(7) Federal supply classification Class 6530--Hospital Furniture, Equipment,
Utensils, and Supplies.
(8) Federal supply classification Class 6532--Hospital and Surgical Clothing
and Related Special Purpose Items.
(9) Federal supply classification Class 6540--0pticians' Instruments,
Equipment, and Supplies.
(10) Federal supply classification Class 6545--SKO.
2-11. NATIONAL ITEM IDENTIFICATION NUMBER
a. The second part of the NSN, known as the NIIN, consists of the last nine
digits. These nine digits are unique in that they specifically identify an item of supply; no
other supply item in the whole universe of supply has the same NIIN. Thus, we have
"put a handle" on an item through the use of the NSN. The NIIN stays with the item as
long as the item remains in the supply system.
b. A specific example of a NSN is the one analyzed in figure 2-1. It is the
number for a certain ureteral catheter. The 6515 is the class number to that the
catheter has been assigned and the 00-316-5200 is the NIIN assigned to the catheter.
2-12. ADVANTAGES OF NATIONAL STOCK NUMBER
For many years, the NSN, that represents the FSC system, has had several
advantages.
a. First, the NSN has been uniform in its use, length, and structure.
b. Second, FSC has been stable because the national item identification number
never changed; however, the code could change if the item was reclassified from one
class to another class.
c. Third, the NSN has been adaptable, particularly in the area of the automatic
data processing system.
d. Fourth, the NSN has been simple and easily recognized.
Section II. USING THE MEDICAL CATALOG
2-13. GENERAL
The current Medical Catalog is produced on microfiche and incorporates all of
the supply information that was found in the old paper booklet catalogs.
2-14. MEDICAL CATALOG
The catalog is divided into three volumes:
MD0029
2-6