Configuration Management Plan Section 10 - Model Text

10. CONFIGURATION AUDITS

10.1 General.

Functional and Physical Configuration Audits will be performed in accordance with the general and detailed requirements, and specific processes that is, procedures, tasks, and responsibilities.
The main purpose of the FCA and PCA is to establish a product baseline for each HWCI and CSCI and to establish a system or production baseline. This defines configuration of the product for manufacture and provide assurance for the support of the product during operational use.
They will occur at a time when the product functionally and physically matches its documentation (specifications, drawings, hardware, software) for the first release in its life cycle. (Sometimes referred to as first article).

Responsibility for the Physical and Functional Configuration Audits is with the Configuration Management Technical Authority and shall be performed by the acquirer or his nominated representative with support from the following:

System/subsystem design manager;
Software management (CSCIs only);
Quality representative.

A Physical Configuration Audit Plan should be prepared and will include all CSCI, HWCI, subsystem and system planning. See model text in the 'Documentation Standards' for an example.

10.1.1 Functional configuration audit.

The FCA will be an examination of the Configuration Identification documents for the specific CSCIs and HWCIs to ensure that the technical documentation accurately reflects the actual functional characteristics of a configuration item and conforms to the necessary interface characteristics.
Test and evaluation data will be examined to verify the configuration item has achieved the performance specified in the relevant Configuration Identification documentation, i.e., Functional and Allocated baselines. The FCA will be carried out on the first item (first article) which is representative of the configuration which is to be used has a deliverable item.
Any difference will be identified between the physical configuration of the selected configuration item and other development configuration items used for the FCA, and will certify or demonstrate that these differences do not degrade the functional characteristics of the selected configuration item.
In some cases qualification can only be determined during integrated systems testing, in which case completion of the FCA will be delayed until that time.
The FCA will be performed progressively throughout the development of the item and will be finalized when qualification testing is complete.

10.1.2 Physical configuration audit.

The PCA will be an audit of the Configuration Identification documentation, planning and manufacturing data, released engineering drawings and the Quality Evaluation records for each CSCI and HWCI to ensure that the configuration Baseline engineering documents have been adhered to and that the "as-built" or "as-coded" condition is in accordance with them.
The PCA will be carried out on the first item used for qualification and compliance verification.
A System PCA may be necessary for large and complex systems to ensure that the Physical Baseline Build Standard is acceptable for production release.
The PBBS will be defined by a 'Master Record Index'.

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First originated on the 17th of July 1995
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