UID Standard Policy gets mandatory by US Department of Defence

The US Department of Defense has mandated the UID policy to be followed for all defense related equipments submission on or after Jan. 1, 2004.  Unique Identification, also popularly known as UID is defined as  "the set of data for tangible assets which include all military equipments, repairable material and consumables, that is globally unique and unambiguous, ensures data integrity and data quality throughout life, and supports multifaceted business applications and users." Through the UID policy, the DoD can significantly keep track of the military items it buys by identifying them uniquely and in that way can counterfeiting of parts. As a result of this UID policy, the logistics will be enhanced and the business transactions supporting U.S. and coalition troops will also be improved.

As compared to commercial item markings, the DoD's vision of UID policy offers better item tracking and provides precise data for accountability management, financial, and asset management purposes. The DoD has clearly set prerequisite criteria where UID policy is mandated to be followed. The conditions are described as follows.

UID requirement criteria

If the cost of the acquisition is $5,000 or more.

If UID is a component of a delivered item, or  if the program manager has determined that UID is required.

If the item is either a controlled inventory piece of equipment, is mission essential, serially managed, a repairable item, or a consumable item where permanent identification is required.

If a DoD-recognized UID equivalent is available.

Basically a UID marking consists of a unique 2-D data matrix symbol which consists of Part Number, Serial Number, and CAGE Code  for every the product. This 2-Dimensional Data Matrix Symbol is the lowest level of identifier and especially applicable for the Aviation Industry. The basic idea behind this 2D-Matrix is to maintain uniformity in the inventory in all government deliverables. This 2-Dimensional Data Matrix Symbol  can done either by dot peen, durable polyester, laser mark, chemical etch or ink jet. Only after the military products are marked through the unique identification process, they are UID complaint.  After marking, the items need to be checked to be confirmed to the standard setting. A further scanning and tacking of the items are done to check the accuracy of the items before they ready to be received. Finally, the UID data is submitted to the WAWF i.e. Wide Area Work Flow and UID Registry to be UID  compliant.

Benefits of UID

All tangible military items either owned by or in the contract with the DoD is mandated to be identified with a serialized unique identification number. This unique identification number is indispensable for meeting the MIL-STD-130 standards. Because of this UID policy, The DoD can extract the relevant information about any items that are stored in the DoD UID registry very easily.

Starting from efficient, faster tracking and  acquisition, repair, and deployment of registered items, the UID policy also helps accomplish a higher states of operational readiness. Also the status of items checking is a whole lot easier through this unique identification system.