Approaches to reduce impact of electronic component obsolescence. Component Information Management System

The shortage of sources for qualified electronic devices used in defense systems has continued to grow at an accelerating pace and creates a serious dilemma for contractors and military centers producing and supporting DoD systems. Major suppliers of MIL devices have chosen to discontinue the manufacture of these devices and suggest they be replaced by similar commercial devices manufactured by their commercial facilities. Having studied this situation and related problems with the quality and availability of good component information, the Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA) recognized the need to establish a data warehouse. This warehouse, entitled the "Component Information Management System" (CIMS), promises to alleviate the dilemma of diminishing manufacturing sources. With the CIMS data warehouse, access to accurate component and supplier information for both commercial and military applications will be readily available for a variety of individuals as well as small, medium, or large sized firms. Smaller organizations can access the data directly through the Internet Home page, while larger firms may choose to access the data through value added data product suppliers using various bulk data access methods.