions listed under “Membership”. Annually, the general membership shall elect a Chair, a Vice-Chair, and a Secretary from the general membership. Every two (2) years the general membership shall also elect a CAUBO National Procurement Committee (NPC) representative. Elected members may have their terms renewed for one (1) consecutive term only
DUTIES OF CHAIR:
The Chair shall preside at meetings of WUSMA; shall call and organize such meetings, together with the conference host institution if applicable; shall act as the procedural officer for the transaction of business; shall be empowered to represent and/or conduct correspondence on behalf of WUSMA; and shall appoint such committees as are considered necessary. The Chair shall fulfill a minimum term of one (1) year commencing after the end of the annual meeting through to the conclusion of the following year’s annual meeting.
DUTIES OF VICE-CHAIR:
The Vice-Chair shall be the designated alternate should the Chair be unavailable to fulfill his/her responsibilities. The Vice-Chair shall fulfill a minimum term of one (1) year commencing after the end of the annual meeting through to the conclusion of the following year’s annual meeting.
DUTIES OF SECRETARY:
The Secretary shall keep minutes of all meetings called for the general membership and distribute such minutes to all members of WUSMA. The Secretary shall fulfill a minimum term of one (1) year commencing after the end of the annual meeting through to the conclusion of the following year’s annual meeting.
DUTIES OF THE CAUBO NATIONAL PROCUREMENT COMMITTEE (NPC) REPRESENTATIVE:
The CAUBO member shall be empowered to represent and/or conduct correspondence on behalf of WUSMA to the Canadian Association of University Business Officers (CAUBO). This committee reports to the CAUBO Board of Directors.
MEETING PLACE:
A permanent meeting place for WUSMA shall not be established, it being the intent that members act as the host of meetings of the group, either in rotation or as convenient.
MEETINGS:
Meetings of WUSMA shall be held annually or more often as the business of the membership dictates.
QUORUM:
A quorum shall consist of a majority of the membership.
BASIC PRINCIPLES OF COOPERATIVE PROCUREMENT:
1. WUSMA members shall abide by the Professional Code of Ethics of the Purchasing Management Association of Canada (PMAC) (see attachment).
2. It is understood that only those goods and services that lend themselves to potential cost reductions because of procurement volume and/or methods of procurement for the majority of members of WUSMA, will be considered.
3. The WUSMA members shall agree upon which member shall be designated as the project coordinator to administer the competitive bid process for a particular commodity, and it is understood that no one university shall be responsible for all tendering.
4. While one of the objectives of WUSMA shall be to employ cooperative purchasing whenever possible, as a means of reducing the cost of doing business and to obtain maximum value for monies expended in the procurement of goods and services, it shall be the right of each member to determine whether they wish to participate in any particular bid or quotation, prior to it being issued. It is understood that once a bid or quotation is issued, no participating member may withdraw from the process.
5. Control of ordering, receiving and payment shall, and must be retained by each institution’s purchasing authority.
6. It is recognized that, having regard to the various mandatory policies and procedures governing the purchasing activities of the participating members, the specific policy applying to the member representative who is designated to call the cooperative bid or quotation, shall govern such items as tax conditions, public disclosure, discounts, deliveries, etc. However, when such application of the administering member’s policies or procedures would prohibit the participation of one or more members, it is understood that such policies and procedures will be identified on the documentation.
7. The competitive bid process will be followed for all WUSMA projects. Requests for bids and quotations shall be issued in an acceptable format to all members.
8. It is understood that all participating members in a particular cooperative purchasing venture will be expected to accept, and abide by, the group’s decision on accepting or rejecting a bid proposal or quotation.
PROCEDURES FOR COOPERATIVE PROCUREMENT:
1. The project coordinator will request information from participating members regarding anticipated annual requirements and suggested suppliers for the bid list.
2. The project coordinator will send a draft of the bid documentation to each participating member for their input.
3. A copy of the final bid documentation including the supplier bid list will be sent to each participating member at the same time the project coordinator initiates the competitive bid process.
4. While the competitive bid process is open, the project coordinator is the contact for supplier inquiries and/or clarification. Potential suppliers may be directed to participating members for additional information.
5. The project coordinator analyzes the submissions and prepares analysis documentation. This documentation will be couriered to each participating member, with a deadline for a response.
6. The project coordinator will prepare the final document indicating the decision and its justification. Each participating member must indicate agreement by completing and returning a sign-off sheet to the project coordinator.
AMENDMENTS:
Proposed amendments to this constitution and Terms of Reference must be mailed to the Steering Committee Chair, thirty (30) days prior to the next scheduled annual meeting for distribution to members prior to the meeting.