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A New Plan for Duke Surplus

New program focuses on donation of surplus Duke equipment to nonprofits locally and internationally

Students at E.K. Powe elementary use computers donated from Duke.  The new surplus program will encourage the donation of surplus materials to local charities and nonprofits

Beginning July 1, Duke University is getting out of the business of selling surplus equipment and getting into the business of donating usable furniture, computers, medical and research equipment and other property materials to charities and non-profit groups both locally and internationally.

On July 1, the Duke Surplus Store will close its doors after 10 years of business. Instead, Duke is instituting a new program to oversee the donation of surplus material to the community.

"We still have a program. We just don't have a retail store," Mary Crawford, the surplus property program coordinator said. She said she's been fielding calls from employees concerned about where to send old office furniture and computers.

 

The new program will be more efficient and community-oriented, Crawford said. Employees will go online to enter surplus property information and request pickups, and track the materials through the donation process. (See accompanying story, "How to Navigate the New Duke Surplus Program")

 

"We're donating everything, instead of trying to sell it," Crawford said.

How To Navigate the New Duke Surplus Program after July 1

  • Fill out an online pickup request form, which will be linked to www.procurement.duke.edu. All surplus items must be processed through the new program. Please do not give away or donate surplus items that belong to Duke University and Health System.
  • Enter the required information about each surplus item, including computers and peripherals.
  • DeHaven's, a contracted moving and storage company and partner in this initiative, will be responsible for collection of these items. It may take a few extra days to coordinate pickups. However, individual items and small quantities of furniture will be picked up at no cost. This will eliminate excess trips on campus, save fuel, and other resources.
  • Items will be collected and distributed to several off-campus warehouse facilities for short term storage. The location chosen will depend on the type of item.
  • Local charities and nonprofits will be contacted to schedule a time to pick up items they've requested.
  • To request surplus items for use in your department, please call 684-2964 to determine if the items needed are available.

The new program builds upon several successful existing donation programs. For example, Duke has already donated more than 2,000 computers to Durham Public Schools and local nonprofits through the Duke Computer Exchange program.

The new surplus program will continue the computer exchange initiative but also will oversee the collection and donation of office furniture, research equipment and other surplus property to approved nonprofit organizations, small universities and high schools.

 

In addition, donating surplus items reflects Duke's strategic goal of creating a more sustainable campus.

 

"We generate a tremendous amount of waste on this campus. If there's still life in it, we can find a home for it," said Crawford, who was once head of waste reduction and recycling at Duke. "I would love to see people keep these items until they are no longer usable."

Some of the surplus material will find its way to international use. Medical equipment and supplies that have not been used in surgical or other medical procedures will be donated to Duke's Global Health PLUS (Placement of Life-changing Useable Surplus), which will distribute the items to health programs around the world, including REMEDY at Duke, the Engineering World Health program and the Duke-Uganda 2007 Neurosurgery Initiative.

Duke neurosurgeon Michael Haglund, a member of the Global Health PLUS committee who heads the Uganda initiative, said that before the surplus store's closing, medical equipment would sit at the retail space until liquidators bought it.

 

The new program will organize the procurement and donation process for medical equipment. He said the donations will not only change lives, but also how surgery is practiced in East Africa.

 

"I saw Ugandan neurosurgeons performing brain surgery with equipment that looked like what was used at Duke in the 30s and 40s," Haglund said. "They're very heroic to do what they do."

In August, Haglund and a team of doctors will travel to Uganda with $904,000 (if purchased new) of equipment, half of which came from Duke's surplus store.

Several leaders of local nonprofit organizations said they intend to participate in the new surplus program. The program will match Duke goods with the needs of specific community organizations.

Lloyd Schmeigel, executive director of Urban Ministries, said he intends to submit a request for yet more chairs once the program kicks off in July. Last year, the program received donated chairs from the surplus store, he said.

"We used to pay a nominal fee and we didn't use the store regularly because of those charges," Schmeigel said. "More often, we looked to other donors."

 

Schmeigel said he believes the new program will benefit both Duke and the community.

 

To outfit her department's new office space, Eileen Welch of the Center for Child & Family Health, a nonprofit consortium between Duke, North Carolina Central and the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, relied in the past on the surplus store. Now she's looking forward to using the new program, she said.

The nonprofit serves local children who have suffered neglect, maltreatment or trauma, providing mental health counseling and assessments.

 

After her office relocated, Welch said she wanted to update the department's equipment and furniture. The counselors needed computers, couches, chairs, desks and bookcases. Because the program is affiliated with Duke, she could get all she needed at the surplus store for free.

"It was a huge help," said Welch. "We could get comfortable in our new space and begin serving the kids a little bit earlier."