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Subject:"Commercial Off The Shelf" Manuals From:Rick Lippincott <rjl6955 -at- gmail -dot- com> To:techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com Date:Fri, 21 Sep 2012 10:28:20 -0400
Does anyone on the list have experience with MIL-PRF-32216? I'm
looking for information specifically on customer expectations about
the final product.
We've got a commercially developed product that requires an extensive
field service manual. A branch of the US military has bought the
product, wants the maintenance manual, and has given us MIL-PRF-32216
as our standard.
32216 is called “EVALUATION OF COMMERICIAL OFF-THE-SHELF (COTS)
MANUALS AND PREPAATION OF SUPPLEMENTAL DATA.” Our assumption was that
the whole point of 32216 was so that the government could buy
commercial products with the existing tech manuals, and not require an
extensive re-write to comply with MIL-STD-38784.
However, reading 32216 gives the impression that no, they want a
manual that in effect is formatted to MIL-STD-38784.
(For those not familiar and with eyes glazing over, converting any
commercially produced tech document to comply with MIL-STD-38784 would
require a major overhaul as well as acquisition of a DTP that can
handle DOD-style change page packages. )
Has anybody on the list been in that position? If so, what did the
customer accept?
Thanks,
Rick Lippincott
American Science & Engineering
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