Queen’s new electronic procurement system will start rolling out across campus later this month.

“After extensive collaboration and engagement with the Queen’s community, we are excited to launch acQuire,” says Heather Woermke, Associate Vice-Principal (Finance). “Faculty, staff, and researchers will soon have an easy-to-use system that will better support their procure to pay activities.”

The implementation of acQuire will be staggered, with the Faculty of Education, the Department of Chemistry, Environmental Health and Safety, and the Finance and Administration portfolio receiving access first. Shared service business units will begin using acQuire in June, while the rest of the faculties will have access in July and August.

The project team will co-ordinate the rollout with business officers and departmental administrators for each faculty and shared service.

Benefits of acQuire

Queen’s is one of several Ontario universities that have implemented e-procurement systems in recent years. With online systems in place, universities have realized efficiencies and cost savings. acQuire will also:

• Eliminate the need for multiple usernames and passwords for different vendors.
• Allow users to shop from multiple vendors, adding items to their shopping cart but only having to check out once.
• Provide automated workflow for purchase orders and invoice approvals.
• Make it easier for shoppers to find, compare, and make their selection of products from suppliers.
• Reduce the wait time between placing an order and having it filled by the supplier.
• Provide clear tracking and visibility of where purchase requisitions, orders, and invoicing are in the process.
• Support electronic supplier invoices, improving the efficiency of accounts payable processes.

“The new tool set will drive improved efficiency for Queen’s, and our team is very excited and looking forward to the go-live date,” says Andy Green, Director, Strategic Procurement Services.

Training resources available

The acQuire project team will be working with departmental administrators and faculty business officers to coordinate training for each department. Online training resources will also be available on demand.

If anyone has any questions on training or on the acQuire system, they can go to www.queensu.ca/procurement/acquire or send an email to acquire@queensu.ca. Any researchers who would like customized training for their lab should contact the acQuire team at acquire@queensu.ca.