Part Number - Design Modification Suffixes

Design Modification Suffixes

It is a common concept in many corporations to add certain suffixes beyond, or in place of, the regular dash numbers, in order to designate a part that is mostly in conformance with the part design (that is, mostly "to print"), but intentionally lacks certain features. The suffixes are usually "intelligent", that is, they use an encoding system, although the encoding systems are usually corporation-specific (and thus cryptic, and of little use, to outsiders).

An example of such a design modification suffix is adding "V" or "Z" to the end of the part number to designate the variant of the part that is purchased "less paint", "less plating", "with the holes not yet drilled", "intentionally oversize by .01mm", or any of countless other modifications. The intent is usually that the feature in question (such as holes not yet drilled, or paint not yet sprayed) will be added at a higher assembly level; or that maintenance workers in the field will choose from a kit of undersize and oversize parts (such as bushings) in order to achieve a certain fit (sliding fit, light press fit, etc.).