ATA SPEC and the Aviation Industry Maintenance Program

Automated data collection with barcodes is a part of the aviation product maintenance system. For product security, the ATA (Air Transport Association) emphasizes the importance of product management in the aerospace industry. The Air Transport Association provides extensive details of all requirements in their ATA SPEC standard. These specifications deal with the basic requirements for product marking and barcodes in Chapter 9.

Barcode standard as required by ATA

Two-dimensional codes are commonly used to mark aerospace industrial products. These are high density codes with machine readable data. Apart from 2D data matrix symbology this also permits RFID codes and multiple barcodes for item identification. The use of direct part marking, or DPMI technology, is also allowed. In DPMI technology, 2D codes are directly imprinted on the products’ or parts’ body. Direct part marking is machine-readable and allows a company to track a product throughout its lifetime.

Direct part marking and the ATA standard

Direct part marking includes information and data as specified by ATA SPEC with item- unique identification. Like unique identification, DPMI codes and labels have to include information such as:

• part number

• serial numbers

• types of products

• cost of products

• expiry time of a product

• enterprise identification code

• type of used verifiers

Materials to be used in barcodes

The Air Transport Association allows several types of materials to be used for nameplates. The materials are used for UID marking like aluminum, stainless steel, ceramic, and polyester can be used for DPMI nameplates. However, the material should be substantial to outlast all environmental hazards. In addition, the material should be durable, easy to place on the item, and should be hardy. Like the unique identification marking process, ATA SPEC recommends quality and environmental tests for nameplates and labels.

Importance of the ATA standard

This standard approves the utilization of barcodes. Barcodes are approved and used by important organizations like the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD), the International Aerospace Quality Group (IAQG), and many others. Product marking with labels or DPMI technology is beneficial to track products. This system also offers several other benefits, such as:

• Better consumer service: Using automated data collection is a time saving and convenient method. It allows the authority to easily track products during installation, maintenance, and replacement work. It is time saving because a user can record information instantly with the help of a single scan.

• Barcodes ensure product authenticity. The process also helps to identify data accuracy.

• Standards like ATA and UID are internationally recognized. As such, it increases product accessibility throughout the international market.

To learn more about these standards, marking processes, and labels, please visit www.id-integration.com.

The Ins and Outs of ATA Spec

ATA stands for the Air Transport Association. ATA Spec 103 deals with the qualities of jet fuel only. This compliance manual covers all aspects of these standards that help to maintain a quality maintenance program. The main motive of this document is to serve as a guide to the users. The users can learn about the techniques of storing jet fuel in a safer manner and can also learn about the distribution procedure of jet fuel. Indeed it is an important part of the UID process, which helps in tracking jet fuel distribution details.

By going through ATA Spec, a contractor will better understand the techniques and fail safes that are presently practiced throughout today’s aviation businesses.

? According to UID standards, this document is not an inclusive part of the business because of the huge diversifications of the operations of jet fuel at the airport.

? There may be different kinds of complexities and difficulties at different airports of jet fuel, so as per compliance, proper testing facilities should be there along with other additional scopes for improvement.

? ATA 103 is also known as a set of specifications for jet fuel quality control at airports.

? There is a correlation between the fuel track keeping and the quality of fuel, therefore some of the fuel industry is of the notion that ATA 103 must support either of these.

? AIDC stands for Automated Identification and Data Capture and it is a part of ATA Spec 2000. This technology helps organizations to execute, recognize, and identify all data, guidelines, and polices related to jet fuel distribution and usage. Some of the things that AIDC deals with are bar coding, RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), as well as 2D Data Matrix that is normally utilized to categorize products and record information.

? For the past 30 years, barcode applications have become a popular method of tracking and coding labels. Barcode applications cover maintenance of transactions, monitoring sales, controlling inventory, shipping activities, and more essential activities.

? Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is used to identify specific circuits that include data that one can read from a distance instead of visiting an item up close. The process explains how the reading is made visible even from a great distance and how it can be displayed electronically.

These standards in place to ensure the safety of consumers and national security throughout the aviation industry. Learn more about the benefits of ATA Spec 2000 and how automated data capture can more easily facilitate compliance. Visit www.id-integration.com to learn more about today’s UID and Spec 2000 solutions.