The purpose of this annex is to help explain the business case for this part of ISO 8000. It is not essential to the application of this part of ISO 8000.
For the purposes of this annex, the following abbreviated terms apply:
NAND | NOT AND |
NCAGE | NATO Commercial and Government Entity |
DCMO | Demilitarization Coding Management Office |
DEMIL | demilitarization |
DLIS | Defense Logistics Information Service |
DRS | data requirements statement |
DRS | data requirements statement |
FLIS | Federal Logistics Information System |
IOP | item of production |
MDM | master data message |
MDR | master data record |
NATO | North Atlantic Treaty Organization |
NCAGE | NATO Commercial and Government Entity |
NCB | national codification bureau |
NCS | NATO Codification System |
NIIN | NATO Item Identification Number |
NSC | NATO Supply Classification Code |
NSN | NATO Stock Number |
PICA | primary inventory control activity |
The NATO Stock Number (NSN) is accepted by a number of countries as a unique identifier for an item of supply. The NSN consists of 13 digits. The first four are the NATO Supply Classification Code (NSC), and the remaining nine digits are the NATO Item Identification Number (NIIN). The NIIN, in turn, is made up of a two-digit NATO code for the National Codification Bureau (NCB), followed by a seven digit number assigned by the individual NCB.
The use cases in the following clauses use the United States NCB, the Defense Logistics Information Service (DLIS), as an example. DLIS's catalogue of items of supply is the Federal Logistics Information System (FLIS), which is federated with other NCBs' catalogues through the NATO system.
NOTE It is expected that the issues would be similar for any large organization that manages its own items of supply.
Each service provisioning agreement is different, but all requirements for NSNs must have at minimum a part number and a manufacturer with a NATO Commercial and Government Entity (NCAGE) code, in addition to other essential codes such as demilitarization (DEMIL). Technical data is not always required and depends on what is in the contract for that specific group of items.
The cataloguer first validates technical data by ensuring that the data provided is accurate for item identification. For each type of drawing (vendor item drawing, source control drawing, envelope drawing, altered item drawing, etc.) the government has a list of requirements these drawings must meet. The cataloguer then transcribes the information from the drawings into FLIS, documenting what types of part numbers correspond to the different types of drawings. The NIIN assignment date is established and the drawings are stored within electronic databases for future reference.
EXAMPLE Table C.1 shows the technical and logistics data for NSN 5962-00-057-7131.
Table C.1 — Technical and logistics data for NSN 5962-00-057-7131
Property | Value |
---|---|
class |
microcircuit,digital |
body length |
0.785 inches maximum |
body width |
0.250 inches nominal |
body height |
0.165 inches maximum |
maximum power dissipation rating |
75.0 milliwatts |
operating temp range |
-55.0/+125.0 deg celsius |
storage temp range |
-65.0/+200.0 deg celsius |
features provided |
hermetically sealed and monolithic and positive outputs |
enclosure material |
ceramic |
enclosure configuration |
dual-in-line |
output logic form |
transistor-transistor logic |
input circuit pattern |
triple 3 input |
design function and quantity |
3 gate, NAND |
voltage rating and type per characteristic |
5.5 volts nominal output |
time rating per chacteristic |
20.00 nanoseconds maximum propagation delay time, low to high level output and 20.00 nanoseconds maximum propagation delay time, high to low level output |
unpackaged unit weight |
2.0 grams |
test data document |
19200-10548170 drawing |
terminal type and quantity |
1 case |
When a new item is stocked, the item manager inputs an initial DEMIL code, which is a code instructing the user on method and degree to which an item that is no longer needed needs to be demilitarized before it is disposed of.
Tracking of DEMIL codes from inception to disposal from a Demilitarization Coding Management Office (DCMO) perspective is accomplished through the historical records maintained within the FLIS.
The DEMIL code's validity and the subsequent actions necessary to insure proper disposal, or restriction from reutilization by unauthorized parties, are often verified using the past documentation on how the code was originally determined and what significant regulatory requirements may have changed that would drive a different code to be assigned. The DEMIL code plays a significant role in insuring that parts and systems are maintained, stocked, stored and issued with the interests of national security and safety in mind. Changes to the DEMIL code can occur throughout the item of supply lifecycle, and are often utilized from an investigatory standpoint by law enforcement and international agencies. The history provides a means by which the code can be tracked by date, organization and individual making the decision, as well as the rationale for the decision.
When a DEMIL code is input, the database captures both the identity of the person inputting the code (through employee number), as well as the date and time of the input. The database keeps track of all previous versions of this information. By capturing this information, a person can trace the original provenance of the DEMIL information and capture any changes in the code. This is extremely important because incorrect DEMIL codes can cause revenue losses, significant hazard to personnel or material, and security incidents if material does not get demilitarized correctly.
DLIS stores the DEMIL code and its provenance information in database table "Table 812". The columns are defined as follows:
I_I_NBR_4131 |
Item identification number. An arbitrary number assigned by DLIS to identify the item of supply. This constitutes the last seven characters of the NIIN (and hence, the NSN). |
PICA_2866 |
A code indicating the principal supply control activity responsible for establishing stockage objectives, controlling stockage objectives and maintaining item accountability for an item of supply. |
DEMIL_CD_0167 |
A code to identify each item requiring demilitarization and the type of demilitarization required. |
RECM_DEMIL_2847 |
Recommended demilitarization code. The code that represents the demil code recommended by the DLIS DEMIL office. |
USR_CD_1101 |
User CODE. A code used for the purpose of identifyingan individualand determining what that individual can access in the online environment. |
DEMIL_REVW_DT_0146 |
Demilitarization item review Julian date. The Julian date on which the demil code is reviewed by the DLIS DEMIL office. Format: YYYYDDD. |
PICA_RSP_DT_0150 |
Demilitarization PICA response Julian date. The Julian date on which the PICA responds by inputting the recommended DEMIL code to FLIS. Format: YYYYDDD. |
NOTE 1 These definitions are adapted from [8].
NOTE 2 Columns and rows not relevant to the discussion in this annex have been omitted.
EXAMPLE Table C.2 shows an extract of Table 812 for NATO Stock Number (NSN) 5962-00-057-7131. (The first column, "Row number", is not part of Table 812 but is included here to allow rows to be referenced conveniently.)
The DCMO performed the initial review upon stocklisting on Julian date 1999250 (1999-09-07) and recommended that the DEMIL code be changed from "A" to "B".
This is recorded in row 1 of Table C.2. The date of review is in column DEMIL_REVW_DT_0146.
The recommended change to the DEMIL code from the first review (step a) was circulated, and following coordination, the DEMIL code was changed to "B" in FLIS on Julian date 2000066 (2000-03-06).
This is recorded in row 2 of Table C.2. The date of change is in column PICA_RSP_DT_0150.
The DCMO performed a subsequent review after initial stocklisting on Julian date 2007047 (2007-02-16) for one of several reasons (technical data availability, turn in at a Defense Reutilization Marketing Office, challenge generated, etc.) and recommended that the DEMIL code be changed to "D".
This is recorded in row 3 of Table C.2. The date of change is in column DEMIL_REVW_DT_0146.
The recommended change to the DEMIL code from the second review (step c) was circulated, and following coordination, the DEMIL code was changed to "D" in FLIS on Julian date 2007105 (2007-04-15).
This is recorded in row 4 of Table C.2. The date of change is in column PICA_RSP_DT_0150.
Table C.2 — Extract of DLIS Table 812 (DEMIL data) for NSN 5962-00-057-7131
Row number | I_I_NBR_4131 | PICA_2866 | DEMIL_CD_0167 | RECM_DEMIL_2847 | USR_CD_1101 | DEMIL_REVW_DT_0146 | PICA_RSP_DT_0150 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
0577131 |
9D |
A |
B |
|
1999250 |
2000066 |
2 |
0577131 |
ZH |
B |
B |
|
1999250 |
2000066 |
3 |
0577131 |
9D |
B |
D |
SDJ2816 |
2007047 |
0 |
4 |
0577131 |
ZH |
D |
D |
SDJ2816 |
2007047 |
2007105 |
Data that was traditionally moved as files is now moved as data elements in response to a query with the result that the consolidation (the process of taking data from different systems in order to create a unified view), integration (the process of combining two or more data sets into a larger data set) and partitioning (the process of dividing a data set into its smaller subsets or component parts) of data are common business processes used to obtain and maintain master data. As data is exchanged between systems it is possible to create a feedback loop similar to that of an audio system when a microphone is located in close proximity to a speaker.
EXAMPLE 1 An example of this is in the rental of address between mailing companies where databases are first consolidated then deduplicated (merge-purge). Without provenance at the level of an individual address the remaining "valid" address depends solely on the order of the process and as multiple merge-purge processes the quality of the resulting list becomes increasingly uncertain.
Associated with each item of supply in the NATO Codification System (NCS) are zero or more items of production.
NOTE Normally, there will be at least one item of production associated with an item of supply, but the case of zero can occur, for example, if the items of production associated with an item of supply go out of production and no suitable replacements can be found.
Since the manufacturer controls the specification of an item of production, and can change the specification without changing the part number, an item of production that once conformed to a item of supply may no longer conform.
EXAMPLE 2 For the digital microcircuit in Table C.1, the manufacturer might change the enclosure material from ceramic to resin. The manufacturer, which supplies primarily to consumer electronics manufacturers, does not consider the enclosure material to be a differentiating property, and decides to keep the same part number. However, the item of supply is used in certain aircraft applications where resin enclosures are not permitted. The item of production no longer conforms to the item of supply in FLIS and must be removed from the list of items of production associated with the item of supply.
As a consequence of such changes, DLIS occasionally reviews the data in FLIS for an item of supply and confirms the list of conforming items of production. In order to do this, DLIS must have up-to-date data on each item of production. A DLIS cataloguer can get such data from a variety of sources, including queries to the manufacturer, Internet search, and data aggregators. It is important for DLIS to know the provenance of each property value, particular property values from data aggregators, as an aggregator might have gotten the property value from the manufacturer, from DLIS, or from other source. If the aggregator got the property value from the FLIS, then it is of no value for updating the FLIS. Feeding such data back into FLIS could cause a more recent update from some other source to be overwritten. This is illustrated in the UML sequence diagram in Figure C.1.
Figure C.1 — Sequence diagram for data echo
By analyzing the provenance information, DLIS can determine that the value v1 for property p is out-of-date at time 1999-12-04, and therefore avoid overwriting the new value v2 with the old value v1.
If the cataloguer gets values for the same property of an item of production from several sources, they can use the provenance information to determine the most timely and reliable value for each property.