Fabricated Equipment Policy

I.  Effective Date 

May 2024 

 II.  Last Revision Date

N/A 

III. Responsible Party 

University Financial Services 

IV.  Scope

University employees responsible for purchasing, tracking, safeguarding, maintaining, disposing of, and reporting on capital assets. 

V.  Purpose

Fabricated equipment represents the costs incurred to fabricate non-expendable, tangible property by building or assembling various components and or materials into one identifiable unit. 

VI. Policy Statement

Fabricated equipment is an item of equipment built or assembled from individual parts. The University owns the property title to all fabricated equipment, unless specifically stated otherwise in the applicable sponsored award terms and conditions 

VII.  Definitions 

Allowable Fabrication Costs 

Costs of materials and non-salary services, such as shop charges, vendor labor, shipping, installation, and operating software, that directly make up a fabricated equipment item. 

Capital Equipment 

An article of nonexpendable, tangible property having a useful life of more than one year and an acquisition cost of $5,000 or more per unit. 

Fabricated Equipment 

A unique, identifiable, and discrete item that has a useful life of more than one year, and is made of material and components which cumulatively cost $5,000 or more. 

Unallowable Fabrication Costs 

Salaries and wages of University personnel, documentation, repair, maintenance, administrative support equipment, capital equipment that is not integrated into the fabrication, or any other unrelated cost of the fabricated equipment item. 

VIII.  Policy 

A.  General

  1. When a completed item of fabricated equipment has an aggregate cost of $5,000 or more and a useful life of more than one year it is considered capital equipment.   
  2. Adding individual components to an existing item of stand-alone equipment,  such as upgrades to computers or other existing equipment, does not constitute fabrication. 
  3. Principal Investigators (PI) and departmental staff cannot authorize University-owned equipment to be transferred, delivered, or sold without prior approval from both the Office of the Controller and Office of Sponsored Programs.   
  4. Also, the federal government requires adequate records and control procedures to provide a consistent and effective method of control. Accurate maintenance of property records is essential to safeguard assets, ensure financial accountability, support adequate insurance coverage, and promote efficient use of property already on hand.  

B.  Procedures

  1. All fabricated equipment must be account for and noted as such in the Financials asset management module. 
  2. When using sponsored funds, the PI or department staff must submit to Office of Controller prior to the assembly and capitalization of the item, regardless of whether the fabricated equipment item was included in the original proposal budget. Rebudgeting, completions, or any other changes must also be documented and submitted to Office of Controller for approval.