Configuration Management Policy

DOE-STD-1051-93

Configuration Management Policy

The maintenance policy regarding the control of plant configuration should be

clearly defined and communicated to all levels of the organization. The policy

should address the scope of configuration management controls, the

responsibilities of the maintenance organization, and the principal interfaces

between the plant and maintenance organization that directly control material

condition assessments and plant design base requirements. In addition the

policy should identify each maintenance line manager's responsibility for

implementing the necessary controls to ensure effective implementation of the

configuration management policy.

A vailability of D esign B ase Requirements

The current plant design base requirements should be readily available to the

maintenance staff. These requirements should be used in the preparation,

review, and approval of proposed changes to plant design and maintenance

procedures. In addition, these requirements should be used in troubleshooting

problems and validating material condition assessment when questions arise.

The organization responsible for controlling the design base requirements and

ensuring plant design integrity (i.e., the design authority) should be assigned the

responsibility for interpreting design base requirements as needed.

Control of Interfaces

The interfaces among plant, permanent maintenance, and non-facility

organizations should be clearly defined to ensure the complete and accurate

communication of plant configuration-related information. For example, a

change to a vendor manual may result in changes to maintenance procedures,

training materials, equipment lists, repair parts, and design base documents such

as specifications and drawings. In addition, information may flow in both

directions across organizational interfaces. For example, information related to a

design change may be needed by operations, maintenance, and/or training to

update procedures to conform with the plant design base requirements.

Conversely a procedure change initiated by maintenance personnel that affects

an operating parameter may necessitate validation by design engineering

personnel to verify expected operating conditions fall within the design base

requirements. Controls should be established to ensure the necessary source

information that initiates a configuration change is sent to all affected

organizations and to ensure that the appropriate reviews, actions, and document

updates are accomplished in a timely manner.