  About SWAPWhat's Inside:
IntroductionThe University of Wisconsin-Madison's Surplus With A Purpose program (SWAP) is a multi-faceted surplus property disposal operation. SWAP serves all University of Wisconsin-Madison departments and State of Wisconsin agencies located in the Madison area. UW-Madison Purchasing Services (of which SWAP is a part) is designated by Wisconsin's Department of Administration as a delegated authority for disposing of the State's surplus property . . . though the landfill is the last place we intend for these materials. What items are for sale?Materials available at the SWAP Shop include:
Follow this link to view our current inventory!
What ever happened to the old Surplus program?On January 1, 1996, Surplus received a new name -- SWAP. For about 15 years, the Surplus Program of UW-Madison collected a large variety of unwanted materials from the campus. In January of 1996, Surplus joined forces with another redistribution program on campus (known as the Solid Waste Alternatives Project) to expand its collection and redistribution effort. The Solid Waste Alternatives Project was initiated by UW-Madison's Environmental Management program in November 1994 as an effort to find markets for low value surplus property. It was successful in not only finding these markets, but also in developing new technologies for marketing surplus property over the internet. This web page is a direct result of that project. The Sales Program adapted the innovations of the SWAP Project and applied them to the new combined Surplus Services/SWAP program, now known simply as SWAP.
How does SWAP redistribute the State's surplus property?For the benefit of all citizens of Wisconsin, SWAP first tries to locate other campus departments, state agencies or tax-supported organizations that may benefit from another department's unwanted materials. If SWAP cannot find a state agency, school, municipality or non-profit group that can use these materials, the surplus property is made available for sale to the general public. SWAP sells surplus property in the following ways:
Who manages SWAP?SWAP is a part of the Sales Program of UW-Madison's Division of Business Services. The Sales Program also features Material Distribution Services (MDS). SWAP is seen as the used product end of the campus sales program while MDS sells new office supplies, lab equipment and other common products. Together, SWAP and MDS work with the Purchasing Services department to coordinate the purchasing and property disposition programs on campus.
How much material does SWAP handle?SWAP collects over 900 tons of surplus material each year. Over 98% of those materials are either sold for reuse or recycled. In years past, much of this material was sent to the landfill (or collected by dumpster divers.) About 40% of the material handled by SWAP is computer equipment.
What happens to all the money SWAP earns from the sale of surplus property?During Fiscal Year 1997/98 SWAP earned approximately $1,147,000 from the sale of surplus property. About 71% of all revenue was returned to departments that gave materials for sales through SWAP. The reimbursement rate is based on a sliding scale: the greater the value of the item a department gives to SWAP, the greater percentage of the sale price that is returned to the department. SWAP's revenue and expenses for the year are summarized below: Operating Revenue
Operating Expenses
SWAP is not designed to earn a profit, however, it does work to operate as efficiently as possible. Extra revenue is applied to cover increasing expenses related to the move to new facilities and is invested into program improvements.
Where can I find out more information about SWAP?Information about SWAP policies can be seen in Purchasing Policies and Procedures #18. This paper describes SWAP in all its day-to-day detail. You can always call us at (608) 497-4440, e-mail us at swap@bussvc.wisc.edu, or write to us at 1061 Thousand Oaks Trail, Verona, WI 53593. Otherwise, just browse this web page to get a good picture of SWAP.
Who's in SWAP?Meet us, through cyberspace:
|