SWAM Requirements
University buyers are responsible for procuring goods and services for their respective departments in accordance with all mandatory State and University procedures including the selection of appropriate vendors for all small purchases either through the use of existing contracts or by selecting a certified SWAM vendor. These practices should be followed regardless of procurement method (i.e. eVA, MasterCard).
Contracts
Whenever possible, goods and services should be purchased through State or University contracts. A number of commonly used items are available through State and University term contracts.
Contracts for other goods and services may be found by conducting a State Contract Search in eVA. eVA allows you to search by a description of the goods, the contract number, the Buyer agency name or the NIGP or Commodity code. You can search for NIGP Commodity codes in eVA or you can download the entire NIGP code book.
Some contracts are written for sole use by the University for specific goods and services. To see if a contract is available for your needs, please check the list of Awarded Contracts or contact Purchasing for assistance.
SWAM Vendors
If no contract exists that meets your needs, you must obtain one quote from a SWAM vendor prior to making a purchase. A SWAM vendor is a business that has been designated as small, woman-owned or minority-owned by the Virginia Department of Minority Business Enterprises (DMBE) . You must document your effort to obtain a quote from a SWAM vendor by noting the date and time of the call or fax, the name of the SWAM vendor you contacted and the specific employee you spoke with, and the quote provided by that vendor. This should be documented in the comments section of your eVA order form, but not included on your purchase order. Suggested methods for finding a SWAM vendor include, but are not limited to:
- Asking other University employees
- Using the SWAM Vendor Search on the DMBE website
- Looking on the Internet or in the phonebook
- Checking supplier catalogs
- Contacting other state agencies
If you find a vendor you are interested in using through one of these methods, you should find out if the vendor is registered in eVA by conducting a Vendor Look-Up. For SWAM vendors, the name under which the company is registered with DMBE will appear in red.
If you are unable to find a vendor that can supply what you need through the methods above, you can also produce a Bidder's List report in eVA that will show all of the SWAM vendors that have registered in eVA under the NIGP Commodity code you choose to search. Instructions on how to produce a Bidder's List report are available HERE.
Using a Non-SWAM Vendor
If a SWAM vendor does not exist for the commodity you need or if the quote you obtain from a SWAM vendor does not meet your needs, you may purchase from a non-SWAM vendor. If you do so, you must provide an explanation of your reason for not using a SWAM vendor in the comments section of your eVA order. If you are paying for the order with your Small Purchase Credit Card ("SPCC"), you must also include the number of the justification code used in the comments section on your SPCC log sheet. Acceptable justification codes include:
1 - No certified Small Business Available for this commodity within a practical radius of the University. |
2 - DMBE Small Vendor cannot provide specialized or custom made commodity. |
3 - DMBE Small Vendor’s price quote was not reasonable. |
4 - DMBE Small Vendor could not meet necessary deadlines, quantity needs or product quality. |
5 - Potential Vendor not yet certified by DMBE |
6 - Contact Purchasing for additional justification needs |