Research Project Closing Procedure

Purpose

This procedure describes the steps followed once a research project has been completed.

Content

Cost Centres are responsible for ensuring:

1. Obligations described in the contract have been met
2. Service divisions are advised to discontinue any charges to the project
3. The financial result is final

• All funding has been received
• Final invoices from suppliers have been received and processed
• Any general ledger entries to account for payroll related accruals have been completed
• Cost transfers have been accounted for, if any

A Project Closing Form is completed by the Cost Centre and forwarded to the Research and Enterprise Office. The form is available from the Research and Enterprise website, or from the Chart Enquiry tab under the Links to Other Functions menu in Finance One.

The Research and Enterprise Office performs a number of checks to verify that the project may be closed:

1. Consults the REDs database to ensure that there are no outstanding reporting obligations. If obligations are not complete, the file is sent to the Research Advisor or the Enterprise Manager for follow-up (Advise the Cost Centre that obligations are incomplete, The Research Advisor or Enterprise Manager returns the file once reporting is complete.)
2. Verifies that all funding has been invoiced
3. Confirms ownership of any project surplus
4. Updates the REDs database to indicate that the project is complete
5. Provides a copy of the closing form to the Senior Management Accountant in the Financial Services Division and save a scanned copy in REDs
6. Sets the status in REDs to pre-archiving and file the hard copy in the contract file
7. Places the file in the archiving cabinet

The Financial Services Division:

1. Receives completed closure forms
2. Transfers any balance from the project to the designated and approved account

The Financial Services Division performs regular reviews of the project ledger and will examine inactive projects with balances and determine if a balance transfer is appropriate.

1. A list of inactive projects with balances is provided to the Research and Enterprise office to advise on whether the University owns any surplus recorded against the noted projects and whether all the funding has been invoiced
2. An email is sent to Cost Centres noting the projects subject to a balance transfer and requesting an account code to transfer the balance to. Cost Centres are reminded to complete and submit a project closing form.

Related policies, procedures and forms

• Project Closing Form (PDF)

Contact for further information

For further information, contact the

Senior Management Accountant
Tel +64 3 479 8222
Email michael.mcalpine@otago.ac.nz