Certificate of Conformance

April 13, 2006

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A Certificate of Conformance may be used in certain instances instead of source inspection at the discretion of the contracting officer. When a Certificate of Conformance is provided for in the contract, it gives the Contract Administration Office an option to allow material to be accepted and shipped without being inspected.

However, this option is exercised only when product quality history is excellent. When it is exercised, contractors are notified in writing by the inspector that the Certificate of Conformance procedure is applicable and the company can ship. Without this written notification, the contractor must expect regular inspection of product before shipment. Remember that the Certificate of Conformance is for the convenience of the government, not the contractor.

How To Read Specs and Standards

Federal Specifications: The titles of federal specifications begin with a series of letters, followed by another letter and a serial number, and possibly a letter indicating the latest revision of the specification. The letter A represents the first revision, B represents the second revision, and so on. For example, A-A-104 is a federal spec for toothpaste. A-A-104B is the second revision of this spec.

Military Specifications: The titles of military specifications begin with the letters MIL, MS, or DOD, followed by the first letter in the first word of the title, a serial number, and possibly a letter indicating the latest revision of the specification. It may also be followed by a number in parentheses indicating the last amendment to the specification.

"Revisions" represent major changes to a specification, and a revised specification supersedes all of the earlier versions. The letter A represents the first revision, B represents the second revision, and so on. "Amendments" represent minor changes to a specification, and an amended specification supplements, but does not replace, the latest revision and all earlier amendments.

For example, MIL-C-85322 is a military spec for "Coating, Elastomere, Polyurethane, Rain Erosion Resistant, For Exterior Aircraft Use." DOD-L-85336 is a military spec for "Lubricant, All Weather (Automatic Weapons)." DOD-L-85336A represents the first revision of DOD-L-85336. MIL-L-85314A (1) is a military spec for "Light Systems, Aircraft, Anti-Collision, Strobe." MIL-L-85314A represents the first revision of MIL-L-85314. This first revision has been amended one time [indicated by the (1)].

Industry-Wide Standards: The titles of industry-wide standards begin with the letters in the abbreviation of the appropriate association, institute or society, followed by identifying letters and/or numbers. For example AWS A6.I-66 is an industry-wide safety standard for "Gas Shielded Arc Welding" from the American Welding Society (AWS). ANSI B4.1-67 is an industry-wide standard for "Cylindrical Parts, Preferred Limits and Fits for" from the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

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