The National Association of Educational Procurement and SciQuest Announce Results of Green Procurement Survey

Survey Reveals the Current State of Green Procurement Trends in Higher Education

PROVIDENCE, R.I., April 21 /PRNewswire/ -- NAEP Annual Meeting -- SciQuest, Inc., the global leader empowering enterprises to realize the potential of strategic procurement, and the National Association of Educational Procurement (NAEP) today announced the findings of "The Current State of Green Procurement Trends within Higher Education" survey. The survey reveals the growing importance and role of procurement organizations in sustainability programs.

"We found that while formal green procurement policies are gaining momentum, they still need to become a reality at most institutions," said Brian Yeoman, director of sustainable leadership at the NAEP. "Green procurement is a critical year away from leaving the planning phase and becoming actionable. This survey provides a valuable starting point for replicable efforts in the future and reveals the growing convergence of procurement and sustainability best practices within higher education."

The survey, conducted by the NAEP and sponsored by SciQuest, sought to provide a benchmark from which the profession can gauge the growing role of procurement organizations within sustainability efforts, from the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment--an effort to address global warming by garnering institutional commitments to neutralize greenhouse gas emissions--to higher education's efforts to contain costs and do more with less. This is the first year the survey was conducted.

"A more strategic approach to procurement is proving to be a viable, long-term alternative to budget cuts and a key component of sustainability programs within higher education," said Stephen Wiehe, president and CEO of SciQuest. "As the one business function that directly addresses purchasing decisions and policies, procurement organizations are ideally suited to transform noble green ideals into real fiscal policies that save money and incent suppliers and institutions alike to new levels of environmental stewardship."

Some of the key findings in the survey, which garnered responses from procurement professionals at more than 100 colleges and universities nationwide include:

• There is a growing realization that procurement organizations significantly impact sustainability plans. Nearly half of respondents plan to institute a green purchasing policy in the next year. Currently, more than 62 percent of colleges and universities have a sustainability plan in place, but only 24 percent have green procurement policies in place to support them.
• The benefits of sustainability programs are multi-faceted. More than 85 percent of respondents believe the call to "do the right thing" is the most important reason for implementing sustainability initiatives and nearly 60 percent note that reducing costs is a key driver. Reducing carbon footprints and reducing consumption--both factors that directly relate to costs and in some cases are required by law--were deemed the most important reason by 74 percent and 70 percent of respondents respectively.
• Sustainability programs can complement business goals. Among institutions with sustainability programs in place, 43 percent see benefits in cost reduction and reduced liability.
• Most institutions do not have the eprocurement technology needed for successful green procurement programs. Only 30 percent of respondents have the ability to promote green certified suppliers and more than 60 percent have no way to determine how much is spent with them or on environmentally friendly products. Nearly two thirds of respondents cannot identify green vendors and five out of six cannot identify green products.

"We now have the ability through modern eprocurement solutions to make being green an effective business strategy," said Eric Zoetmulder, director of product marketing at SciQuest and a co-presenter with Yeoman in the NAEP's presentation of the survey findings. "When sustainability benefits the bottom line, everyone wins."

Zoetmulder notes that the savings generated from successful green procurement programs bring benefits to a number of areas, including:

• Green products can be more cost effective. When brought under management through eprocurement systems, green products can be less expensive than less environmentally friendly alternatives.
• Bulk deliveries reduce carbon footprints and lower receiving and inventory costs. By aggregating purchases through the eprocurement system, the number of deliveries required of suppliers can be dramatically decreased--resulting in greater efficiency for all involved while decreasing the carbon footprint.
• Recycled packaging material can dramatically decrease disposal costs. Grading suppliers through the eprocurement system or mandating the use of recycled packaging materials can significantly lower landfill use and disposal fees.

For more information on NAEP's "The Current State of Green Procurement Trends within Higher Education" survey and green purchasing, visit http://www1.naepnet.org/joomla/sustain/.

Links to additional resources featuring upcoming webinars and educational materials, including "How to Make Sustainability Your Mantra" and how to achieve "Sustainable Procurement: From Vision to Results," are located at www.sciQuest.com/web/green.

About SciQuest

SciQuest's procurement automation and supplier enablement solutions empower leading organizations to realize the potential of strategic procurement. The company's specialized knowledge, on-demand software, and service-first approach enable public and private enterprises across the globe to manage spend, drive ROI, and advance their critical missions.

SciQuest's deep understanding of its served vertical markets combined with a broad supplier network and intuitive, online shopping experience increase user and contract adoption while improving operational efficiencies. Through software-as-a-service (SaaS) deployment, organizations can quickly implement the right eprocurement solution to augment existing ERP investments or fully enable all aspects of purchasing from sourcing to settlement.

For more information about SciQuest, please visit www.sciQuest.com or call 877-710-0413 in the U.S. or +44 1794 341182 in Europe.

SciQuest is a registered trademark of SciQuest, Inc. Other trademarks contained herein remain the property of their respective owners.

                                 
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