Thursday, August 26, 2010

How to Understand MIL-STD-130 without Losing Your Mind?

If you are new to military standards your first question is likely to be: what is section 252.211-7003 talking about? And more to the point; what is a MIL-STD?

Do not worry you are not the first, and will not be the last person that is initially startled by these requirements.

Section 252.211-7003 requires items in a DOD (Department of Defense) project to follow specific item identification and valuation requirements. More specifically they must follow MIL-STD-130 guidelines.These guidelines are designed to ensure the Department of Defense can control the cost, compatibility, and consistency of all their items. Initially guidelines like those described in 252.211-7003 were restricted to military projects, but now they are used regularly by non defense organizations.

MIL-STD 130N is a set of requirements and standards that regulate the marking, identifying, and tracking of military property. Although as mentioned above other organizations are also using this set of standards.The purpose is to provide a set of minimum requirements for the design of a particular project. These regulations only apply to items that do not already carry a unique identification marking, as in the case of cars and cell phones.

These regulations are rather complex and are very specific about the type and format that is used. To illustrate, here are a few of the standards set by MIL-STD 130N.

All items under regulation 252.211-7003 must be marked directly on the surface or with an attached identification plate, band, tag, or label. The marking on the item must be easily visible during its handling or use. The tag or identification must be designed to last throughout the lifetime of the item, and withstand the effect of the elements and regular wear and tear. In the case that this is not feasible, due to lack of space then the basic information should be included.

252.211-7003 specifies that the basic information should include the Enterprise Identifier (EID), which identifies the organization that supplies or builds the item; the PIN, or part or identifying number; and the batch number of the article. In cases where even the basic information included in the IUID will not fit the specifications can be included in the packaging.

As you have probably noticed the standards required by 252.211-7003 are by no means simple to follow. That is why, if your organization needs to follow these strict regulations, you should contact experts like www.id-integration.com that will able to ensure you are complying with all relevant standards.

IUID Implementation

Item Unique Identification or IUID as it is known as, is the military specification for identifying each tangible item or asset and distinguishing it in inventory. The IUID specification calls for permanent labeling of each asset with a unique identifying string and barcode. The technology behind these markings is what ID-Integration covers. From barcode scanners to barcode tagging systems, ID-Integration handles the full range of IUID implementation in compliance with the Department of Defense.

IUID, also known by the designation MIL-STD-130, is being implemented so as to provide asset control to all the various items that the Department of Defense has in its inventory system. Each item is specified to having a permanent identifying tag affixed to the part, or in case of lot or batch items, an item batch number that identifies the entire lot of parts. These tags must be of a permanent nature that will last for the lifetime of the item. Each IUID label must be affixed in such a way as to allow the ID number to be scanned or read by an inventory control device such as a barcode scanner.

The specification by the Department of Defense for identifying inventory, also known as Spec. 525.211-7003 calls for the use of a unique two dimensional tag or marking, which allows the identification of the specific part or lot as the case may be. This 2-D matrix identifier must meet specific criteria in its composition according to normal industry standards for encoding. Each matrix tag must be in a unique and permanent format that will last for the life of the part being tagged.

ID-Integration can handle the implementation of IUID for your company from tagging systems to inventory control (barcode) readers. In the case of tagging systems ID-Integration can help in coming up with Department of Defense compliant tags that are fully compatible with the full range of IUID specifications. Since there are many different iterations for IUID compliance depending on size, type, or make of part, it can be difficult for manufacturers to develop a fully compliant labeling system. That is where the experts at ID-Integration can be of help, in threading the maze to fully compliant labeling for your product inventory.

UID Scanner: A Brief Overview

Every day there are hundreds of new technological gadgets and devices released onto the market. Some of them are extremely useful to society and the individual by providing useful convinces to our everyday life; although, some of these new inventions and technologies are not as useful. One such new technology that is useful to our everyday lives is the UID scanner. The UID scanner is a new device that was created the DoD (Department of Defense) to help track packages and other items that were shipped.

The true genius of the UID Scanner comes from the fact that it can easily integrate into any existing shipping business with little to no hassle and instantly increase the efficiency of any and all shipping processes. The UID Scanner works by scanning IUID labels on any surface or package and reads a 2D Data Matrix symbol by doing this it can easily be directly applied to specific tangible items to help facilitate item tracking in DoD business systems. This can easily help keep track of which items are were and help to prevent losing items or theft. The data can also be used for management, financial, accountability, and asset management purposes.

One of the devices that do the UID scanning is the Microscan UID DPM Verifier. The Microscan UID DPM Verifier is one of the many new UID scanners now available for purchase. The Microscan UID DPM Verifier provides many great features that should be expected in a UID scanner such as ISO/IEC 16022, ISO/IEC 15415, and AS9132 scanning. It also has an Ethernet port for connection to the Internet for the purpose of tracking packages and storing information. Another quality UID scanner on the market today is the Microscan UID LDP Verifier. Similar to the DPM verifier in purpose this UID scanner is visually different.

Anyone looking at new and emerging technologies in the world today should look no further than UID scanner technology. By allowing easy scanning and tracking of packages the UID scanner technology can ensure safe delivery and arrival and give accurate shipping times, while increasing the efficiently of the entire process.