Consumable Material Management

9.2.4.1 Stock Funds. The NWCF provides a means for managing, financing, controlling, and accounting for material, supplies, and equipment. It serves as a means to improve financial control of the consumption of material through budgeting, financing, and accounting for the use of such material.

9.2.4.1.1 The NWCF finances the ICP procurement of most of the Navy's centrally managed consumable spares and repair parts and finances the reimbursement required when DLA and GSA items are ordered and placed in Navy inventory. The NWCF is a working capital or revolving fund. The capital to acquire the replacement stock is provided by reimbursement for all issues (sales) to the customer from the O&MN funds in the hands of the customer. In this respect it differs from APA material that is issued without charge to the customer's O&MN fund and is only statistically costed to the customer except under specific circumstances. 9.2.4.1.2 Most material procured and stored in the Navy Supply System issued for operations and maintenance purposes is authorized to be carried in the Navy stock account. Generally, this includes consumable material, relatively minor items of equipment, and parts used in the manufacture, assembly, or repair of end items.

9.2.4.2 Local Procurement (Open Purchase). When the NWCF is used to finance local procurement, ASN(FM&C) instructions on obligations for material to be delivered from stock fund inventories and policy for financing expense type material must be followed.

9.2.4.2.1 ICP has approval authority for the local purchase of centralized items (items for which the cognizant inventory manager has prescribed central procurement and management) from commercial sources in a quantity sufficient to satisfy emergency requirements and sustain normal operations during the period of an emergency without the need for repetitive procurements, providing all the following conditions exist:

a. The items or a suitable substitute cannot be obtained from normal Supply sources in time to satisfy the emergency requirement.

b. The purchase will not exceed purchase authority limitations established by field purchasing or other governing procurement regulations.

c. Adequate quality control standards and test requirements can be applied locally for items involving health, safety, or operational effectiveness.

9.2.4.2.2 Stock points are not authorized to purchase centralized items locally without the specific approval of the cognizant inventory manager except under the conditions stated in paragraphs 9.2.4.1.1 and 9.2.4.1.2 above. When required material is not available in the Supply System, stock points may request local purchase authority from the cognizant inventory manager.

9.2.4.2.3 Navy activities having necessary procurement and technical capability may purchase locally decentralized and nonstock numbered items subject to limitations established by the cognizant funding activity or higher authority.

9.2.4.2.4 Navy stock fund allotments are granted by NAVSUP WSS for the specific purpose of permitting local procurement for emergency requirements and limited stocks of centrally managed 1R cognizance material to satisfy priority 1 through 8 or NMCS and PMCS requirements.

9.2.4.2.5 Part numbered item requirements may be satisfied by local manufacture, fabrication, assembly, or procurement.

9.2.4.2.6 Local procurement of 1R COG material to satisfy requirements under COMNAVAIRSYSCOM (AIR-6.0) commercial rework contracts for the single Supply support central point concept will be made against the NWCF allotment and reimbursed at the time of issue with COMNAVAIRSYSCOM furnished funds. On stock numbered material which is obtained through manufacturing or open purchase, the demand on the Supply System must be recorded.

9.2.4.2.7 FRC requirements for local purchase of 1R cog items will be submitted to the local supply organization. All such requirements will be financed by the NWCF (BP34) allotment granted by NAVSUP WSS to the supply organization with subsequent sales to the NIF. Requirements for local purchase of nonstandard or nonpart numbered items will be financed by direct citation of the NIF.

9.2.4.3 Consumable material is material which after issue from stock, is consumed in use, or while having continued life, becomes incorporated in other property thus losing its identity when it is dropped from property accountability. Consumable items under the centralized management of the DLA or the GSA are procured with Navy stock fund, funded by FLEMATSUPPO, and carried in Navy stock account.

9.2.4.4 NIF Inventory. Consumable material and supplies required for operation at FRCs are procured with NIF money and accounted for as NIF inventory assets until issued to a customer job order or an expense account.

9.2.4.4.1 The NIF retail store inventory consumable items are stocked and repetitively ordered on the basis of historical usage. APA material, which includes high dollar value items with MCCs G, H, or Q, cannot be stocked in the NIF retail store inventory.

9.2.4.4.2 DMI items are those ordered for a specific customer job order and in the quantities required for scheduled work based on a bill of material. DMI items include both consumable and APA type material. 9.2.4.5 NIMMS. NIMMS is an automated data processing and information system designed to enable FRC material managers to control the flow of material to appropriate store rooms. Under NIMMS, a record of on hand and due-in quantities is maintained for each stocked item. Control of financial recording of material charges and other transactions, enabling classification of cost information, is based on the premise that all material used in a FRC is charged to the benefiting job at the time it is required and issued. NIMMS encompasses the requisitioning, receipt, storage, issuance, inventory, reconciliation, and inventory accounting necessary to fulfill the requirements of D-level industrial management and higher authority.

9.2.4.5.1 Material Accounting. NIMMS is divided into daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, and situational (including inventory) processes. Under NIMMS, a record of on hand and due quantities is maintained for each stocked item. Material items processed under NIMMS fall into three categories, the first two of which are within the material and supplies account:

a. NIF retail store items repetitively ordered and stocked on the basis of historical usage.

b. Special requirement items which are ordered specifically for, and in quantities immediately issued to, particular jobs.

c. Direct material inventory items which are ordered for a specific customer from a bill of material. 9.2.4.5.2 Material Management Information Systems. NIMMS is an on-line real time system used by the depots to process material transactions evolving from the acquisition control and issue of NIF materials and supplies, direct material, and government furnished material (which includes customer furnished material).

9.2.4.5.3 Responsibilities. Operation of NIMMS is the responsibility of the material department. Such functions as the nomination of NIF retail store items, excessing material, and approval of substitute or interchangeable material, are performed by material personnel.

9.2.4.5.4 NIMMS interfaces with several standard and unique systems:

a. MIS. Two systems within the MIS, material usage and weekly induction scheduling, use data extracted from NIMMS in developing management reports.

b. UADPS/R-Supply for stock points. NIMMS uses FEDLOG, and the change notice information from this system to maintain the integrity of NIMMS requisition data and master files. Status data from UADPS/R-Supply also updates NIMMS records.

c. COMNAVSUPSYSCOM MILSTRIP and MILSTRAP. Transactions which enter the Supply System and which are a product of NIMMS are prepared per these systems.

d. NIMMS is integrated with NIFMS, using a shared database to insure validity and accuracy of material related financial transactions and adjustments. These are used in NIFMS for billing, budgeting, and establishment of material norms for aircraft engine and component maintenance.