The PantherExpress System is the cloud-based purchasing tool and preferred procurement and payment mechanism for most goods and services purchased at the University.
A PantherExpress Purchase Order is the preferred method for purchasing most goods and services (excepting travel) and provides the best contractual terms and conditions to protect your department. It also helps to simplify accounting and purchase record-keeping and feeds data to the University Oracle systems used for budgeting.
Any items that can be purchased from a University-wide Contracted Supplier should be purchased using the payment method defined on their supplier page.
Access and Training
Visit this page to learn more about obtaining access to the PantherExpress System, as well as training resources.
Making Purchases
The purchaser should use the proper punchout, hosted catalog, standard form, or specialty form to create a purchase order. The appropriate purchasing method is specified for all University-wide Contracted Suppliers on this page.
Once the purchase order is complete, but before submission, the purchaser should always review the information to verify it is accurate. It is especially important that purchasers check the fulfillment and distribution information.
After the purchase order is submitted and has gone through all required approvals, invoices can be charged to the purchase order.
Auto-closure of Purchase Orders
It is best practice that fully-invoiced purchase orders are closed to reduce risk. The PantherExpress System automatically closes all fully-invoiced purchase orders seven days after being fully-invoiced.
A purchase order is considered fully-invoiced when the quantity and item(s) on the order match to the quantity and item(s) on the invoice. A purchase order may close if the total price on the invoice is less than the total price for the purchase order but not if the invoiced price is greater than the purchase order.
Invoicing
Once a supplier has submitted an invoice for the purchase order it becomes fully- or partially- invoiced, depending on the situation. After an invoice has been applied to a purchase order, you may no longer make changes to the account number for that purchase. To redistribute the charges you will have to submit a Journal Entry.
Payments from PantherExpress
Standard Terms
The University’s preferred method of payment is a Virtual Card (VC) in US dollars. Companies that are unable to accept a VC, our preferred method of payment, is ACH deposit.
Effective January 1, 2023, The University’s standard payment terms for Virtual Card are Net 0 upon final approval of the invoice, ACH/Fed Wires are Net 45 and paper checks are Net 60. The University will pay invoices on the corresponding terms to the payment type you have chosen during enrollment with JPMorgan's payment platform, EDENRED PAY.
- Virtual Cards – any business that can accept a Credit Card payment via US Dollars through their Bank or Merchant Service
- ACH (Direct Deposit) – Payment made directly to a supplier’s bank account and verified through JPMorgan’s secure system.
Payments to Domestic Suppliers:
JPMorgan Chase does not offer domestic wires but offers the following alternatives:
- Virtual Cards – Can be used by any business that can accept a Credit Card payment in US Dollars through their Bank or Merchant Service
- ACH (Direct Deposit) – Payment made directly to the supplier’s bank account and verified through JPMorgan’s secure system
Payments to Suppliers with Foreign Addresses
If a foreign vendor can accept Virtual Card (VC) payment in US Dollars, they can be set up by Payment Processing in JPM's payment platform EDENRED PAY to accept a VC payment. If a foreign vendor has a US based bank account, they can be set up by Payment Processing for ACH payments in EDENRED PAY. All others must be paid by Fed Wire. A bank fee of $35 for each transaction will be charged to your department's account and will appear on your level report for each Fed Wire payment.
- The University does not under any circumstance pay fees to suppliers for accepting Virtual Cards.
- Paper Checks not received in the mail are eligible for void & reissue 6 weeks after issued date.
- Wire Payments Process
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If you are paying a foreign individual for payments such as honorariums, per diems, awards, or any type of reimbursements, you will initiate your payment request via Concur.
- All documentation required for wire transfers will now need to be attached to the report key. This includes:
- A completed internal Wire Transfer Request form
- Banking information backup provided by the payee
- The standard expense backup documents you would include with any Concur report
- Once your report is approved and all required documents are attached, Payment Processing will pull them and send them to the wire’s mailbox, paymentprocessingwires@cfo.pitt.edu for audit/payment for you.
If you are paying a foreign supplier or individual sole proprietor for goods or services, you will initiate your payment request via Panther Express.
- Any form can be used now, but proper documentation for a wire transfer will be required to be attached. This includes:
- A completed internal Wire Transfer Request form
- Banking information backup provided by the supplier
- A valid invoice or accepted payment documentation alternative (no statements, proforma invoices, estimates, etc.)
- Please note, you no longer must cancel or reject invoices in Panther Express. Nor will you have to manually close PO’s. You do want to allow the invoice to flow through the approval process into Prism now.
- It is strongly recommended that you add a comment using paymentprocessingwires@cfo.pitt.edu as the recipient stating your request is for a wire transfer when you attach the completed wire form. This routes it directly to Payment Processing’s wire’s mailbox and will be audited for payment in a timely manner.
If you do not have access to either system, please contact PPT Customer Service for assistance with gaining access. If you are using a subcode that is restricted in Panther Express, Payment Processing will accept requests for wires via “paper”. To submit a "paper" wire request, fill out the following required documentation:
- A completed Internal Wire Transfer Request form
- Banking information backup provided by the payee
- Documentation explaining what the payment is for (invoice, award letter etc.)
- A completed Disbursement Request form, which can be found on the Purchase, Pay & Travel website.
ALL requests for wire transfers are to be sent to paymentprocessingwires@cfo.pitt.edu.
The University’s payment terms for wire transfers are Net45 from the invoice date. All funds are released in 2 business days from the date that the wire transfers is entered into JP Morgan’s payment platform.
- All documentation required for wire transfers will now need to be attached to the report key. This includes:
OK to Pay
The “Ok to Pay” invoice procedure requires that the purchaser confirms receipt of goods and services for the release of payment for all invoice lines valued at $10,000 and above using invoice comments in the PantherExpress System.
When an invoice line valued at $10,000 and above is received in the PantherExpress System, the purchaser will receive an e-mail informing them that their invoice is pending their payment approval. To access the invoice in the PantherExpress System, the invoice owner can click on the link in the e-mail
When the product arrives or the service is completed, the invoice owner should give their approval to release the invoice for payment in the PantherExpress System.
Purchasers are encouraged to maintain good financial stewardship by promptly evaluating if goods and services were received without defect and notifying Payment Processing, using invoice comments in the PantherExpress System, if there is an issue that impacts payment.