What Is a Chartfield String of Numbers?

A chartfield string is a series of numbers that gives relevant financial accounting information when placing an order. A chartfield string is important for placing orders because it contains information related to grants and funding. It is somewhat analogous to a credit card number in that it is used to guarantee that you have the funding you need to place the order or obtain the service. A chartfield string is required for virtually every financial transaction in the University.

The table below contains an example of a chartfield string broken down by component. Each of the listed fields are required in a chartfield string. To obtain the correct values for these fields for a particular transaction, see your lab manager.

[table width =”100%” style =”” responsive =”false”]
[table_head]

[th_column]Business Unit[/th_column]
[th_column]Fund[/th_column]
[th_column]Source[/th_column]
[th_column]Department ID[/th_column]
[th_column]Project[/th_column]
[/table_head]
[table_body]
[table_row]

[row_column]00000[/row_column]
[row_column]00000[/row_column]
[row_column]00000[/row_column]
[row_column]000000[/row_column]
[row_column]0000000[/row_column]
[/table_row]
[/table_body]
[/table]

Note that we used all zeros here to show chartfield structure and the number of digits that go in each field.

As you can see, each part of the string has special meaning.

Business Unit: Designates the legal entity to which a fund belongs, such as the University in general, the UNC General Administration or University Foundations. Typically has five digits. Generally for the Cook, Kuhlman, and Strahl labs, the business unit will be designated by UNCCH.

Fund: Identifies the major fund type, such as unrestricted funds or restricted funds. Typically has five digits.

Source: Identifies the original source of funding, i.e., a named individual gift, an individual scholarship, or a research grant. Typically has five digits.

Department ID:  For the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics Identification Number, see the lab manager.  It has six digits. Note that we sometimes use other departmental ID numbers for grants administered by other departments.

Project: Specifies a project, which for us loosely correlates to a specific grant. Typically has seven digits.

In addition to the above fields, there are three department-specific chartfields that are sometimes used. These are Cost Codes 1, 2, and 3 (shortened to CC1, CC2 and CC3). For example, part of a chartfield string could include a CC1 of MCR0123456, typically ten digits.

Again, the main point is that a chartfield string is necessary when completing orders or gaining access to key resources and equipment in the School of Medicine or throughout the University. This PDF also provides an informative introduction. For a thorough explanation of all of the parts of a chartfield , see UNC’s official video guide here.

How Do I Use a Chartfield String of Numbers to Place an Order?

For each order, say, at the Tissue Culture Facility, see the lab manager to obtain the current relevant chartfield string. This is important to do each time so that the charges are made on a current grant, rather than one that has ended, for instance.

You will need a chartfield string to utilize these facilities:

  • The Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center Tissue Culture Facility
  • The Protein Expression and Purification Facility
  • The Macromolucular Interactions Facility (Mac-in-Fac)
  • The Biomedical NMR Laboratory
  • The Macromolecular X-Ray Crystallography Facility
  • The Flow Cytometry Facility
  • The High-Throghput Peptide Synthesis and Array Facility

Make certain that a correct, current number is used each time you utilize one of these facilities.