Desks, chairs, lawn equipment, computer monitors, and even lasers — these are just some of the items that can be found in Georgia Tech’s Logistics and Surplus’ 4,247-square-foot facility. 

The life cycle of the equipment that is funneled through the facility starts with Procurement buying goods for campus, Accounts Payable paying the invoices for the goods, and Insurance working to insure the acquired property. Property Control then catalogs all the goods and, when the item’s original lifespan comes to an end, it finally makes it to Logistics, where the property is either stored or disposed of through various means. 

The small team that manages the facility handles all aspects of processing, storing, and distributing the hundreds of items that come through the building each year. In fiscal year 2023 alone, they took in 920 surplus items and sold nearly $900,000 worth of items via authorized channels. 

“My team and I work to ensure everything brought into the surplus facility has been properly processed, and all procedures have been followed to identify items that should be inventoried, sold to interested parties, or disposed of,” said Kenneth Chavers, assistant director of Logistics and Surplus. “In the past fiscal year, we have housed nearly 50,000 surplus items for Georgia Tech, and it is a responsibility that we handle with great care.” 

All supplies, materials, and equipment purchased through the Institute are the property of the state, federal government, or private grantor agency. This means any items that are acquired cannot be sold, surplused, or transferred from Georgia Tech without the prior written approval of the appropriate federal sponsoring agency and/or the Institute Surplus Property Officer. Property that is considered “valueless” may then be disposed of by removing parts from an obsolete piece of equipment, recycling, or waste disposal. 

The Logistics and Surplus team also pride themselves on supporting Georgia Tech’s sustainability goals by supporting recycling efforts and the redistribution of lightly used items across campus, as well as making sure other functioning items make it into the hands of buyers. They have navigated the sale of over 105,000 pounds of surplus items and have also transferred 69,000 pounds to Electronic Recycling (ELC). 

While many of the items in the surplus facility are purchased by or auctioned off to outside entities, members of the Georgia Tech community have access to a running list of objects on the GT Surplus Sharepoint inventory site to use at their discretion. 

Those with a Georgia Tech work or school email account can browse the inventory website, which features various items that are available in surplus. All items listed on the site are on a first-come, first-served basis, for official Georgia Tech use only. 

Click here for more information on surplus property procedures, available surplus items, or to visit the surplus warehouse.