SD-2 Dod Acquisitions Buying Commercial Items And Nondevelopmental ItemsThis document offers guidance on acquisitions involving all types of commercial and nondevelopmental items: systems, subsystems, assemblies, parts, and items of supply. Commercial services are also addressed.This document does not present a “cookbook” approach to the acquisition of commercial and nondevelopmental items; such an approach could not accommodate the vast array of potential applications. It does offer lessons learned and things to consider when participating on an integrated product team.

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Appendix  C.  Product  Descriptions

A product description provides the essential technical characteristics about the item to be ac- quired; it also defines the methods or procedures used to verify the technical characteristics. Product descriptions for commercial items and NDIs should evolve from the user's requirement and from information on item and industry capabilities identified during market research.

The following are the key types of product descriptions:

•  Nongovernment standards. Nongovernment standards are developed by private-sector organ- izations, which plan, develop, establish, or coordinate standards, product descriptions, handbooks, or related documents.They may describe items or processes (such as test methods). Nongovernment standards may have been adopted by DoD and listed in DoD's ASSIST, which is the online repository of DoD specifications and standards. However, any suitable nongovernment standard, whether or not it has been adopted, may be used. Because nongovernment standards are developed by consensus involving all interested par- ties, they normally document commercial practices or standards for an item or process

and are valuable tools in developing product descriptions for commercial items.

•  Commercial item descriptions (CIDs). CIDs are simplified product descriptions that describe the available, acceptable commercial items that meet DoD needs. CIDs are normally used to buy commercial items when development of a standardization document is justified. The user's requirement, market research, and coordination with industry form the basis for the development of a CID. Requirements for samples and market acceptance criteria (for example, annual sales data, expected orders, and warranty provisions) are both useful tools in simplifying the CID. Market acceptance criteria can be used in other types of product descriptions as well.

•  Defense performance specifications and defense detail specifications. Defense specifications are reserved for military-unique items when development of a standardization document is justified.These types of product descriptions may be used in an NDI acquisition, for example, when one military service uses an item previously developed for another service.

•  Program-peculiar documents. These documents describe items developed and produced for

use under a specific program, or as part of a single system, that have no application outside that program or system.They are frequently used to buy systems.They are not standardi- zation documents. Even when they are used for development programs, program-peculiar documents should encourage the use of commercial items and NDIs as subsystems, com- ponents, and support equipment.This process can be facilitated by asking the developer to

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