Buying Capital Equipment

Capital equipment has a value of $5,000 or more, or software with a per copy cost of $5,000 or more, with a normal life expectancy of more than one year, and is not "expendable". There are specific procedures for capital equipment purchases as well as special procedures applicable over the lifetime of the capital asset.

Before you make a purchase of capital equipment, be sure that you understand and follow the specific procedures:

• Read Supply Chain Management's (SCM's) guidance about buying capital equipment.
• Read about claiming California partial sales and use tax exemption on certain manufacturing and research and development equipment purchases and leases.

After the purchase order is issued, Capital Accounting determines which items meet the capitalization of equipment threshold and need to be added to the UCSF Asset Management Inventory System.