604 - University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Policy on University-Owned Surplus Property

Introduction

Purpose

To dispose of property declared surplus through transfers or sales to other agencies, sale to the public or by recycling in a manner most beneficial to North Carolina and its citizens.

Policy

Policy Statement

Items that have become obsolete or no longer needed are to be sent to the University Surplus Property Warehouse. University Surplus Property will transfer, sell, dispose of an item through the State Surplus Property System, recycle, or scrap items no longer useful to the University.

Exceptions

For Environmental Health and Safety guidance on materials to not send to University Surplus Property, please see the Prohibitions for Surplus Property list in the "Attachments" section at the bottom of this page.

Special Situations

Computer hard drives, Solid State Drivers (SSD) and other electronic media storage devices are to be sanitized or removed before sending to the Surplus Property Warehouse. See UNC-CH Finance Policy 605 - Policy on Surplus Computers or Electronic Media Storage Devices for specific policy statement.

Any equipment, tool, instrument, vessel, storage cabinet, refrigerator, freezer or other equipment used with radioactive materials may not be moved to another department or the University Surplus Property Warehouse, or considered for trade-in until it has been fully decontaminated and cleared by Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) Radiation Safety Section.

Laboratory equipment and refrigerators/freezers must be cleaned and cleared by EHS standards if used with biohazardous liquids or chemicals. See the EHS Laboratory Safety Manual, Chapter 3, Appendix 3-A, for the safety clearance form and the phone number to request a sticker version to use for University Surplus Property. Refrigerant (freon) must also be removed, per below.

All refrigerators/freezers used for food storage, which are considered serviceable must be sent to the Surplus Property Warehouse with freon remaining in the refrigerator/freezer. Laboratory refrigerators/freezers must have the freon removed and tagged by HVAC shop 110 before pick up. Place an order for freon removal by calling the Facilities Customer Service line, 919-962-3456, or by placing a work request.

Window air conditioning units sent to the University Surplus Property Warehouse should contain freon. Units considered unserviceable will be sent to the landfill where freon will be properly disposed of through the North Carolina White Goods program.

Locking desks and file cabinets must be unlocked and cleared of all contents before sending to the University Surplus Property Warehouse.

When anticipating a large scale movement of property, contact the Logistics Manager early in the planning stages of building and renovation projects to maximize the lead time available for furniture and equipment removal.

Additional Information

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: I have an item that is unserviceable, such as a broken chair. Can I put the broken chair in the trash?
A: No, the item has to be sent to the University Surplus Property Warehouse for disposal or recycling.

Q: My department is ready to send equipment to the University Surplus Property Warehouse that has been cleared for movement by the Radiation Safety Officer. Do I remove the "Unit Decontaminated" sticker?
A: No. It is important to have this sticker visible when equipment is sent to the University Surplus Property Warehouse. Staff there will remove the sticker.

Q: My department has equipment we wish to trade for new equipment. How do we proceed?
A: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Finance Procedure 602.2 - Procedure on Trading in Equipment provides guidance for trading in University-owned property.

Q: Why is some equipment disposed of at the landfill?
A: Every effort is made to recover costs and consider environmental impacts before landfill disposal. Only equipment determined to have no value or no recoverable value through recycling is disposed of at a landfill.

Q: Should my department consider purchasing equipment from the University Surplus Property Warehouse before requisitioning new equipment?
A: Whenever possible, purchasing equipment from the University Surplus Property Warehouse should be considered to conserve budget dollars.

Related Requirements

External Regulations and Consequences

None

University Policies, Standards, and Procedures

• Finance Procedure 604.1 - University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Procedure on Disposing of University-Owned Surplus Property
• Finance Policy 605 - University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Policy on Surplus Computers or Electronic Media Storage Devices
• Finance Procedure 602.2 - University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Procedure on Trading in Equipment
• EHS Laboratory Safety Manual, Chapter 3, Appendix 3-A - Safety Clearance Form

Contact Information

History

Revised:

• May 16, 2019
• September 23, 2011
• July 21, 2009
• December 14, 2007