Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) and Answers

DLM 4000.25 covers DLMS business requirements. Useful DLMS information is available on the Defense Logistics Management Standards Office website. The DLM 4000.25 and other Defense Logistics Management Standards Office administered publications are available at: DLMS Publications.

Anyone, but it must be submitted to DLMS via the Component designated representative to the applicable DLMS Process Review Committee.

DEDSO assigns a PDC number to each proposed DLMS change submitted and it is used as a configuration management tool.

1. Not all ADCs complete the DLMS change lifecycle in the same amount of time.
2. Not all proposed DLMS Change (PDCs) become ADCs.
3. Some PDCs may be combined into a single ADC if they are closely tied together.
4. Some ADCs may become outdated and are withdrawn.

1. They are an addendum to the original ADC. It may replace an ADC entirely or add to the original change.
2. They may be in a group (e.g., standard line of accounting ADCs are all in the 1043 series)

Depends on complexity, priority of the change and how well the proposed DLMS change (PDC) is developed.  Could be as little as 30 days for administrative changes or simple code value additions or could take longer for complex new business processes.  Some changes take years!  Plan for 6 months, at a minimum, from the time your PDC is accepted into the change process.

The DoDAAD has been in existence since roughly 1960, when it largely existed as a paper-based, directory file that was updated manually by unit-level users who submitted TA_ transactions to the Defense Automatic Addressing Systems Center (DAASC) via hard cards that were keypunched at local communication centers. The Directory was originally a File that DAASC maintained, and as such, it was referred to as the DoDAAF until 2005, when the File was automated into the modern database that it is today, now known as the DoDAAD.

The DoDAAF (Department of Defense Activity Address File) was the name used to identify the flat-file version of the DoDAAD that existed prior to the reengineering of the DoDAAD in 2005 from a flat-file into the dynamic database that exists today? It is an archaic term.

The Department of Defense Activity Address Directory (DoDAAD) is an interactive, relational database that contains numeric records that identify activities. It serves as the single authoritative source of identification, routing, and address information for authorized users, including all Departments and Agencies of the Federal Government (DoD Components and Federal Agencies), authorized contractors, and authorized State and local government users. See DLM 4000.25, volume 6, chapter2, paragraph 1.1.

Management of the DoDAAD as a system is the shared responsibility of DEDSO and DAAS; however, management of the data in the DoDAAD is the responsibility of the Components and Agencies who actually own the activities who have DoDAACs (and RICs) in the DoDAAD, and thus the data entered therein for each. The Central Service Points (CSPs) are the caretakers charged to maintain this data on behalf of their respective Services/Agencies. Ultimately, though, each Service/Agency Chief/Director/Administrator owns the data in the DoDAAD for their Service/Agency.

The DoDAAD is considered Controlled Unclassified Information because it has been determined by the Secretary of Defense to meet the criteria for categorization as Critical Infrastructure Security Information (CISI), which is defined by 10 U.S.C. § 130e, to include: ‘…sensitive but unclassified information that, if disclosed, would reveal vulnerabilities in Department of Defense critical infrastructure that, if exploited, would likely result in the significant disruption, destruction, or damage of or to Department of Defense operations, property, or facilities, including information regarding the securing and safeguarding of explosives, hazardous chemicals, or pipelines, related to critical infrastructure or protected systems owned or operated by or on behalf of the Department of Defense, including vulnerability assessments prepared by or on behalf of the Department of Defense, explosives safety information (including storage and handling), and other site-specific information on or relating to installation security.’ See DLM 4000.25, volume 6, chapter2; and DODM 5200.01, Volume 4.

Central Service Point. The person appointed by their respective Service/Agency as the principal custodian and manager of all of the records of that Service/Agency in the DoDAAD. They are responsible for updating and managing these records using the DoDAAD Update Application, and are usually involved in the DoDAAD PRC either as a member or participant. See DLM DLM 4000.25, volume 6, chapter 2.

When situations arise whereby Services/Agencies determine that DoDAAD management be delegated below the CSP level, DoDAAD Monitors can be delegated by the CSP to allow for lower-level management within the service/agency. This is generally reserved for Services with large numbers of DoDAACs and/or frequent volatility of changes made to their DoDAACs. Monitor responsibilities are generally associated to a particular Major Command (MAJCOM). DoDAAD Monitors are responsible for maintaining DoDAACs/RICs delegated to them by their CSP. Like CSPs, DoDAAD Monitors are appointed in writing but by their CSP.

GSA (Office of Supply Chain Management) serves as the CSP for all Federal Agencies. They represent the equities of the Federal Agencies at the DoDAAD PRC.

The DoDAAD is comprised of two types of records: Department of Defense Activity Address Code (DoDAAC) and Routing Identifier Code (RIC) identifiers.

The DoDAAD consists of both 6-digit DoDAACs and 3-digit RICs which are used to identify activities. These activities are grouped by Series. A Series is the first, first and second, or first through third (or first and last) characters of the DoDAAC. Each Service or Agency who uses the DoDAAD is assigned one or several Series to use for creating records for their Service’s/Agency’s use. The DoDAAD Series Table lays out this structure. Subordinate to the Series is a second “tier” or subdivision of a Service/Agency known as the Major Command Code (MAJCOM -- a.k.a. Bureau Code). These 2-digit codes are not specific to a Series, but they are specific to a Service/Agency. For instance, the U.S. Navy has the Series of N, Q, R, and V DoDAACs. They have MAJCOMS that identify the subdivisions of the Navy. These MAJCOMs apply to all Navy DoDAACs, regardless of Series. So, for instance, a MAJCOM of “N0” (Naval Sea Systems Command) may be used for N, Q, R, and V DoDAACs as necessary. DoDAACs and RICS are comprised of various other data elements that form the pedigree of each type of record. See DLM 4000.25, volume 6, chapter 2, DoDAAD Data Elements.

The DoDAAD Series Table identifies how the DoDAAD is subdivided by Series to the various stakeholder Services/Agencies who use the DoDAAD. Initial Series was limited to the first digit of the DoDAAD/RIC, using numbers to identify Federal Agencies, and letters to designate DoD. DoDAAC and RIC assignment is based on MILSTRIP Service and Agency (S/A) codes identified in DLM 4000.25-1, MILSTRIP, Appendix 2.2 - Service and Agency Codes; and DLM 4000.25 Volume 2, Appendix 7.2. Over time, expansion required developing Series logic beyond just the first character. To provide for expansion for additional agencies that require DoDAACs beyond those identified in MILSTRIP, the DoDAAD Series Table further stratifies S/A codes for use in creating additional DoDAAD Series for Services/Agencies. See DLM 4000.25, volume 6, chapter2, DoDAAD Series Table.

The Department of Defense Activity Address Code (DoDAAC) is a six-position code that uniquely identifies a unit, activity, or organization that has the authority to requisition, contract for, receive, have custody of, issue, or ship government-owned assets, or fund/pay bills for materials and/or services. The first positions of the code designate the particular Service/Agency element of ownership. These codes are particularly important for U.S. Government financial, contracting, and auditing records. The codes are used across the entire Federal Government when ordering supplies from the supply system using MILSTRIP, FEDSTRIP, or DLMS procedures; and for all contracts and orders. When assigned for activities outside the Department of Defense, the codes are often referred to as AACs. The code is comprised of different types of address information and other codes which are instrumental in facilitating business processes. See DLM 4000.25, volume 6, chapter2.

A DoDAAC is the business standard code used to identify an activity within DoD and Federal Agency business systems that span all functional domains of procurement/acquisition, financial management and accounting, supply, property, maintenance, transportation, readiness, human resources, etc. See DLM 4000.25, volume 6, Chapter 2.

An Activity Address Code is a generic term used to identify any code used for addressing but that is not found within the DoDAAD. It is also a term commonly used to identify DoDAACs used by Federal Agencies.

The RIC is a 3-character, alpha-numeric code that uniquely identifies a unit, activity, or organization that requires system ability to route transactions or receive transactions routed to it (e.g., a source of supply) within logistics and financial business systems using DLMS and legacy 80 record position format transactions. The RIC was originally conceived as an abbreviated form of a seven-character Communication Routing Identifier (COMMRI). The first position designates the particular service/agency ownership, the second and third characters are determined by the Central Service Point (CSP).

The RIC was intended to be used for the routing of MILS transactions within a nodal system. The RIC was supposed to identify the specific node in this system to which transactions would be routed to/from. Each RIC, in turn, is supposed to associate to a DoDAAC which is what actually identifies the activity for which the RIC facilitates routing to/from the activity. The RIC is not intended to identify an activity or any functional use other than MILS routing.

A RIC only associates to a single DoDAAC and a DoDAAC can only be associated to one RICs. This is because the RIC is a routing mechanism, and does not necessarily convey identity of or as an activity. That is the purpose of the DoDAAC. NOTE: The rule of a DoDAAC only being associated to only one RIC goes into effect December 31, 2025. Until than there are exceptions (see ADC 1263).

The RIC address is actually meaningless in today’s business environment. The address of the RIC should be the TAC 1 (owner) address of the DoDAAC, but the address was never intended to be used for anything but contact information for the RIC’s owner. Today, people send email and wouldn’t even think of writing a formal letter to contact someone. The RIC or Routing Identifier Code’s primary purpose was to fit on a MILSTRIP record for electronic routing of transactions. The DoDAAC was six characters, the RIC was only three and as such you could use both a TO and FROM RIC on a record that could only hold one DoDAAC. Do you need it? Maybe, maybe not. The RIC has limited uses and I can’t say if you need a RIC. Right now, the only requirement I can say with certainty requires a RIC is the WebSDR process. Most of the time, the DoDAAC can be used. That is the main reason for the change, because the first step in eliminating the RIC is creating a one-to-one relationship between DoDAACs and RICs.

Yes. Contractor DoDAACs are assigned to contractors whenever there is a requirement to identify a contractor within DoD business system transactions. These generally are instances that involve Government Furnished Property (GFP) – whether GFE, GFM, CAP, CFM – and generally include instances where either:

1. a Contractor has been authorized in a contract to requisition from Government sources of supply,
2. a Contractor requires Government property be shipped to them to perform some service (e.g., repair & return, repair & replace, modification, warranty, etc.),
3. a Contractor is performing some third party logistics (3PL) service in support of DoD (e.g., Gov’t owned/contractor run service/facility, a contractor managed inventory control point, etc.).

The Unit Identification Code is a six-character code created by the DoD Components to identify an activity in manpower and readiness reporting systems. Prior to the advent of the DoDAAC (circa 1960), the UIC was a five-digit code used for financial resources, readiness, and manpower. To enable Joint Services interoperability, the code was changed to 6-characters; however, certain Services and systems maintained use of the 5-character construct (Navy). The Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (OUSD P&R) is the DoD “owner” of the UIC. The database that contains all DoD UICs is the Unit Identification Code Search System (UICSS) which is administered by the Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC) of the Defense Human Resource Activity (DHRA). This system obtains data from the Components’ manpower systems. The Army uses the 6-digit UIC. Navy uses a 5-digit UIC and applies an “N” to the beginning of their codes. Air Force uses the Personnel Accounting System (PAS), and the Marine Corps uses the Reporting Unit Code (RUC) for personnel reporting, and the UIC for reporting of structure requirements. Currently, however, the Marine Corps system that provides data to UICSS is the Marine Corps Total Force System (MCTFS) which provides the RUC information. Depending on the Service’s internal business processes, this field should be populated with the appropriate UIC to which the DoDAAC is associated, as applicable.

A DoDAAC facilitates business processes across all functional domains and is uniquely associated to the expenditure, distribution, and accounting of resources (i.e., property, goods, services, and funds); whereas, a UIC primarily serves as an identity code, specifically for use in manpower and personnel systems of the DoD.

The Series of a DoDAAC identifies the various types of activities, and where necessary, the DoDAAC Assignment Logic is also instrumental in identifying additional characteristics of activities. For instance, any DoDAAC beginning with a number in the first two positions of the code is a Federal activity. Any DoDAAC beginning with a number and a letter in the first two positions is a State or local entity activity. Any DoDAAC beginning with a letter is a DoD activity, but DoD contractors are identified by only certain letters or letter combinations, as identified in the DoDAAD Series Table. Currently, there is no Series or construct for identifying Federal contractors.

DoDAACs are generally used to construct a business event transaction. The most common of these are the Procurement Instrument Identifier (PIID), the standard document number, the MILS document number, or the Transportation Control Number. All of these business event identifiers begin with a DoDAAC. DoDAACs are also used in systems to identify owners of property and/or classes of Supply. They are used to identify activities for billing and payment. Additionally, DoDAACs are used for identifying shippers and receivers across the distribution pipeline. In some instances, DoDAACs are used to identify readiness equities, equipment sets, employer identification, etc. The use of the DoDAAC is always expanding.

The Central Service Points (CSPs) are the only people authorized to create, update and/or assign a DoDAAC. Based on you organization type there are different means to obtain a DoDAAC:

• Military or Government Service/Agency employees, contact your Central Service Point (CSP) or local DoDAAC Monitor at your location to have a DoDAAC assigned. If a DoDAAC Monitor does not exist at your Service/Agency, you may look up the CSP for your Servcie/Agency CSPs. Requests for new DoDAAC or modification to an existing DoDAAC must allow for processing by the CSP in order to be implemented in time for its intended use (e.g. requisitioning, shipping, billing, etc.).
• Private organizations (e.g., contractors) contact the Service/Agency with whom you have a contract. That Service/Agency will determine if you are eligible and assign a DoDAAC (if eligibility requirements are met).  Contractor DoDAACs are only issued for the length of the contract.  When the contract expires, the DoDAAC will be deleted (inactivated). If you contract is extended, you must contact your contract officer. Only a warranted contracting officer can request a DoDAAC change.

There are two methods of looking up a DoDAAC. If the DoDAAC is known, there is a public access site at: https://home.daas.dla.mil/DAASINQ/default.asp. This site requires no special access and you can use it today. There is also a search site available that allows you to find and return multiple DoDAACs at one time, but it requires a System Access Request (SAR) to use. The application name is eDAASINQ and the SAR can be made from DAAS at: https://home.daas.dla.mil/sar/sar_menu.asp. See our "How to Request eDAASINQ Access" guide for more detailed instructions.

Authority codes have been established to restrict requisitioning, shipment, and billing by DoDAAC. DoDAAC authority codes are applicable to all Services. Initially, DLA Transaction Services will assign Authority Code "00" (full authority to requisition, ship-to and bill-to) to all DoDAACs, unless a more restrictive code is already known for a DoDAAC, based upon existing DAAS edits. Following initial implementation, CSPs will update DoDAAC authority codes, as appropriate, and will assign authority codes to all new DoDAACs. Types of authority codes are listed on the DoDAAD Information page.

Go to: DLM 4000.25, volume 6, chapter2.

The list can be found on the DoDAAD Information page.

Yes. The contracting officer can assign as many DoDAACs to one contract as necessary to fulfill the requirements of the contract. Hence the 'many Contractor DoDAACs to one contract' relationship. This is covered in FAR policy at FAR 51.101 (see additional text below). In the case where there may be multiple ship-to locations, for example, there may need to be more than one DoDAAC assigned, even though the contract is awarded only to one contractor.

PGI 251.102-70 says The authorization to use Government sources of supply is unique to each contract and shall not be transferred or assigned to any other contractor or contract. Therefore, the same DoDAAC shall not be assigned to any other contract number during the period of performance for the contract. Which explains the 'one contract per DoDAAC' relationship. DPC has agreed that this limitation will only be enforced for DoDAACs with authority code '00' (meaning they can requisition). FAR 51.101 does not enforce the relationship for 'Ship To' or 'Administrative' DoDAACs. So a KO could change the contract number on a Ship To Only Contractor DoDAAC to a different contract if the first contract was closed. DPC yearly valids the contract DoDAACs to see if there are Contractor DoDAACs associated with closed contracts and will close them out.

FAR 51.101 says that contractors may use the government supply system (for which they need a DoDAAC) **in support of contracts.** (the allowable types of contracts are listed in the policy) It further goes on to say: Upon deciding to authorize a contractor to use Government supply sources, the contracting officer shall request, in writing, as applicable... A MILSTRIP activity address code from the appropriate Department of Defense (DoD) service point listed in Section 1 of the Introduction to the DoD Activity Address Directory... In each authorization to the contractor, the contracting officer --(1) Shall cite the contract number(s) involved; (2) Shall, when practicable, limit the period of the authorization...

You will need the Service who issued your contract to create a requisitioning DoDAAC in order to obtain the security container. Authorization for purchase is OGP 4800.2I, "Fixed-price contractors (and subcontractors) purchasing security equipment. Under 40 U.S.C. § 501, the Administrator has determined that fixed-price contractors and lower-tier subcontractors who are required to maintain custody of security classified records and information may purchase security equipment from GSA. Procedures for such acquisitions are set forth in 41 CFR 101-26.507."

Who you contact will be based on the Action Activity you submitted your SDR to for Action. Submitters of SDRs must follow the procedures regarding follow ups in DLMS 4000.25 Vol. 2 Chapter 17 for status. If the submitter has submitted the maximum number of follow ups and still has not received a response to their SDR, then they may contact the service primary or alternate SDR Process Review Committee (PRC) member for the action activity which received the SDR. The listing for these POCs are located under the SDR committee page located at: SDR Committee Page.

Access to WebSDR for new or existing users can be found under the SDR committee page located at: SDR Committee Page. New users will be required to submit a system access request (SAR).

Note: You may have to re-register your CAC to enter the DAAS Portal to access WebSDR. Simply follow the instructions on the portal to continue to the application via PKI/CAC registration.

A list of relevant data elements and codes can be found in DLMS 4000.25 Vol. 2, Appendix 7.28.

Contact WebSDR/DAAS to update your permissions using the contact information provided below:

Defense Automatic Addressing System (DAAS)
COMMERCIAL: (614) 692-6672
DSN: (312) 850-6672
itoc@dla.mil