NSSN (NATO standard stock number)

NSSN stands for NATO standard stock number. NATO's archival terminology defines it as a standardized stock number assigned to an item of supply, and the NATO Logistics Handbook describes it as a 13-digit number. When the number is assigned as a NATO-wide standard stock number, it carries country code 11.

The NSSN belongs to the NATO Codification System, which gives every item of supply one unique identifier so that allied forces can refer to the same part, tool or component by the same number. The Logistics Handbook states that the NSSN is included in the NATO Master Cross Reference List. In current practice, the more common term is NSN, the NATO stock number, and that is the term Canadian suppliers will see in most solicitations.

How an NSSN relates to an NSN

NATO states that each item of supply in the NATO Codification System receives a unique 13-digit NSN, as set out in the NATO Codification System booklet. The NSSN is the older or more specialized term for a standard stock number assigned for common NATO use. Both terms describe a 13-digit identifier for an item of supply, and the NSSN is distinguished by its country code of 11.

Structure of the 13-digit number

An NSN has three parts, according to the NATO Codification System booklet:

• A four-digit NATO Supply Classification Code, which groups the item by type.
• A two-digit country code.
• A seven-digit item-identification number.

In an NSSN, the two-digit country code is 11. Reading the number this way lets a bid team confirm that a stated identifier is complete before it is copied into a bid, a label or shipping documents.

How Canadian federal policy treats NSN identifiers

Canadian federal terminology generally uses NSN rather than NSSN. Treasury Board's materiel-coding standard, TBITS 25, adopted the Canadian component of the NATO codification system for federal materiel classification and used the NSN as the standard materiel-assets code in departmental asset-management systems. It required the full 13-digit NSN for materiel assets with repetitive, recurring or continuing supply requirements. For unique or small-ticket items, it permitted the NATO stock class together with the supplier or manufacturer and the part or model number. The standard was rescinded on May 7, 2024, but it remains a clear record of federal terminology and former policy.

The Department of National Defence assigns the numbers. Its materiel-identification policy, DAOD 3038-0, gives its supply-chain authority responsibility for assigning NSNs and for requesting them from design-control countries.

Where NSN data appears in CanadaBuys solicitations

Defence solicitations on CanadaBuys use the NSN in several ways:

• Repair, replacement and spares: an injector pump RFP identifies the NSN as the 13-digit identifier used in NATO and allied cataloguing systems and states that it will be included when Canada is to order the item.
• Foreign Military Sales: CanadaBuys guidance on United States Foreign Military Sales states that material obtained through the program must be identified by NSN whenever possible.
• Packing slips: a wrench and spanner RFP requires packing slips to show the supplier, NSN, manufacturing standard, manufacturer's part number and model number, quantity, and any lot, batch, cure-date or shelf-life information.
• Bar codes: a CanadaBuys contract requires the contractor to apply NSN bar-code information using UCC/EAN-128 symbology and the relevant application identifier, together with the human-readable interpretation.

What an NSSN means for a supplier bidding on Canadian public contracts

Treat NSSN as the older NATO term and look for the NSN field in the solicitation. When a solicitation or contract states an NSN, use that number exactly as given in your bid, product identification, packing slips, labels and bar codes. Check the packaging and marking clauses before pricing, because bar-code and packing-slip requirements can add work at the shipping stage. Where the solicitation does not state a number, rely on the part number, model number and manufacturer details it asks for.