usb gmbh, Munich, Definition of Configuration Management, ISO 10007

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Definition of Configuration Management

CM is a discipline applying technical and administrative direction and monitoring to:

identify and document functional and physical characteristics of a configuration item

control changes to those characteristics

record and report change processing status and product definition data

verify compliance with specifications and other contract requirements

Configuration in terms of ISO 10007 Para. 3.1 means the functional and physical description of a product, as it is defined in the technical documentation and achieved by the product. A product is therefore understood as any kind of material which is being produced under the cover of a project. A project is a summary of single tasks in a defined and agreed order, relation and time-frame, each with a known result. A project covers simple studies, where the outcome or result is only documentation as well as the realization of complex systems like aircrafts, power plants or automobiles.

Therefore Configuration Management (CM) has to be understood as the monitoring and control of both the functional and physical configuration of a product during its complete life cycle. CM is a management discipline that applies technical and administrative direction to the development, production and support life cycle of all items under configuration control.

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