About S5000F

Through a cooperation agreement between ASD an AIA, S5000F is a collaborative transatlantic specification developed by both American and European aerospace and defense manufacturers and their customers. Its primary goal is to establish a global standard for in-service data feedback, a critical component for enhancing in-service support and improving the associated products. Although it originated in the aerospace domain, S5000F is applicable to a wide range of products, whether mobile or stationary, across air, land, sea, and space domains, and is relevant for both civilian and military programs.

Download S5000F Issue 3.1

Scope of S5000F

With the advent of new and complex technical products, a timely and effective support system is essential. Ensuring proper product surveillance is crucial to meet product liability regulations and optimize the product's capabilities. To achieve cost-efficient and optimized product operation, a structured process for information feedback is necessary. Over the lifecycle of a complex technical system or product, support costs significantly exceed acquisition costs, making this specification vital for cost savings and optimized product utilization. S5000F outlines the data flow among involved parties and the feedback of analyzed data into actionable recommendations.

Purpose

The S5000F specification is designed to cover the information required for feedback in both Integrated Product Support (IPS) and other domains. In-service data feedback is one of the most vital functions of in-service support, enabling fleet and support managers, as well as technical system manufacturers, to conduct thorough analyses of operational and maintenance performance. The use of real data in analytics and simulations is essential for informed decision-making.

The analysis results from S5000F can serve as a foundation for:

  • Enhancing maintenance and support concepts.
  • Improving products through modifications and retrofitting.
  • Planning sophisticated operational strategies.

The overarching goal of in-service data feedback is to increase fleet and product availability while optimizing operational effectiveness. Furthermore, feedback information is critical for managing performance-based logistics (PBL) contracts, where contractors may assume partial or full maintenance responsibilities and must comply with product liability obligations.

Using S5000F, either alone or in conjunction with other S-Series or IPS specifications, enables a structured approach to handling operational, maintenance, and other data feedback from operators, contractors, vendors, suppliers, MRO centers, or any other stakeholders. This process is efficiently managed through the S5000F data model, and the common data model for the S-Series of IPS specifications, SX002D.

S5000F Specification development history

The development of S5000F began in 2008 with an international team of experts working under the joint chairmanship of AIA and ASD representatives. The following companies and organizations contributed to its development:

  • Airbus Defense and Space
  • Boeing
  • Lockheed Martin
  • Rolls-Royce
  • UK MoD
  • and many more

The first draft, Issue 0.1, was published in December 2013 for internal review by ASD and AIA member companies. Following extensive feedback and revisions, the first formal release, Issue 1.0, was published in September 2016. Subsequent versions, including Issue 2.0 in December 2019 and Issue 3.0 in April 2021, reflect ongoing improvements and stakeholder input.

Brief specification breakdown and outline

S5000F describes the essential in-service feedback processes and the associated activities during the in-service phase. The data to be fed back is directly related to these activities, summarized in typical use cases, and mapped against corresponding feedback data. This structure allows S5000F to be used contractually, by selecting specific activities (use cases) and referencing tables listing the required information.

The specification is organized into 30 chapters, each addressing a specific feedback purpose or providing global-level information:

  • Chapter 1: Introduction to the specification
  • Chapter 2: The in-service feedback business process
  • Chapter 3-10: Feedback data for analysis purposes (RAMCT, maintenance, safety, etc.)
  • Chapter 11-16: Feedback data for various support and management purposes
  • Chapter 17-22: Placeholder chapters for future expansion
  • Chapter 23-30: Data models, exchange, element lists, tailoring, contracting, implementation examples, and terminology

S5000F interoperability with other S-Series IPS Specifications

Significant efforts have been made to ensure that S5000F is interoperable with other S-Series IPS specifications from the outset. Issue 3.0 is fully interoperable with S3000L Issue 2.0, S2000M Issue 7.0, S6000T Issue 2.0, SX000i Issue 3.0, and is part of a common block release.

Coordination with SX000i ensures that the feedback activities align with the global IPS framework. S5000F is also fully interoperable with the S-Series Common Data Model (SX002D) and includes elements from the future Issue 2.1. Efforts continue to monitor and ensure interoperability with future issues of other S-Series specifications.

The data environment is supported by a detailed relationship model using UML technology (based on ISO Standard 10303, AP239, PLCS). This facilitates medium-term integration of feedback data with IPS, engineering, and manufacturing processes, ultimately achieving a global lifecycle data exchange.