MacBuy is an eProcurement system which offers McMaster staff and faculty an online platform to procure goods and services electronically. On the MacBuy showcase, you will find 4 different ways to place orders.

Punch-out and Hosted suppliers have their own tiles on the MacBuy Showcase. These are suppliers with whom Strategic Procurement has negotiated a contract that provides the University with maximum value and discounted pricing through a competitive Procurement process. One of the many advantages of ordering with these suppliers is that you can purchase up to $121,200 (before tax) without obtaining competitive quotes.

Catalogues featured by Hosted suppliers contain static pricing while Punch-out suppliers contain live pricing. When purchasing from a Punch-out supplier, you are shopping directly on their website. Upon check out, your purchase is brought back to MacBuy to complete the requisition. When the invoice and the purchase order amount match, an electronic invoice will be sent to Accounts Payable for payment for all Punch-out suppliers.

Non- Catalogue – This form would be used for suppliers that are not available on the Showcase. This type of order will require competitive quotes for orders over $25,000 and will follow the Strategic Procurement thresholds.

 Limited Tendering – This form would be used when competitive quotes can’t be obtained for orders over $25,000.

To gain access to MacBuy, all users must complete the MacBuy training module. Please contact the MacBuy helpdesk for more information – macbuyhelp@mcmaster.ca.

MacBuy access should only be requested by users who will be creating purchase requisitions on a regular basis. 

All new users are required to complete the MacBuy training module before access will be granted. From the link provided below, you will need to start with MacBuy 1 & 2, then review the Overview Video. Once you have completed the Overview Video, you should know which MacBuy role (Shopper or Requester) is applicable to you. At that point you will need to review the 4 videos associated with your role and complete the Quiz. You MUST score 100% on the quiz in order to gain access.

Quiz results will be reviewed on a weekly basis, at which point you will receive an email to let you know when your access is available.

MacBuy eProcurement (sharepoint.com)

A MacBuy Showcase Supplier is a supplier with whom Strategic Procurement has negotiated a contract that provides the University community maximum value, including discounted pricing through a competitive procurement process. One of the many advantages of ordering with any of our MacBuy Showcase suppliers is that you can purchase up to $121,200 with one quote.

Strategic Procurement at McMaster is currently developing tools and resources to support the implementation of the Building Ontario Businesses Initiative Act (BOBIA). The purpose of the act, which began on April 1^st, 2024, is to ensure public sector entities give Ontario Businesses preference when conducting procurement processes.

BOBIA applies to McMaster University as a broader public sector institution and will impact procurement requirements for purchases under the SP-01 policy thresholds. https://financial-affairs.mcmaster.ca/app/uploads/2023/12/SP_01-January-2024-V1.pdf

BOBIA does not override the university’s requirement to engage in competitive procurement (ex: receiving competing quotations or engaging in open competitive procurement) where required by the Procurement Policy.

An “Ontario business” is defined as any supplier, manufacturer or distributor that:

1. Conducts its activities on a permanent basis in Ontario, AND
2. At the time of a procurement, either:
   • Has its headquarters or main office in Ontario, OR
   • Has a minimum of 250 full-time employees in Ontario.

For more information on BOBIA, please visit our website – https://financial-affairs.mcmaster.ca/bobia/

Ontario businesses will be marked with the Trillium logo.

When you open up the Mosaic home screen, click the ‘Mosaic Home’ on the red toolbar at the top of the screen. You will see a little drop down arrow, with some functions underneath. Click the ‘My Work’ option, and you should now be able to see the MacBuy tile. Once you start using it more often, it will move to your home page. If you still don’t see it, please contact the MacBuy Helpdesk – macbuyhelp@mcmaster.ca.

For more information, contact the MacBuy helpdesk at:  macbuyhelp@mcmaster.ca

Shopper:

This role provides access to view all Showcase Suppliers and browse their catalogues, as well as create shopping carts for all 4 types of orders in MacBuy.

All Shoppers are required to assign their shopping carts to a Requester in their department. The Requester will review the shopping cart, assign the appropriate chartfield string and VAT treatment, then submit the order into the workflow for approval.

Training is required before gaining access to MacBuy.

Requester:

This role is only assigned to employees who have knowledge and experience with their departmental chartfields. A Requester has the same permissions as the Shopper role but has the added step of entering chartfield and VAT information before submitting the order into the workflow for approval.

Training is required for this role.

Approver:

This role is automatically assigned to department, program and project managers. With the Approver role, you will be able to review and approve requisitions that have been routed to you based on the finance workflow and Procurement thresholds of the order.

Approvers that also have the Requester role can complete and approve their own requisitions.

No training is required for this role, but training videos and user guides are available if required.

One of the many advantages of ordering with any of our Showcase Suppliers is that you can purchase up to $121,200 with one quote.

You still need to obtain your competitive quotes for all Non-Catalogue order overs $25,000.

$0 – $25,000 – 1 written quote

$25,001 – $75,000 – 2 written quotes

$75,001 – $121,199 – 3 written quotes

$121,200 or more – Open/public competitive RFx bid process.

Note: Invoices for purchases made outside of the MacBuy system cannot be processed in MacBuy. Please process your payment using your PCard or by Non-PO Voucher if the purchase is less than $25,000. If the purchase if greater than $25,000, please complete the Non-Catalogue Form in MacBuy.

A purchase order should always be created before you place an order with a supplier, but in this case you would need to obtain competitive quotes and complete the Non-Catalogue Form in MacBuy.

Blanket/Service Orders are used with Non-Catalogue and Limited Tendering orders when you have an order that will require multiple delivery/service dates over a period of time. Examples of these types of orders would be yearly leases, rent, service agreements, standing orders, etc. Using this option allows Accounts Payable to create and schedule recurring payments against the PO. This will also keep the PO open and active until all funds have been invoiced. Please ensure you check off the ‘Blanket/Service Order’ checkbox when creating your requisition.

For all payment related inquiries, you can contact Accounts Payable – appoinvo@mcmaster.ca

Please send all requests to have a PO opened/closed using the Comments tab in your PO.

You will need to use macbuyhelp@mcmaster.ca as the recipient for the comment.

This process allows us to keep of record of these requests in the PO.

No. MacBuy is a cloud-based system that will store transactions and attached documents.

Yes. Approvers can assign substitute approvers in MacBuy for the approval groups they have been assigned, and for specific date ranges (a start date and end date can be specified).

Yes. When you go into your requisition and click on the ‘What’s Next’ option on the right-hand side of the screen, you will see the workflow below. You can then click on the white circles to expand each section to see who the approvers are, and where your requisition is sitting in the workflow.

Requisitions are usually returned because the chartfield is incomplete/incorrect. Please refer to the History tab in the requisition. If you see an error, then you need to correct your chartfield and resubmit your requisition.

Operating and Ancillaries chartfield strings require 5 fields to be completed.

(Business Unit – Fund – Account – Department – Program)

Research and Trust chartfield strings require 7 fields to be completed.

Business Unit – Fund – Account – Dept – PCBU – Project – Project Activity

If you see an error message in MacBuy, please try to clear your cache, use another browser and restart your computer. This usually resolves the issue for most users.

You can request a change order by entering your request as a comment in your PO. 

Go to the Comments tab in the PO – enter your request in the test box – Add the Procurement Specialist for your order as the recipient for the comment. 

Please use the Supplier Setup/Change Request Form located in Mosaic at the following pathway:

Navigator – Finance – Purchasing – Requisitions – Supplier Setup/Change Request Form

These requests will be reviewed and processed by Strategic Procurement.