University of California
ANR Employees

Equipment Inventory

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Page Contents

Definition, Policies, and Procedures
     Definition
     Summary of Policy
     Procedures

Equipment Inventory Topics
Business Operations Center (BOC) Role
Basic Insurance & Theft Insurance
Equipment Disposal and Donation
References/Website Links
Capital Asset Management
Research Equipment Tax Exemption

Definition, Policies, and Procedures

Definition

All equipment that is owned by the University, or that is in the care and custody of the University is classified as inventorial or non-inventorial. Inventorial equipment is defined as:

  • Non-expendable, tangible, personal property which has an acquisition cost of $5,000 or more, is freestanding, is complete in itself, does not lose its identity when affixed to or installed in other property and has a normal life expectancy of one year or more.

  • Any item designated theft-sensitive. For UCCE, all computers and LCD projectors with an acquisition cost of $1,500 or more are designated theft-sensitive.

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Summary of Policy 

  • County Directors and Principal Investigators have primary responsibility for the care, maintenance, records and control of equipment in their custody and/or all property acquired with University funds.
  • An Authorization for Movement or Removal of UC Property should be completed and filed in the County Office for all equipment that is regularly assigned to a location other than the County Office (such as an advisor's home) or regularly transported (such as a laptop computer).
  • An biennial physical check of all inventoried equipment in each county is required. County Directors will receive an Inventory Register with instructions on conducting the inventory check.

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Procedures

  • When new equipment is purchased, the county office will receive an Inventorial Equipment Acquisition Form to be completed and returned to the Regional Office for processing. Attached to the form will be a Property Number sticker which must be affixed to the equipment.

  • Physical inventories are only required for items with an original acquisition value at or above the current equipment threshold of $5000 (including tax and shipping).

  • Inventories are due every October 31st based on your custodial code

What the ANR Business Operations Center (BOC) Team Verifies:

  • UCOP Tag # printed on the decal
  • Description 
  • Manufacturer
  • Model number and serial number
  • Location 

Please confirm each capital asset on BOC's spreadsheet and note any changes by October 21st of a given year. This allows the BOC team adequate time to make updates and turn in our reports. 

Insurance

  • Equipment purchased on University funds is covered by the Basic Property Insurance Program. An Additional Theft Insurance Program is available upon request through the Davis campus. The current rate is $0.40/$100 of value annually. The additional theft program is designed to lower—not eliminate—the deductibles of the Basic Property Insurance Program.
  Basic Insurance
Policy Deductible
Additional Theft Insurance
Policy Deductible
Forced entry theft $1000 $250
Non-Forced entry theft $5000 $1000

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Equipment Disposal or Donation

This guide will help you with the procedures for disposing of non-functional equipment, donating unneeded equipment, and handling equipment with stored information. Please follow these best practices to ensure compliance with UC Davis policies.

Disposing of Non-Functional Equipment

Step 1: Verify Asset Tags

Ensure the equipment does not have an asset tag. If it does, contact the BOC for further instructions.

Step 2: Proper Disposal

If the equipment does not have an asset tag, you can dispose of it through UC Davis AggieSurplus or as authorized through the local county equipment disposal process.

    • Electronic Waste: Consult your local waste management guidelines for electronic waste disposal.
    • Remove: UC property number decal and any other identifying marks before disposal.

Donating Unneeded Equipment

Step 1: Verify Asset Tags
Ensure the equipment does not have an asset tag. If it does, contact the BOC for guidance on donation procedures.

Step 2: Donation Process
No Asset Tags: For equipment without asset tags, requests to donate surplus equipment to non-profit agency should be forwarded to the Regional Office for approval and may be granted on a case-by-case basis. All donations must be requested in writing, on official letterhead, by an officer of the educational institution, other governmental body, or non-profit organization.

    • Remove: UC property number decal and any other identifying marks before donating.

Handling Equipment with Stored Information

Any equipment that has stored information must be handled with special care to ensure data security. Note, many units mistakenly believe that drilling a hole into a laptop is sufficient to destroy sensitive data on a hard drive, but this does not effectively eliminate the data. Please follow the following steps when handling equipment with stored data:

Step 1: Return to IT

Any equipment that has stored information must be returned to the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) located at 2801 2nd Street, Davis, CA 95618. The IT department will securely clear the information from the equipment.

Step 2: Data Security

  • Discuss with IT Before Disposing or Donating: Do not attempt to dispose of or donate equipment with stored information without first clearing it through the IT department.

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Reference/Website Links

UCD Policy and Procedure Manual, Section 350-50 Classification of Inventorial Equipment:UCD Manuals /Policy and Procedure Manual (PPM) / 350-50, Classification of Inventorial Equipment

UCD Policy and Procedure Manual, Section 350-51 Identification of Equipment:
UCD Manuals /Policy and Procedure Manual (PPM) / 350-51, Identification of Equipment (350-51)

UCD Policy and Procedure Manual, Section 350-55 Care and Control of Equipment 
UCD Manuals /Policy and Procedure Manual (PPM) / 350-55, Care and Control of Equipment

UCD Policy and Procedure Manual, Section 350-70 Movement of University Property:
UCD Manuals /Policy and Procedure Manual (PPM) / 350-70, Movement of University Property

UCD Policy and Procedure Manual, Section 350-80 Disposition of Excess and Surplus Property:UCD Manuals /Policy and Procedure Manual (PPM) / 350-80, Disposition of Excess Property

UCD Policy and Procedure Manual, Section 350-85 Loss of or Damage to University Property:http://manuals.ucdavis.edu/ppm/350/350-85.htm

UCD Division of Human Resources, Risk Management: Property and Liability
UCD Risk Management Services

UCD Risk Management Forms

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Capital Asset Management

Capital Equipment is defined by the university in Policy & Procedure Manual (PPM) 350-50 as an item that is: 

  • Non-expendable (having a normal life expectancy of one year or more). 
  • Tangible (can be appraised for value). 
  • Free standing (complete in itself, does not lose its identity when affixed to or installed in other property). 
  • Has an acquisition cost of $5,000 or higher (in Aggie Enterprise, a pre-tax amount of $4670 or higher). 

If you need to purchase equipment that qualifies as Capital Equipment, you'll need to fill out a Capital Asset Form. You can find this form on the forms listing on the UC Davis Supply Chain Management website: https://supplychain.ucdavis.edu/forms/pcs 

Research Equipment Tax Exemption

For information, forms and guidance on reduced sales/use tax rate on equipment purchased for research, go to:

UC Davis Finance & Business Reduced sales/use tax rate on equipment purchased for research 

Eligibility List

CA Partial Exemption Certificate for Research Equipment

Webmaster Email: lforbes@ucanr.edu