Are you looking for a great deal on a used piano or other musical instrument, a piece of furniture, practical and industrial kitchenware, even workout equipment?
On this episode of the Supercast, we take you inside the Jordan School District warehouse where surplus items from our schools and buildings are stored and priced to sell pretty fast. Find out how you can get your hands on some great deals and fabulous finds by participating in the monthly online surplus auction.
Audio Transcription
[MUSIC]Anthony Godfrey:
Hello and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. Are you looking for a great deal on a used piano or other musical instruments? A piece of furniture, industrial kitchenware, or even workout equipment?
On this episode of the Supercast, we take you inside the Jordan School District Surplus Warehouse, where surplus items from our schools and buildings are stored and priced to sell fast. Find out how you can get your hands on some great deals and fabulous finds by participating in the monthly online surplus auction.
We're here with Kurt Prusse, Director of Purchasing. Thanks for taking time, Kurt.
Kurt Prusse:
Thank you. Great to be here.
Anthony Godfrey:
And we're in the surplus warehouse. We talked with you once from the warehouse before for an earlier episode a couple of years ago. Now we're in the surplus warehouse, also at the Auxiliary Services Building at about 7800 South Redwood Road.
And this is where our surplus items go to be processed for the next stage in their journey. There are lots of chairs around, desks, tables, old equipment of various kinds. I would also add that we work hard as a district to make the very most of the resources that we have. And schools have a greater tendency to hold onto things than they do to let go of things through the surplus process. So I don't wanna give the impression that we buy things and then they're quickly consumed and put into surplus. Would you agree with that?
Kurt Prusse:
Absolutely correct. We get our well use out of those items. And if one school decides they no longer need something or want something, they are brought here. For instance, these Chromebook charging carts they'll buy them at one school and if they go to a one-to-one, they don't need computer labs anymore, then they are made available and another school can grab those at no cost at all. So we can take those schools that are not one-to-one and use them in computer labs. So that's just one example.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell everyone a little bit about the surplus process, how this works and where all this stuff is headed.
Kurt Prusse:
Great, I'd be happy to. It all starts off when you decide to purchase something, whether it's equipment and there are laws in place to identify equipment. We tagged those originally and they go into a system, into our Skyward system to keep track of. Because we know at the schools, it's for their inventory process to keep track of those things. They can tell them what room numbers are in or where they're located. And so it's easy for them to be accountable for the equipment that they've purchased.
Anthony Godfrey:
And that tags a little blue tag with a number on it. And there are administrative assistants at each school who are responsible for tracking those assets.
Kurt Prusse:
Exactly.
Anthony Godfrey:
And what is it that, what's the threshold? Describe that to everyone, the threshold for something being considered a consumable versus a fixed asset.
Kurt Prusse:
Right, and so originally it was a $500 to $1,000 when I first started, but they raised that, the federal government raised that limit to $5,000. Everything else is considered supply under that dollar amount.
Anthony Godfrey:
So under $5,000 it's consumable, it's a supply, it's not something that you track.
Kurt Prusse:
Yeah, but we do have an exceptions list that we go go by in that.
Anthony Godfrey:
So the federal rules $5000. What are some of the things that we require beyond that?
Kurt Prusse:
So things like printer, computer, a laptop, those those are typical items that are $1000 to $1500 but we tag them anyways. You know other things like some of the furniture in here, a refrigerator, maybe a planer saw, you know, those types of things that we track.
Anthony Godfrey:
But the school decides we don't need to use this anymore, we want someone else to get some use out of this. The surplus process is put in place so that we get the very most out of that asset that we can, even if the department or school that purchased it initially doesn't need it anymore. So talk us through the way that works.
Kurt Prusse:
Yeah, it's a process that we go through that it's identified first that they don't need it. The principal or administrator at the school will sign off on that. And sometimes they even know where it's going to go. They've talked to another principal and they'll just say, "Hey, we need to transfer this." Or they'll surplus it. And those are kind of two options. Our warehouse, surplus warehouse guys can go out and pick it up and then it's either brought here or if it's of no value then sometimes we'll just take it directly to a recycling place or or to the dump if it's that's all if it's a very little value. The mantra is in surplus one man's garbage is another man's treasure. It really is that way someone might think this is trash and someone else might think this is the greatest thing ever. They will do that.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah right. It's remarkable the use that folks can find for some things. So at first, either a principal already knows, hey, there's someone else that can use this and we just need to transfer it to them. Or it can be brought to the warehouse and still then principals and other school district employees and school employees have the opportunity to take anything from the surplus warehouse that they want to use at work. They can take that free of charge or have that delivered free of charge. So we want to use it within the organization, if at all possible, to prevent the need for additional purchases.
Kurt Prusse:
That is correct. In that process, we use a surplus website to list all these things. And if someone even from the district that wants to use it for district purposes sees it on the site, we'll actually pull it off the public site for auction. It's kind of a mini eBay where you can find an item and bid on it. It's the highest bidder wins.
Anthony Godfrey:
And that's the next phase. The next phase is that it's then out for the public to bid on. And we get everything from charter schools and private schools that want to purchase furniture and equipment to individuals who want to buy equipment and any of our surplus items that are posted on the website. Like you said, eBay style. So how frequently are those auctions posted?
Kurt Prusse:
We do one minimum once a month, sometimes a little bit more often. But it is quite the process because you have to list it for seven to ten days and then after the bidding is over the winner has a week to pick it up. So we bring stuff in all month long and then we try to get rid of it and it usually takes two to three weeks to actually get rid of it and then we start the process again of going out to the schools and bringing it in organizing it and then getting it up for sales.
Anthony Godfrey:
And how much of this is as a result of state law versus policy versus federal requirements? Mostly just kind of district procedure. There's not anything that dictates other than the hundred dollar value under a $100 that you can throw away and then the $5000. So kind of anything in between is it's up to us how we want to dispose of it. And, you know, we have a surplus warehouse lead that makes a lot of those decisions. I meet with them regularly and we go over certain things. For instance, there might be an item that doesn't sell on the auction originally that's just too low a price. We'll do it again just to make sure that we're not getting rid of something that might have a higher value.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. I'll bet you have your regular customers on these auctions.
Kurt Prusse:
Yes, we do. Yes, we do.
Anthony Godfrey:
If someone is listening and thinks, you know, I could maybe use some things off a surplus, we're going to talk about some of the items that end up on the auction block. But tell them where would they go, what website would they go to to get alerts about upcoming auctions and to participate in those.
Kurt Prusse:
Yeah, we have a website through www.publicsurplus.com and you'll have to kind of select the state. They work in multiple states, so you select a state and then Jordan School District and you're able to see whatever we have on auction.
Anthony Godfrey:
It is pretty amazing to see not only what's available in Jordan, but what's available across the country.
Kurt Prusse:
Oh yeah.
Anthony Godfrey:
There's some pretty wild stuff that has been purchased with public funds that is now available for auction.
Stay with us when we come back, we spot some of the more unusual items waiting for sale in the Surplus Warehouse.
[MUSIC]Break:
Hello, I'm Tracy Miller, President of the Jordan School District Board of Education. There are seven members on the Board of Education, one in each voting district. We are committed to listening and serving our constituents as we work together to provide the best possible learning environment for the students we serve. As members of the Jordan Board of Education, we believe it is our duty and responsibility to: increase student achievement; provide parents with the choices they deserve and desire; recognize and reward quality in educators; empower school leaders through policy governance and professional development; and communicate with the public, legislators, business leaders, cities, and parents. We invite you to get to know the Board member who represents you in your voting district and to please join us at our monthly board meeting held on the fourth Tuesday of every month. Or listen from the comfort of your home, on our live stream. For more information and to find your Board member, visit jordandistrict.org. With parent and community input and support, we will continue our work to give students every opportunity to succeed in Jordan District schools and beyond. Thank you for your support. We look forward to seeing you soon.
Anthony Godfrey:
I know that there are some odd items that come up over the years. Let's just wander and see what we've got right now. Let's just walk through. We've got a lot of desks and chairs.
Kurt Prusse:
That's desks and chairs. And when we talk about desks and chairs, these are typically 20 plus years old. Sometimes 30 years old that we are, you know, sometimes we'll go to a charter school and they can use them, but most of the time they're pretty old. This looks really old. This is like a step of some sort, a box and just very random.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, lots of people have stepped on that one. And these are these are babies. Well, not actual babies. Dolls.
Kurt Prusse:
Yeah we deal in babies.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, they're actually surplus dolls. Let's pull them out of the cage here. This looks like the type of of a doll that's used in like a childcare class. Real Care Baby 2+.
Kurt Prusse:
Yes, that is, and you probably just found the most unique items.
Anthony Godfrey:
Apparently there's a Baby 3+ out now, and I'm sorry baby, but you are now outdated. Well, it even has a little wristband tag, like it was just tagged in the hospital.
Kurt Prusse:
Yes.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay.
Kurt Prusse:
I don't know what the plan is on this, whether we'll surplus that or what the deal is, but we've got about six or seven of them looks like that we need to surplus or dispose of you know in a proper way.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay, we've got a fridge. Lots of chairs on a rack.
Kurt Prusse:
Here’s some old tripods.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh yeah very old.
Kurt Prusse:
Very old tripods.
Anthony Godfrey:
This is like Ansel Adams taking pictures for National Geographic type tripods.
Kurt Prusse:
Yeah, and we have some some exercise mats that were used at different schools. A scale. One of those tall scales to to weigh yourself on.
Anthony Godfrey:
You move the weights over this direction or that and we have some. What is this red octane brand dance. It looks like a dance pad that goes with a video game.
Kurt Prusse:
It does look like that, doesn't it?
Anthony Godfrey:
Huh. All the outdated equipment that you imagine from your days in school, some e DVD players and VCRs.
Kurt Prusse:
Yeah, even VCR players. And even dual ones DVD and VCR. Get to the point now where no one really wants to buy these. We can put these on the site for five dollars and no one will want them. So we use a recycler that will take all our old recycling material. One of the good things about our recycler is if we take a laptop or a Chromebook or something that might have some student data on it or something more sensitive, they'll wipe it. And actually they do a triple wipe and they give us a certificate for every piece of equipment that they either surplus or they'll resell. They'll also take out some hard drives. We'll have copiers and those types of things. They'll actually take the hard drives out because most people might not know this, but a copier stores images. And they'll store images of medical records if necessary. Anything you make a copy of at school. And so we don't want that out in the open when we're getting rid of those. And so they'll actually surplus our electronic computers and things like that and they'll actually give us a percentage of that. And that's kind of the way we've done that here.
Anthony Godfrey:
I see. Now we've got stools. These are, these look like the type of stools that I sat on when making pots in middle school in my pottery class.
Kurt Prusse:
I think you're spot on with that.
Anthony Godfrey:
So anyone looking for a very short stool or 30 would have a heyday here.
Kurt Prusse:
Yeah, just go on publicsurplus.com you can buy them in batches. Sometimes we'll sell it in a batch. They'll call that a Dutch auction. And so you can either take the whole batch or you can take whatever amount you want in there. But typically, they'll try to do the whole batch. And we have someone coming through and playing the piano.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, yeah, just to see if they want to purchase that piano. So you do have some pianos on surplus on a regular basis.
Kurt Prusse:
We do every once in a while, we'll get some pianos. Exactly. Most of the time, those pianos will get transferred to another school. Yeah, however this one is an old piano. It's about almost as tall as I am, so you know that's an old variety of piano.
Anthony Godfrey:
And you load the paper in the back? The paper roll with the little holes in it and then it will automatically play The entertainer by Scott Joplin or not quite that old.
Kurt Prusse:
Maybe not old.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay, now let's see. There's some rideables here. Looks like some of the custodian Zambonis that they drive around to clean the floors are here. One of those.
Kurt Prusse:
Yep. And they may not be working or they are too much money to fix but they'll, someone will come that is a fixer professional or person that just fixes things up and they're able to use those things.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, we also have an ice cream freezer. So there are, yes, a few odd items. This actually seems fairly tame compared with some of the times I've been down here. Oh, are these scuba tanks? What exactly do we have here?
Kurt Prusse:
No, these are overhead lighting for stage systems.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh, yes, there we are. Look at that. Old, old stage lighting. I'll bet there are some items that come through here that you think nobody's going to be interested in this and then lo and behold somebody bids for it or you might even have a couple of people bidding for something that you didn't think was going to find a home.
Kurt Prusse:
Oh yeah. In fact vice versa, something I think is of great value and no one seems to want it.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah.
Kurt Prusse:
I'm not a good judge of what's going to sell and what's not going to sell.
Anthony Godfrey:
We put it all out there and we see what happens.
Kurt Prusse:
Exactly.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. And what is this over here?
Kurt Prusse:
Well it looks like we've got a steamer here and right next to a kiln.
Anthony Godfrey:
That steams what?
Kurt Prusse:
They'll steam all sorts of things. Potatoes.
Anthony Godfrey:
Wow. And what is this here? What is this stackable? It looks like a... Oh, this is a kiln.
Kurt Prusse:
For all the short stools that are for sale.
Anthony Godfrey:
Oh yes, that's right. Then the things made on short stools go into this large kiln. Okay, well hopefully all these things can find a nice home.
Kurt Prusse:
We hope so too.
Anthony Godfrey:
Any tips and tricks for people who are bidding on an item on the surplus website? They find something they really want. Are the auctions still the type that extend if you get an additional bid? Or do you just bid right up until the end of the time?
Kurt Prusse:
It bids right up to the end of the time. So those that are familiar with eBay, putting in a maximum bid and then it will auto bid anytime someone outbids you. So sometimes you put in what you're willing to pay for and if it doesn't get that value, or doesn't get that amount, then you'll be the winner. If it exceeds that, then you'll be the loser. So it's really putting your maximum, what you're willing to pay is probably what the best bet I would say.
Anthony Godfrey:
Is there any, I believe the term is sniping at the last second, where people come in at the last second with a high bid to try to surprise people with a last minute bid?
Kurt Prusse:
Yeah, I'm sure there is. I don't get to see what transpires in each of those purchases, but I can imagine, yes, sniping is, if you're good at online auctioning, then there's ways to get what you want.
Anthony Godfrey:
Any advice about timing? What time of year might they be checking back for the best selection?
Kurt Prusse:
We do surplus all year long. However, typically, schools don't want to get rid of their old stuff until they have new stuff. So typically it's at the end of the year when they're cleaning rooms out, cleaning departments out that they'll do that. So we do a lot of our work during the summertime. And so any auction starting in July, August, September are good months to get some things. But sometimes you'll get gems in the middle of the year too. You never know.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay. It's entertaining just to look, even if you don't have anything specific in mind. So thanks to you, Kurt, for taking the time and to your staff for everything that you do to help us make the most of the resources that we have.
Kurt Prusse:
My pleasure, appreciate your time.
Anthony Godfrey:
All right.
Thanks for joining us on another episode of the Supercast. Remember education is the most important thing you'll do today. We'll see you out there.
[MUSIC]